Lake Allen "Trail"

Twice now I’ve attempted to climb Mt. Wow from the access on the West Side Road. The start of the trail is marked by an “X” on a tree, with a pull out for a car or two. The first time was in November 2019 the day after the West Side Road was closed/gated at its entrance. The second time was with a buddy in September of 2020. On the the November trip I encountered some navigation problems above Lake Allen, losing my Whippet in dense steep brush as I was trying to weave between horizontal slide alder branches. By the time I gained the upper slopes there was a layer of snow on slippery steep grass, so I decided to turn back. Here’s the blog on that one, look for “Wow Failure”. On the second trip with my buddy we got a late start due to weather in the morning and it became obvious that were we to continue to the Wow summit, we would be trying to find this sketchy trail in the dark.

Actually the trail is fairly clear until nearing Lake Allen and progressing laterally through the forest. The crux of finding the trail lies in where it descends on a ridge line. I found using the Strava track, plus marking critical points on GPS greatly aided in getting back to the trail.

Although this is a path, it is very steep and rugged….and sometimes vague. At one point it gains 2000’ in one mile. Don’t attempt this if you don’t have off trail skills. On my two attempts up here I never actually went to Lake Allen, instead contouring higher to the meadow that eventually leads to Mt. Wow.

Aurora Peak (6094')

Providing a more lingering experience of solitary hikes, the Off Trail series takes the viewer to places seldom seen by dedicated Wonderland Trail hikers or those who stick to trails during the traditional summer season. Aurora Peak (6094') is found near Klapatche Park off the Wonderland Trail. This trek took place on November 2, 2019 during a period of great weather. Aurora Peak was accessed via biking the West Side Road to St. Andrews Creek, hiking the St. Andrews Creek Trail, and proceeding on the Wonderland until the off trail section. A short visit to a frozen St. Andrews Lake was in order also. Stats for the day, 27 miles (16 biking)/5700’ elev. The blog post on this hike can be found here.



Wahpenayo/Chutla/Eagle Peaks

It made for a full day with 11.3 miles and 6600’ of climb, but these 3 peaks are clustered together with access from the Eagle Peak trail so it made sense to get them all in in one day. I departed the Eagle Peak trail according to a description: leave the trail at 5000’ where it joins an open meadow and head east to the saddle between Wahpenayo and Chutla at 5800’”. After summiting Wahpenayo (6231’), I made my way back to the saddle and descended, contouring around until I spotted a possible way to the saddle between Chutla and Eagle. Some steep climbing here and lots of huffing and puffing. After summiting Chutla (6000’) I scrambled back to the end of the maintained trail, the saddle between Eagle and Chutla. Some mild exposed scrambling led to the summit of Eagle (5958’), where I returned to the trail and enjoyed a beautiful afternoon stroll back to my parked vehicle. The blog post for these peaks can be found here.

Plummer/Denman Peaks

This was a relatively easy day compared to the 3 peaker the day before, with just 6 miles and 3400’ of climb/descent. I started off attempting Pinnacle Peak (6562’) but got off course and tried to traverse instead of just going straight up the ridge. Crumbly steep slopes sapped my gumption by the time I reversed back to the ridge. I ascended another 100 feet and decided to turn back. However, the day was not done as Plummer (6370’) and Denman (6006’) were still on the menu, and the main course was some easy peaks topped with abundant sunshine and perfect temperatures. This is glorious terrain. Read the blog post here.

Andrew Benchmark (6716')

Piggy backing on a jaunt the day before to Aurora Peak, I set out on November 3, 2019 during a period of fantastic weather to climb Andrew Benchmark (6716'). Although it is close to the previous day's climb of Aurora Peak, with the short days I took a different route to Andrew, utilizing the West Side Road to Round Pass, then the South Puyallup Trail to the Wonderland Trail, leaving the snow covered trail in St. Andrews Park and proceeding towards Andrew. This trip involved contouring around the base of Andrew and accessing it from the Northeast side. Snow was consolidated. I had a flat tire on my mountain bike in the morning so had to do this entire trip via foot. The blog post on this trip can be accessed here.


Mount Ararat (6010')

I’m really chatty on this outing. Maybe because I’d been hiking, running and peak bagging for the past few months and was in relatively good shape. This jaunt to Mount Ararat (6010’) seemed like a walk in the park, and my legs barely noticed the 12 miles and 3800’ of climb/descent. If only this could last, but I enjoyed it in the moment. Unfortunately, the fantastic view towards The Rock shall remain a mystery to me, as my time on the summit only offered a few seconds of the very tippy top of Rainier. Nonetheless, a fantastic day in the mountains! Read the Mount Ararat blog here.

Anvil Rock (9584')/Muir Snowfield Ski

The crowds were thick at Paradise (Mt. Rainier National Park). March was well into the Pandemic and this would be my last foray away from home for many months. Once I got above Panorama Point there were few people and skinning right side towards Anvil Rock voided the slopes of mouth juicers. The skiing above 7500’ or so was difficult to say the least, but lower elevations saw softer snow. This allowed me to ski the Panorama face, something I had skirted in the past. Another example of the differences one can encounter when back country vice resort skiing; it can be humbling. Stats: 8 miles/4400’ The Anvil Rock trip report can be found here.

