Mt. Rainier hike

[Boonie Buster]

Well, it wasn't a long hike or anything, but still fun to just get out and away from everything. My girlfriend and I camped at White River campground thursday night and then friday morning drove up to sunrise lodge after getting a wilderness permit at the entrance and headed towards berkeley park camp. Friday was an awesome day to be heading in! Sunny, not too hot, but not cold. I think it's about 3.5 miles in, and having not hiked with a heavy ass pack made it a rough trip in for us both It started to rain friday night and wasn't getting any better on saturday so we decided to not stay another night and head out and try out the new rain gear:redneck: (which btw, didn't seem to keep us as dry as i'd hope, also it got REALLY cold at forest lake as there isn't much tree cover and it was very windy which dropped the temp. even more. But we did hike out to grand park friday afternoon after setting up camp at berkeley park. AWESOME area, with views of the lookout fire tower and mt. rainier. We were also able to see a couple mountain goats, hadn't seen one in a few years, so that was a nice treat and cool to share that experience with the GF :awesomework: . She was more excited for the marmots we saw along the trail(I think there are more photos of the marmots than of the mountains :haha: ) So anyways, no one will read this, so on with the pics... In a minute...:fawkdancesmiley: :haha:

On the way up at the palisades trailhead.

Just starting out on the trail.

Gratuitous marmot shot!

Looking back up the trail towards the wonderland trail junction.

The watch tower looking from the smaller section of grand park.

Looking back up the canyon towards camp from the small part of G.P.

 

[Boonie Buster]

That's right, tough guy with a fanny pack

The G.P. well worth the afternoon hike.

Coming back from G.P. to berkeley camp

Can you spot the goats? :eeek:

Cooking (heating) dinner

Heading back out
Now you see it...

Now you don't! the fog came in quick, very low visibility...

Do we have to?!?!:haha:

 

[Mrs. Crash]

Very cool views. Looks like alot of fun.

 

[Pat]

Cool pics:awesomework: The scenery around Rainier is great. Looks like some weather paid you a visit too.

 

[Motodestroyer69]

Cool!! You need some "better" raingear! :;

Those pictures of Rainier up close don't even look real!!

Awesome! I'm hoping to get over to Leavenworth next weekend for some climbing and camping, no back-pack humping, though! (work!)

I read all the words, btw, and then enjoyed the pics! :awesomework:

 

[Toyotanut]

Cool!! You need some "better" raingear! :;

Those pictures of Rainier up close don't even look real!!

Awesome! I'm hoping to get over to Leavenworth next weekend for some climbing and camping, no back-pack humping, though! (work!)

I read all the words, btw, and then enjoyed the pics! :awesomework:

don't lie you're just like the mister and everyone else....all you want are the pics:haha:

 

[jeepmauler]

don't lie you're just like the mister and everyone else....all you want are the pics:haha:

nope.......with two masters degrees...................she's a reader



:flipoff:

 

[briejer]

I'm stuck looking at the picture of the Emmons. If we get one more spell of high pressure, I may attempt it.

I want to get back into multi day backpacking. I'm probably 15 pounds and 1,000,000 crunches from being capable.

I'm jealous......looks like a good time spend as a couple.

 

[Boonie Buster]

I'm stuck looking at the picture of the Emmons. If we get one more spell of high pressure, I may attempt it.

I want to get back into multi day backpacking. I'm probably 15 pounds and 1,000,000 crunches from being capable.

I'm jealous......looks like a good time spend as a couple.

It was fun for sure, I am glad she liked it as much as she did, which makes the experience that much better for me, is that my GF enjoyed it as much as me:awesomework: One thing she wants for next time is some walking poles :redneck: i would have to agree, they will make a nice addition to the equipment list.

 

[briejer]

I am 100% dependent on poles. Without them I fall down often, due to a fused ankle and back instability. They also take a good 20% of the load off your feet. I have several sets of poles you are welcome to use.

 

[Boonie Buster]

I am 100% dependent on poles. Without them I fall down often, due to a fused ankle and back instability. They also take a good 20% of the load off your feet. I have several sets of poles you are welcome to use.

I might take you up on that offer to try them out and get a feel for them at least Where the heck are you anyways? I will give you a shout before our next outing, might be a snowshoeing event i think....hope....:corn:

 

[briejer]

I might take you up on that offer to try them out and get a feel for them at least Where the heck are you anyways? I will give you a shout before our next outing, might be a snowshoeing event i think....hope....:corn:

I'm in Puyallup. I have an extra set of MSR snow shoes. How does it sound to play sherpa for me this winter. Your young strong body can haul gear up to Camp Muir in the middle of winter. Should be no others up there. Then while your chillin sipping coffee at 10,000ft, I'll be climbing up gilbarlter ledges then a straight to the top and down.

