60 miles in six days on Mount Rainier's Wonderland Trail

We stared at our tent in shock. It was floating in a puddle, which had certainly not been there 30 minutes ago -- and all of our gear was in there. In a flurry of activity, we opened the tent, pulled out our gear, unstaked the poles and moved the tent to higher ground.

We stopped to assess the damage. Everything was dry -- precious sleeping bags included. The sleet was still coming down, but our tent had just proved it was worth every cent.

It was our first night on the Wonderland Trail, a 93-mile loop around Mount Rainier. We had planned a six-day, 60-mile trip, and we weren't looking forward to six days of wet and cold.

"The lady at the ranger station did say the weather was supposed to improve," I told my husband, Jerry, optimistically.

He didn't look convinced.

Mowich Lake to Dick Creek, 9.5 miles

When we woke we found ice inside the tent. The day, though, was sunny. By some glorious luck we saw clouds only a few times for the entire trip, and it didn't rain again.

We had two choices for the day's hike and chose to follow the official Wonderland Trail -- the Ipsut Pass route goes through lower forests and along the Carbon River. Next time, we will hike the other option. Spray Park offers good views of Rainier, and on a clear day, Mount Baker.

This corner of the park was heavily affected by severe flooding in 2006. The Carbon River Road is still closed from a washout then. We saw several signs of the area's unstable geography.

We had to detour slightly off the official Wonderland, as the trail is buried under many tons of rock. As we crossed a log bridge, we saw the previous bridge a bit upstream. It was tangled mess of bent and broken wood.

One of the highlights of the day was a suspension bridge. Depending on your viewpoint it's either thrilling or terrifying. The sign warns: "DO NOT BOUNCE OR SHAKE BRIDGE!" These kinds of signs are written for people like my husband. Showing remarkable restraint, he bounced the bridge only a little.

The bridge offers a great view of the Carbon River glacier, which is covered in a thick layer of rock debris. The glacier fascinated me, and I had to force myself to obey the sign to stay away. We could see the glacier for most of our climb into Dick Creek, our camp for the night. We had the place to ourselves.

We found the toilet easily, thanks to a helpful sign. Like most wilderness toilets, it had no walls but it did offer the user a stunning view of the glacier.

The toilet also had a sign reading "Notice for Men. Please DO NOT urinate in toilet. Too much liquid disrupts the composting process. Urinate over drop-off." This prompted a great deal of juvenile laughter. Jerry, especially, thought the permission to go over the cliff was thoroughly entertaining.

Since it was our first night we had a fresh meal of tacos. We savored it, knowing the rest of the trip would be all about freeze-dried food and GORP.

Dick Creek to Granite Creek, 9.5 miles

I woke up excited and ready to get moving -- a rarity for this night owl. The guidebook promised marmots and pikas and wide, alpine parks during the day's hiking.

From Dick Creek, the climb starts immediately -- actually, it's just a continuation of the previous day's haul. We shed layers only a few minutes up the trail. We stopped several more times, to gawk as Rainier came into clearer view. From this side, the mountain is rugged, the huge face of Willis Wall is more rocky and jagged than the view of the mountain more commonly photographed from the south.

The day included one delight after another. We saw marmots. We enjoyed lunch overlooking a lake that reflected Mount Rainier. We heard avalanches falling. We had a snack by a stream that could have provided the sound track for a relaxation CD.

Our lunch spot was at a tiny lake with a full-on view of the mountain. The lake had no name on the map, but our guidebook said some call it Reflection Pond or Frog Pond. It lived up to both names. The mountain reflected perfectly. Upon closer examination, many huge pollywogs swam around the lake, and tiny little frogs clung to the edges of the shore.

We filled up our water bottles after an easy hike down to Mystic Lake. We learned it's a very popular spot to stay, making it hard to get a permit there. In what would become a mantra for the trip, we said, "We have to come back here."

The trail from Mystic Lake falls steadily to Winthrop Creek, which flows out from under Winthrop Glacier. The trail crosses rocky moraine areas; the widely spaced trees are beautiful, and different from the rest of the hiking on the Wonderland.

As we headed downhill from the lake, we stopped to chat to some hikers heading up. We had already learned the two most common questions on the trail: "Where are you coming from?" and "Where are you headed?"

The two men said they were hiking the entire trail in six days. We gaped at them.

That day they had already covered more mileage than we would in a day and a half. We complimented them on their fitness and skill and told them their destination, Mystic Lake, was not far off.

As soon as we were out of their hearing range, Jerry and I asserted that we were never, ever doing a trip that quickly. We were thoroughly enjoying a more leisurely pace with time for photos, long lunches and small side trips.

We barely noticed the last hike into our campground. The trail included few switchbacks, instead powering straight up the hill, dumping us, exhausted, into camp.

Granite Creek to White River Campground, 8.1 miles

"It's up to 35 degrees," Jerry announced, checking the thermometer after breakfast. "It's getting balmy!"

The third day started off with increasingly stunning views. Eventually the trail climbs above the tree line and the mountain dominates the sky.