Mt. Rainier: Cowlitz Rocks (7450')

I ventured out as the pandemic was getting serious for a solitary skin/ski on March 18th, 2020. The low angled terrain made for more skinning than skiing; this jaunt could just as easily have been done on snowshoes. The weather was superb, though, and besides a couple of snow shoers heading in a different direction my time outside was devoid of people.

Tamanos Mountain (6790')

Another peak in Mount Rainier National Park; I am slowly working on climbing park peaks on the 100 list. Tamanos Mountain (6790’) was accessed from the White River entrance to the park, taking the Owyhigh Lakes trail. This video picks up after leaving the established trail and accessing the climbers trail to the saddle, turning right and skirting rock outcroppings on the left to the summit. The blog post for Tamanos can be found here. Another beautiful day in the park!

Sunshine Point (MRNP)

Sunshine Point is just a short way inside Mt. Rainier National Park from the Nisqually entrance. When my kids were little, we would camp here in my pickup truck for a few days as they played in the woods and explored the Nisqually River flood plain. Alas, in November of 2006 severe flooding washed away a portion of the (drive-in) campground and access road and it was closed forevermore. In October of 2019 I ‘schwacked into the old campground and took a stroll, noting the degradation of the picnic tables and the robustness of the metal trash cans. Nostalgia was in the air. (NOTE: I’ve edited this video after a tour in June, 2022. It’s now a longer version that encompasses what’s left of the campground and has also been incorporated in the “SHORTS” pulldown.)

Tahtlum Peak (6567')

Tahtlum Peak (6567’) is accessed in Mt. Rainier National Park from Chinook Pass. After hiking south on the Pacific Crest Trail, I proceeded left towards Tahtlum, crossing a couple of significant bumps in the terrain along the way. This made for a relaxed day with only 8 miles and 2600’ of climb. View the blog post on Tahtlum Peak here, especially to see the massiveness of Mt. Rainier compared to the video, which (because of the wide angle lens) minimizes objects in the distance.

TumTum Peak (4678')

I was hoping for clearing later in the day; TumTum is a wooded summit so there were no views to be expected. Knocking this off first would allow me to hit Ararat later. Alas, no clearing was forthcoming and instead the rain turned to snow. Ararat deserved better weather so I called it a day. It may look kinda miserable, but any day in the woods is a good one. Stats for the day: 14 miles/5000’ TumTum blog post can be found here.

Mount Rainier: Select Summits

41 summit and high point video in Mt. Rainier National Park from a compilation over a few years. In order.....Burroughs Mountains, Skyscraper, Mt. Ruth, Steamboat Prow, Goat Island Mountain, Curtis Ridge, Aurora Peak, Andrew, Tokaloo Rock, Success Divide/Cleaver, Satulick Mountain, Iron Mountain, Copper Mountain, Pyramid Peak, The Colonnade, Shriner Peak, Brown Peak, Slide Mountain, The Palisades, Antler Peak, Dege Peak, McNeeley Peak, Hessong Rock, Mt. Pleasant, Echo Rock, Observation Rock, Ptarmigan Ridge Prominence, Russell Glacier, Fay Peak, Knapsack Pass, Tolmie Peak, Martin Peak, August Peak, Virginia Peak, Berry Peak, Banshee Peak, Panhandle Gap, Whitman Crest, Meany Crest, plus a no view shot of Gobblers Knob at the end.

Mt. Adams RTM Off-Trail Timelapse

Mike Woodsmansee's book, Trekking Washington, describes how to negotiate the substantial off trail portion on Mt. Adam's east side. I used this as a guide, relying mostly on line of sight and altimeter, to negotiate this section when completing this Round The Mountain trek. Because this hike is so rarely done, at least when one searches for internet content, I attached a GoPro to my shoulder strap and set it to take one photo per second. Although not easy to watch, I am making this video available for people willing to undertake this strenuous journey to at least get a feel for what the terrain is like. Despite being only about 5 miles, it took me nearly 8 hours to negotiate the eastern off trail portion. This section is on the Yakama Reservation, so make sure you are legal to cross this land. When I did this hike on June 24-25, 2015, the Yakama had opened their boundaries early due to lack of snow. I camped (and parked) at the Cold Springs campground so did not need a permit as I transited the Reservation in one day and did not bed down until off Yakama land, finishing the loop hike CCW on day 2. Although I have portions of a GPX track, my device lost contact a number of times so it is not complete enough to make available. Besides, anyone attempting this trek should have enough skill, experience and confidence to undertake the task without handholding. This proved to be a tough but extremely rewarding journey. I hope this time lapse is of help to anyone researching and undertaking this trek. To download this video go to the Vimeo link below.