How many pounds can you carry?

 

[Boonie Buster]

I'm in Puyallup. I have an extra set of MSR snow shoes. How does it sound to play sherpa for me this winter. Your young strong body can haul gear up to Camp Muir in the middle of winter. Should be no others up there. Then while your chillin sipping coffee at 10,000ft, I'll be climbing up gilbarlter ledges then a straight to the top and down.

How many pounds can you carry?

hmmm.... now why do I have to stay at camp? Not to sound rude, but if I went that far i'd love to go the rest of the way with you....errrr....i mean to the top....errr wait....summit mt. rainier....DAMMIT this just doesn't sound right:redneck:

Seriously though, that does sound cool, I need to get in a little better chape because that 60lb pack kicked my ass:booo: I was actually thinking of just keeping the pack loaded down and starting to hike up and down wallace falls with it on :redneck: :haha: But if I get a little better conditioned I might be tempted to take you up on that offer.... Shoot me some more details in a PM or something and let me stew over it...:corn: How much gear would you need me to pack?

 

[briejer]

55-60 pounds

 

[rooinater]

One thing she wants for next time is some walking poles :redneck: i would have to agree, they will make a nice addition to the equipment list.

great pics! the trip looks real familiar, except less clouds around rainier on day 1 for you. trekking poles are great! i swear by them and they also support my tent. How heavy were your "heavy" packs? that trip plus a few miles by myself, loaded w/extra food/water my pack weighed in under 19 lbs. lightweight or ultralight is the only way to really travel and enjoy it in my opinion...

i can't wait till i can afford to start snow shoeing and do some more backcountry snowboarding. but i can't convince any of my snowboarding buddies to pick up a pack and start hiking into the snowy treasures hidden in the backcountry. i have to pull teeth to get them to unstrap and hike a few hundred yards up a ridge to get better conditions...

 

[Boonie Buster]

great pics! the trip looks real familiar, except less clouds around rainier on day 1 for you. trekking poles are great! i swear by them and they also support my tent. How heavy were your "heavy" packs? that trip plus a few miles by myself, loaded w/extra food/water my pack weighed in under 19 lbs. which is lighter than my school bag for college.

i can't wait till i can afford to start snow shoeing and do some more backcountry snowboarding. but i can't convince any of my snowboarding buddies to pick up a pack and start hiking into the snowy treasures hidden in the backcountry. i have to pull teeth to get them to unstrap and hike a few hundred yards up a ridge to get better conditions...

you dont wanna know how heavy.... :booo: That is really good to come in at 19lbs, you gotta get me a list of what you bring lol, I mean, this was our first time overnight hiking/camping, so i KNOW we made some mistakes... I like packing light, believe me. It just didnt happen for some reason:redneck:

 

[rooinater]

i'll find a list, and post it up for you. for food i'd look into freezerbagcooking.com. that method of cooking gets rid of the clean up and by dehydrating everything you still get flavor to weight ratio vs the lack of flavor with freeze dried meals.

 

[Boonie Buster]

i'll find a list, and post it up for you. for food i'd look into freezerbagcooking.com. that method of cooking gets rid of the clean up and by dehydrating everything you still get flavor to weight ratio vs the lack of flavor with freeze dried meals.

cool.

ya we were planning on staying a second night, but that still doesnt account for the mass of weight, I think some of it is our tent/sleeping bag/pad/etc. setup... I think we did ok on the food, I talked with a guy at work about lightweight stuff for food and some of the meals he does... cus ya, if we can get our packs down to 20-30lbs that'd definitely extend our travel distance and enjoyment :redneck:

 

[rooinater]

cool.

ya we were planning on staying a second night, but that still doesnt account for the mass of weight, I think some of it is our tent/sleeping bag/pad/etc. setup... I think we did ok on the food, I talked with a guy at work about lightweight stuff for food and some of the meals he does... cus ya, if we can get our packs down to 20-30lbs that'd definitely extend our travel distance and enjoyment :redneck:

yeah the big 3 (tent, sleep system and pack) is the killer for weight and where it is easiest to cut weight, i pm'd you a list of one of my kits. any more details just ask. as stated in the pm my 2 person base pack weight is 13.44 pounds, figure about a maximum of 4 to 5 lbs carried water between streams and a pound of dehydrated food and energy bars per day, per person. My g/f only really carries her heavy sleeping bag, 6oz mat, water and clothes and i carry the rest. after eating freezer bag cooking style i'm not going back, there is no clean up and the meals are excellent tasting, hell i eat them at home and regular camping trips to sometimes...