Three words capture this hike perfectly ... JUST PLAIN WONDERFUL!!

Rated a well deserved 'strenuous', this was our longest jaunt of the 2021 season (so far) at 10.3 miles long. We also did the most elevation gain at 2323'. We hit the trail at 10:30am, returning to our car right at 6pm. We were plenty ready to be off our feet by then, but felt well rewarded for our effort. The hike was a stunner, easily the best we've ever done on Mt. Rainier.

The hike up to Spray Park proper is mostly through forest. The ups and downs roam through stands of trees, streams, and peek-a-boo views of Rainier, all with forest dwelling wildflowers to delight the eyes of those with an interest. While there was not a lot of bird song on the trail, plenty of music came from the numerous streams and baby waterfalls throughout the walk.

A pleasant stopping point is Spray Falls. The small side trail of .2 miles takes hikers to a waterfall that lives up to it's name. It really does give off a mist, at least at this time of year with robust snow melt underway.

Then the core work of the hike begins. We read descriptions of the trail as being a steep climb to the meadows of Spray Park. We wouldn't go that far but it is a heart thumper. We were surprised and impressed by many of the hikers. Usually we don't see all that much gray hair on the trails but this time there were plenty of older hikers trucking along. Right on!

The mileage given for this hike is 8 miles round trip. We had to assume this was the distance to get to the first meadow of Spray Park. One good meadow leads to another on this hike. (The standout views of Spray Park begin on page 5 of this gallery). It appears that Spray Park Trail feeds in somewhere with the Wonderland Trail, and so, keeps going. Our one let-down of the day was Mt. Rainier clouded over for virtually all of the hike. TOO BAD, this dictates we will have to return on a cloudless day to capture the full on flavor of the views.

Until then, no refund necessary. As always...HIKE ON!