Because today would be relatively easy, we took the time for a small side trip up Skyscraper, 7,078 feet. The scramble was simple, but for the first time this trip, I was seriously nervous.

At the top, Jerry stood, enjoying the 360-degree view. I sat with my back to solid rock. All I could see was 360 degrees of ways to fall off our tiny perch. After I settled myself down, I couldn't deny the view was stunning.

We could see the Mount Fremont fire lookout across the valley. To the north a wide open grassy area fascinated us. It was so open and flat it looked man-made. Looking at the map, we realized a trail goes through the area. We added yet another place to our list of places to visit.

After a scramble down, we met some fellow hikers, who pointed out a black bear in the valley below.

The trail continued toward Sunrise, a popular tourist destination. After the isolation of the trail, it was jolting to see so many people. In about five minutes we saw more people than we'd seen the whole rest of the trip.

We took advantage of civilization to buy a cheeseburger and fill our water bottles. Then we began the climb down to White River Campground.

At White River we refreshed our food with a cache our friend had left. We dove into the cache like it was a Christmas stocking. Jelly Bellies! Trail mix! Mac 'n' cheese! Batteries for the camera!

White River to Indian Bar, 9.8 miles

The next morning, our packs heavier with new food, we started out on my favorite day of the trip. Several miles in, the trail started to climb steeply and the mountain came into view.

We took the time to inspect a cliff face with our binoculars. We were rewarded when we found a resting mountain goat, which was doing an admirable impression of a snow patch.

After a few short switchbacks, we reached Summerland. The moment I arrived, I was sorry we hadn't planned to stay the night. Summerland features one of the best views of the mountain, along with alpine meadows full of brooks and an explosion of wildflowers. Since we couldn't stay, we settled for a leisurely lunch. (If you stay here, try to score campsite five.)

Summerland also features a very fancy composting toilet. It even has walls.

When we finally left Summerland, we needed to get moving, or we were going to have to set up camp in the dark. That plan was quickly derailed by a herd of goats. More than 20, including many adorable kids, were grazing in a small meadow.

Reluctantly, we left the goats and started climbing again toward Panhandle Gap. If you're going to hike this area, which I highly recommend, keep in mind that snow lingers until late in the season. Be careful. In the first week of September we had to cross several snowfields, including a few that made me wish I had crampons

When we reached our camp area, Indian Bar, we found an example of the unstable geography of the area. The stream was rushing over the trail and what had obviously been meadow not long before. The ranger told us the creek had jumped its banks less than a month before during a thunderstorm.

We paused near the rock shelter at the camp to watch a helicopter fly in a load of materials to fix the floor. The ranger and carpenter -- wearing what he called "inmate orange" for signaling the helicopter -- explained that the shelter was going to get new bunks, along with work on the flooring to get rid of the swamp-like surface.

Several more helicopters dropped off loads during the evening. Sadly, none heard our request to fly us in a pizza.

That night we hung everything that could conceivably interest a bear (food, toothpaste, sunscreen, bug spray). The ranger told us a male bear and also a sow and her three cubs were living in the area. As much as I wanted to see bears, I did not want to see them chewing on my backpack at 3 in the morning.

Indian Bar to Maple Creek, 9.9 miles

We ate breakfast slowly. We packed even slower. By this time we were really good at the packing process, but we just didn't want to leave. Indian Bar just felt good -- peaceful, remote and natural.

We stopped at the creek to fill up our bottles before hiking out of the valley. While Jerry was tediously pumping water, the ranger filled his bottle straight from the stream. We gawked.

"Aren't you worried about treating that?" Jerry asked.

"Oh, I will, I've got a UV filter," he said. "You stick it in the water and it zaps everything. Just 90 seconds."

For the first time, I wished we were back in civilization. I would go to REI and buy one of those things in two seconds.

The climb out of Indian Bar is as lovely as the descent in. We stopped on the trail to watch a ptarmigan and her four babies wander through the grass, chirping to each softly.

For several miles after Indian Bar, the trail follows a long, high ridge, offering 360-degree views in many places. Mount Adams is visible to the south. This is some of the most rewarding hiking I've ever done. By this point our legs were strong and the trail was gentle, so we could spend plenty of time gazing at the view.

Maple Creek to Longmire, 10.4 miles

The last day passed in a flash. We packed up quickly -- I am now a pro at tent stuffing and Jerry can get the stove going in moments -- and hit the trail. Our legs were in shape, the trail was wide and the miles flew by. The hike was nice, but after the splendor of the higher trail, comparatively unremarkable.

At one spot on the trail, we paused for a trail crew doing some work. They were hauling a huge tree trunk in place for a new bridge. Remember this is wilderness; they were using manpower, not gas power. If you happen across a trail crew, thank them.

The last few miles into Longmire the trail is well traveled. It's wide enough to walk side by side. Jerry and I amused ourselves by trying to see how many Beatles songs we could sing. We also started plotting our next trip.

We were getting ready to leave, but all we were thinking about was how soon we could come back.