Hiking in Paradise

I have always loved Mt. Rainier.  Growing up in the Pacific Northwest, it was always cool to catch a glimpse of it on a clear day.  I have memories of going up to Paradise with my family as a kid, and especially of my grandmother's love for it.  Whenever she saw it, she would say, "There's my mountain..."  Any time I have ever flown into or out of SeaTac airport, I have always asked for a window seat so that I could watch for it as the plane climbed up above the clouds, and a couple of times, I've managed to get some pretty cool photos of it.

As a photographer, I have always wanted to go up to Mt. Rainier and photograph the wildflowers, but as a fat girl, venturing past the Visitors Center always seemed too daunting a task, so I have never attempted it.  But when I decided to take up hiking this summer, a day trip up to Paradise at the peak of wildflower season moved up to the top of my list of Things to Do.

Yesterday, I drove up to Mt. Rainier with my friend Lauren and hiked some of the trails at Paradise. Going up with my family as a kid, I just remember driving up to the Visitors Center, but I don't think we ever hiked any other trails...I had no idea there were so many to choose from, or that they allowed you to get to such high elevations!!

Because I'm a hiking noob and still pretty out-of-shape, we stuck to the "easy" trails.  We started on the Skyline Trail and stopped at the Myrtle Falls Viewpoint.

From there, we hiked up the Alta Vista Trail....

The view from the top of the Alta Vista Trail is really incredible.  Standing there looking out over the other trails, I found myself thinking, "Someday...someday I'll be able to hike the hard ones..."

After taking in the view for a bit, we made our way back down to the Visitors Center, had a bite to eat, and then drove to Refection Lake.

Feeling re-energized, we left Reflection Lake and drove a few miles to a small parking area at the bottom of the 4th Crossing Trail.  We climbed up to the Skyline Trail and then up to Mazama Ridge.  It was a challenging hike, but once we got to Mazama Ridge, the wildflowers were incredible!!

By the time we reached the top of Mazama Ridge, we were completely exhausted.  We were just about to turn around and head back down to the car when we saw a small side trail, so while I snapped a few photos, Lauren went to check it out and see where it led, and if it was worth hiking an extra few hundred feet.  A few seconds later, I heard her say, "Yep...totally worth it!!"  I walked out to where she was and found her standing on the trail, facing east.  It was a precarious spot...the drop off in front of us was very steep...but the view was spectacular!!

As we made our way back to the car, I can't describe how happy I felt.  It was so cool to be able to hike at Mt. Rainier and photograph the wildflowers.  It was something I had wanted to do for so long.

Heading out of the park, we made one last stop and took a short hike down to see Narada Falls.

It was an awesome day.  Not gonna lie...even though we chose "easy" to "moderate" trails, it was TOUGH.  It kicked...my...butt!!  There is no way I could have done it a year ago or even a few months ago.  But the fact that I was able to accomplish it this weekend made me realize how quickly my body is adapting to the changes I'm making.  It motivates me to keep working towards my fitness goals, so that I can go back up and hike some of the more challenging trails.