Everett, Wash.
Published: Sunday, October 7, 2007

Mount Rainier road trip

Highways and sights along park's west side worth exploring

By Maggie Savage and Sharon Wootton
Special to The Herald

 Crispness with a hint of snow in the air, fall color, small-town attractions, "wild" animals and artistic creations are scattered along the roads to Mount Rainier National Park.

A road trip around the park this year has meant a 100-mile detour because of the closing of storm-damaged Highway 123 from Cayuse Pass to Stevens Canyon Road. Although it may be open, let's stick to the west side of the mountain.

Plan on a two-night, three-day trip to browse the towns and take a few short park hikes. Let's assume you'll head east from I-5 near Olympia (follow the park signs), with stops at Northwest Trek Wildlife Park near Eatonville, Elbe and Ashford before going in the Nisqually (southwest) entrance of the park.

On the way

Northwest Trek Wildlife Park: If you have children, this is a must stop for a narrated 50-minute tram tour to see bighorn sheep, deer, Roosevelt elk, woodland caribou and mountain goats.

Park employees have scattered food close to the road so many of the animals will be practically within reach.

The park also gives special family programs for an additional fee, such as the elk-bugling tours and a behind-the-scenes tour.

Sculptures: About two miles before Elbe, stop at Dan Klennert's Ex Nihilo (Latin for something created out of nothing) sculpture park, a figment of Klennert's imagination made real, including a giraffe of recycled metal pieces.

Elbe: The November 2006 storms damaged the tracks at the Nisqually River bridge so Mount Rainier Scenic Railroad now leaves from Mineral, a hamlet about 15 minutes away.

Try the 2 p.m. autumn leaves special on the next four weekends, being pulled by one of seven steam locomotives honored by Trains Magazines.

But stop at Elbe's Artist Depot and train station anyway. It has a classy gift shop with art, including scrimshaw work. The small but historic (1906) Elbe Church is across the tracks from the depot.

Mineral Lake: On a short side trip here, perhaps to take the train, check out the original Mineral post office, once the smallest in the country. Enjoy a view of the lake with Mount Rainier in the distance.

Ashford: If you hurry and get here today, enjoy "Art Inspired by the Mountain" during the first Rainier Arts Festival showcasing the region's artists and offering hands-on workshops and music.

Ashford is Rainier-climbing central, home to Rainier Mountaineering Inc. (RMI), which has guided thousands of climbers to the Rainier's 14,411-foot peak since 1969. It's owned by Lou and Peter Whittaker with Joseph Horiskey.

Whittaker Mountaineering (Peter and Erika Whittaker) sells and rents climbing gear and clothing. International Mountain Guides is based in Ashford, too.

Whittaker's Bunkhouse (Win and Sarah Whittaker) usually caters to climbers who are biding their time before the next ascent. The couple run the Espresso Shop & Wireless Internet Cafe and are the main energy behind the spring Rainier Independent Film Festival.

In the park

The yellows, reds and purples of low-bush huckleberries, mountain ash and vine maples can be eye-catching in early fall but usually peak the first two weeks of October.

The Nisqually entrance (pick up a map) to Longmire and Paradise is open all year although it can be challenging when the snow falls. Past Paradise, a 4½-mile segment of the 19-mile Stevens Canyon Road is closed east of the Backbone Ridge viewpoint and west of the Grove of the Patriarchs parking area.

The majority of the 2 million park visitors a year come through this entrance, some taking the short walks around Longmire, soaking up the atmosphere, enjoying meals at the historic National Park Inn (think Tahoma frittatas, Rainier beef chili and bourbon buffalo meatloaf) and enjoying their first good look at Mount Rainier and the largest glacial system on the mainland.

The inn is offering a stay-one-night get-one-night free Sunday through Thursday (holidays excluded) between Nov. 4 and April 30 (360-569-2275).

Then it's on to Paradise, following the switchbacks up the mountainside, pulling off often, photographing many peak views and reading interpretive signs.

At Paradise, workers continue to remodel Paradise Inn, hoping to open in May. The new Paradise Visitor Center is under construction. Weather and contractors willing, the center may open in fall 2008. The existing Jackson Visitor Center will be demolished.

Head to the visitor center first to see the model of the mountain and talk to the rangers about weather and trail options.

What's terrific about trails out of Paradise is that there is one for every ability, and many of the closer trails are paved. If hiking to the peak doesn't work for you, at least take the 1¼-mile Nisqually Vista Trail, with excellent views of the peak and the Nisqually Glacier.

Going home

On your way, drive north from Eatonville on Highway 162 and turn right at the junction with Highway 165. In about 10 miles, the road splits. The left-hand fork to the park's Carbon River entrance (closed at the park boundary due to storm damage but open to hikers and bikers) and the right fork to Mowich Lake, open until Oct. 8 or the first snowfall.

Wilkeson: Home to the National Handcar Races in July, the town reflects its mining heritage. Wilkeson was once called the roughest mining town west of Butte, Mont.

Although it's still tied to the past, there are lattes and Italian soda at Skeek's Pizza. If owner Bert Gonzales has a minute, he'll talk about the sandstone that has been quarried here since 1886, including sandstone for capital buildings in Olympia, cobblestones for Pioneer Square and sandstone for Seattle's Bon Marche, now Macy's.

Past the elementary school is Coke Oven Park; check out the coke ovens used by a nearby coal mine. A quarter-mile farther is the active Wilkeson Sandstone Co.

Carbonado: An 1889 saloon with a sign that says "Model T parking only," a cemetery with graves dating back to 1880 (many of them for miners killed in a mine explosion and other accidents), a collection of old cars waiting for tender loving care and the Funky Gardener rule here.

Pat Eitner combines plants, Hypertufa pots and iron art to create Stone Cousins for creative gifts and yard art.

For more information on the Mount Rainier area, start with www.visitrainier.com or call 877-270-7155.



Travel writers Maggie Savage and Sharon Wootton are co-authors of "You Know You're in Washington When …".
© 2009The Daily Herald Co., Everett, WA