Daily Amusements of A Midwest Girl: Mount Rainier Wisdoms

Have you ever gone on a trip and wished someone had shared with you the "sparknotes" version of what to expect; well, I recently had one of those experiences. The kind of experience that mades me noticed similarities that happened on my trip to that of the TV show, Gilligan's Island.

On my Seattle Bucket List, I had visit Mt. Rainier; so a friend and I embarked on the journey to the mountain. Typically this road trip would take approximately 1.5 hours but because we were such "lucky" travelers it took us almost four hours. The increase in time is due to the fact that we were traveling on the one weekend of the year where two of our needed highways were going to be closed. Therefore, we embarked on the journey of follow the orange DETOUR signs.

Once we got to Paradise Visitor Center we were definitely excited to get our hiking on. Now this is the important tidbit of information to realize: this was the first time either one of us had ever hiked anything besides a hill (one of us was from the midwest and the other one from Florida). Therefore, the following information can be classified as "Mount Rainier Hiking for Dummies."

Mount Rainier Hiking for Dummies:

Check the highways/interstates for closures (especially if you are going in the winter time) for your planned route to Mt. Rainier.
You are required to carry chains for your tires November 1st- May 1st when entering Mt. Rainier National Park.
Fill up on gas before you enter the park because if you are are near empty you will be scrambling to find a gas station. The nearest station at anyplace in the park will probably be 30-40 miles away from you and it will be expensive.
You will not have cell reception once you enter the park; therefore, take the necessary medication to deal with your technology separation disorder.
It costs $15 for a one-day pass for entry to Mt. Rainier. Keep your receipt that the Ranger Station gives you and can come and go from park as you please. If you plan of visiting multiple times throughout the year, purchase the annual pass which is $30.
The map the Ranger Station gives you upon entry sucks. There's no eloquent way stating that; you must ask specifically for other maps of the park and trails. I would recommend visiting http://www.nps.gov/mora/planyourvisit/trails-of-mount-rainier.htm to explore the different trails that are available and the level of difficulty before your visit so you will know what map to ask for from the Rangers.
So you now have your sucky map in hand and then you begin driving to Paradise (or whatever parking lot you are choosing to park) and you may notice the scarcity of signage telling you where to go. Don't feel bad, because we totally felt like we were going the wrong way but it all ended out okay.
If you want to be able to park at Paradise Visitor Center parking make sure you arrive early, which we did but did not count on the increased traveling time. If you arrive at the park and the sign indicates that the Paradise Lot is full then you will need to park at an additional lot. I recommend Cougar Rock because there is a free shuttle that comes and picks up from Cougar Rock. The shuttle fills up really quickly, we had to wait for two of them before we were able to get on the shuttle and it stops ever 15-30 minutes.
Bring sunscreen. Then remember to put on sunscreen (very important step that I did not do).
Bring bug spray. Believe it or not this is not for ticks but rather for the persistent blood-sucking mosquitos that are everywhere (and not just by water). If you forgo this step then you will have red bumps all over your skin in about a day and half, and then about day three you will have unbearable itching. We sadly did not bring bug spray and suffered the consequences.
Bring lots of water. Think of how much water you think you should bring and then double or triple that (depending on if you are a mouth-breather).
Bring some snack foods: fruits, granola bars, nuts, jerky, etc. Remember the saltier the food the more water you are going to want/need.
Bring a backpack (not a drawstring bag) to carry things in.
Wear some old tennis shoes or some hiking boots because you will encounter a variety of terrain: pavement, rocks, dirt, gravel, mud, grass, and snow
Prepare yourself for sucky signage on the trails as well. There was a point on our trail that was reflection lake was 1.1 miles and then it was 2.2 miles away and we "thought" we followed the right trail. Then there are paths that split and you have no idea which one you should take; so good luck, you have a 50/50 chance of being right.
I had a Mona Lisa comparison upon glancing upon Mt. Rainer from Paradise Visitor Center. Let me explain: From Seattle on a clear day you can see Mt. Rainier and it looks gigantic; however, at the base of the mountain (from Paradise) it didn't seem like it was big enough to be seen all the way in Seattle....hence my Mona Lisa comparison.
If you want to see Reflection Lake you don't have to hike to it, because there is parking available right by the lake. The trail from Reflection Lake back to Paradise is nothing but incline, and even in one stop you come upon a road...do not take the road. You must cross the road to the other side and about 50 feet from the road there is a sign that lets you know that you are back on the right trail (remember sucky signage).
Remember when you are hiking to not just look ahead but look behind you as well because the view constantly changes.

Okay so it sounds like I may have been complaining a little in the above list, but truly these are just things I wished I knew; however, they hardly impacted the AMAZING experience I had hiking. I really do not think the pictures really capture the experience I had.