Skyline Trail - Mount Rainier National Park

[4Feet]: The Skyline Trail, the main route for hiking out of Paradise, often features wildflowers, wildlife, and snowy views. For mountain enthusiasts, the Skyline Trail guides the climbers to Camp Muir snowfield and connects to the summit route of the highest mountain in the Pacific Northwest - Mount Rainier. The Skyline Trail was not really new to us. Not only has it become a to-go place for most Washington residents, but also, we accomplished our hike to Camp Muir merely 6 months ago. However, the hike today was still a brand-new experience. Tons of snow accumulated throughout the winter kept Paradise silver white all the way up. Unlike last time, the flowers, animals, exposed rocks, and crevasses were all underneath. We started at 3 o’clock in the morning and hoped to catch the sunrise on the higher level. While departing from Paradise (5,300’), the temperature was a little below 39 and the sky was crystal clear. The Milky Way outshined the waxing crescent moon, yet they were still not bright enough to lead the path. With the headlight on, we started our “freestyle” in the Skyline Trail. The snow on the surface was continuously melting, and the underneath was refrozen. The top layer of ice became fragile and easily breakable. Without snowshoes, it seemed inevitable for hikers to encounter post-holing plunging knee into the snow. Fortunately, we got our snowshoes prepared in addition to microspikes and crampons. We arrived at Panorama Point by 5:30 am. Panorama Point sits on an elevation of 7,100 feet and near the borderline with Camp Muir snowfield. While facing south, we spotted Mount Adams slightly in the west and Mount St. Helens in the east wearing in white in the far vicinity. Turning around, Mount Rainier and Nisqually glacier were right in sight showing their majestic landscapes. The summit seems so close, yet so far. Considering there are 7,300 more feet to climb for, it is at least another 12-hour hike from here. As the dawn rushed into the darkness, the midnight blue in the sky suddenly turned into violet. Within ten minutes, pink blush blended with light orange appeared on the horizon. The change came quickly yet gently. As more soft colors bubbled out of the dawn, even the air was tasted sweet. The mountain peaks in the Cascades were soaked in the morning sky shade; at that moment, the surrounding was peacefully still until a loud crack from snowfield on Mt. Rainier pulled us back. Mount Rainier is known for its avalanche. In the past century, Mt. Rainier has claimed 411 lives. Therefore, we always kept our ears as alert as possible every time when approaching snowfield. Luckily, nothing really happened around where we stood. With the past experience of sunburn from snow reflection, we retreated as the sun rose higher in the sky. Our original plan was to day hike Camp Muir. However, with the current snow condition, the level was beyond what we prepared for. Hiking with tons of snow definitely took more time than a regular hike. In addition, Snow reflection could be a killer to cause overheat or burn on a sunny day. If we plan to attempt Camp Muir again in the near future, we should even start earlier than this time. 4/18/21