Stats
Roundtrip mi: 9
Elev. gain: 1100ft
Party: Michelle, Deb, Mosquitos, Potholes, Sheer Cliffs, and Shelby
Words to describe: Stunning Meadows, Lots of DEET.
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| I wanted to point it out, just in case you couldn't see it. |
SUMMARY: Amazing. Amazing. Amazing. This hike was so great! It was super easy (compared to what I am used to!), anyone who is physically capable could do this (even if you are out of shape, you could still make it! There are only a few steep parts!). You walk through a forest which I described as "Twilight looking" although, to be fair, I am in the middle of reading Twilight and have Edward Cullen on the mind, so everything is "Twilight looking" to me! Haha, but it was mossy and creepy looking for the first part. About a mile up you reach Lake Eleanor:
Lake Eleanor is cute, small/medium sized, and quaint. There are camp sites there, but I wouldn't suggest it...the mosquitoes were sooooo bad. (I'll speak more to that in a minute!) So you hike up a few difficult, steep parts (you may need a "breather") but then, it opens to this amazing, beautiful meadow known as Grand Park. Grand Park is a HUGE flat meadow --when Mt. Rainier blew up, this is where the lava went....thus the flatness. When you look around, you are literally surrounded by meadow. Peak wildflower season is in about a week and a half, and I am sure it will be out of control beauty!
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| Pictures really don't do this beautiful piece of land justice. |
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| Michelle doesn't like her picture being taken, but occasionally when she turns her back, we snap one. |
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| There is an amazing "Silver Forest" due to wild fires. Sad, but beautiful! |
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| Avalanche Lilies |
DANGERS: However, in order to do this amazing hike, you must take into consideration the physical capabilities of your car. Someone on the WTA website wrote: "The road has many potholes, but can be driven in any car if driven slowly." REALLY? ANY car? No. Absolutely not. The ten mile stretch of FS Road 73 takes about 40 minutes if you want to drive carefully and not destroy your car. The road had tons of potholes first off, and second, it was one of the scariest roads I have ever been on. I kept my nose in my Twilight book to avoid peeing myself. This picture doesn't do the scariness justice AT ALL, but it shows a little bit of the sheer cliffs off the gravel road winding up the hill....
It is a bit blurry as it is taken with my cellphone out of a window...but seriously....CLIFFS on one side, and rocks and trees falling off the cliff to your opposite side. SCARY. If you are easily freaked by stuff like this....well...lets just say Forest Service Road 73 is not for the faint of heart. One particular part of the road had what we called a "Stick Feature." We think it was put there to make the hole looks less gigantic and scary? "Lets just throw some sticks over it so they can't see that their car has the potential to go tumbling into the river...."
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| "Stick Feature" off to the left, marked with pink tape. Serious shitty road! |
I wouldn't let the road stop you though, it was an incredible hike! Just take a hefty car, your big boy pants, and a cautious attitude.
WILDLIFE: I have been to Grand Park twice now, once via the Sunrise side of Mount Rainier, and now via the back door (I recommend both!!! Both are stunning, but the back door is much easier, and shorter). Grand Park is known for having Elk, and I have never seen any there. Maybe I'm just not lucky! I did see Elk tracks, so they ARE there. We saw what looked to be cougar poo (not confident in this identification), but the main "wildlife" that I have to talk about are the stupid freaking mosquitoes. It was the WORST I think I have ever experienced.
Dad: "Well, did you spray yourself with bug spray?"
Mom: "Yes. Like three times"
Dad: "Well, you gotta really cake it on, but it on your clothes and everything"
Shelby: "Dad, we know...we did...it was still bad."
Dad: "Did you spray it on your face and everything"
Mom: "YES. We sprayed it EVERYWHERE, multiple times, and it didn't help.... these mosquitoes were everywhere."
Dad: "Well.....did it have DEET in it?
Mom and Shelby: "YYYYEESSSS."
Shelby: "Nothing worked."
Michelle, my mother and I ended up having to eat our lunch while walking. As soon as you stop you will get swarmed. But no big, we just walked around, and looked at the mountain; sandwich in tote.
I know I talked a lot of shit about the road and the "wildlife" but this was a great hike, and truly amazing, and I would highly recommend it, to the novice and expert alike.
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