This trip started way, way back in March when I actually won one of the many permit lotteries I enter. You see, some places are so popular they run lotteries through recreation.gov. Each year I tithe in hopes I'll be rewarded with a permit. Each year I, along with thousands of others, get an email that says, "Nope. Not a chance, sucker. But thanks for the cash." This year was the first I'd won any lottery making me something like 1 for a billion. Not that I'm bitter or anything. Anyway, I had a slot in the Mount Rainier National Parks early reservation party. I booked my spots and then I just had to wait.

Finally August rolls around and we dutifully drive to the ranger station to pick up our permits. Except I booked the WRONG DANG ZONE! Seriously. I have to stop doing this. Luckily, there was space in the correct zone so we switched and drove to the trailhead. (If you're wondering, I had booked APTA when I meant to book XPTA.)

It was not quite chaos as the Mowich Lake trailhead, but close. Almost everyone there was heading down the Wonderland to get to Spray Park. Not us! I've done that slog and the switchbacks up from Spray Falls are no fun. This time I figured we'd go up and over Knapsack Pass. Twas a much better choice.

The trail was a little hard to find and began steep as it climbed from the lake, but it very quickly opened into the open basin north of Fay Peak. There were pika and marmots and no people. Wonderful. Knapsack Pass gave us our first views of the Mountain and the miles we still had ahead of us. I'd been warned about the descent on the east side of the pass, but it turned out to be cake. We wound through the boulders and passed tarns before climbing over the shoulder of Mount Pleasant. Down again and to the Wonderland for a short stretch before confusing the heck out of the through hikers by leaving the trail and heading straight toward the Mountain.

I was concerned about finding a place to camp that would follow all the best practices of Leave No Trace. We'd need somewhere our tent and feet wouldn't damage the delicate alpine plants. All along our route I would spy a potential spot and mentally mark it for use if we couldn't find something better. I needn't have worried. There were multiple sites at the lake at the terminus of the Flett Glacier. We were the only ones there so we had our pick. We set up and slipped into the tent for some relaxation.

Wait. Is that rain? Nuts!

We scrambled to get the rainfly on the tent and the tarp up over our gear. The winds picked up and then the thunder and lightning started. It was very exciting, but not a long lasting storm. We cooked dinner and played cards while the rain fell. When it ended, the greedy soil soaked up the rain and soon it was dry again. Very weird.

Lilly's a morning person so we went to bed early and woke up early. Too early. I had to convince her she didn't really need to get up before the sun rose. I delayed her until 7a when I realized it was pointless and we both got up. Our goal for the day was to climb Observation Rock.

I was a curious to see how interested she'd be to hike on the middle day. It'd been years since she had turned in a 3,000 foot day, but she was all for it. What's another 1,000 feet? Plus she got to walk on a glacier for the first time.

There was still plenty of snow atop the ice to make travel easy. Only one section of the glacier had exposed ice so we just kicked steps right up. If we got too hot, we rolled in the snow. We hid from the sun and (mostly) managed to dodge sunburns. (I missed the tiny ring of exposed skin between my sock and my compression sock and Lilly had a little shoulder burn from the day before.)

Above the glacier we were back on loose rock and that special mix of dirt, tiny rocks, and ash you only find on volcanoes. Two steps forward, one step back. A couple of route finding challenges later and we were on the summit. The side we came up was mellow compared to the sheer drop above the glacier. What views! What spleen tingling feelings! Glorious!

Had it not been for my bruised butt we would have glissaded much of the route down. As it was, we walked, skipped, and plunge-stepped back to camp. The lake called to us, but dipping a toe in the near freezing water cooled us sufficiently to prevent an actual swim. Instead, we settled under our tarp to relax again.

And then someone had the audacity to intrude on our private paradise! How dare they? Ahem. Anyway, they chose a spot significantly removed from ours so it was all good. Besides, we were asleep early and they were pretty much gone before we were up in the morning.

It was another perfect day for our walk out. We saw a ptarmigan family (appropriate since we were on Ptarmigan Ridge) and found some scat. The area between the Flett and the Wonderland makes me think about the Scottish highlands, though since I've never been I don't know if it's really like that.

At the Wonderland, we ran into people again. We opted to take it all the way back to the trailhead so Lilly could see Spray Falls, though she was underwhelmed. The crowds got thicker and thicker as we got closer to the cars until at last we were back. Packs dumped in the trunk and fresh(er) clothes on our bodies, we cracked into a couple of ice cold Cokes and a bag of Ruffles. It was the perfect end to the trip.

📍On the lands of the spuyaləpabš (Puyallup) people.

(Ice cold? How? I bought a couple of Miir Food Canisters and now we fill them with ice and a canned beverage each. They keep it cold for up to three days even in a black car cooking in the sun. And no, they're not a sponsor, but boy would I love them to be.)

Bonus: We found ice cream on the way home and a new official Moosefish Approved Post-Hike Ice Cream Parlor: Simple Goodness Sisters Soda Shop in Wilkeson.