Carbon River Backpacking - Mt. Rainier National Park
A consistent theme of this blog is scheduling last minute trips. With a slight relaxation of workload and a strong need to get outside, a plan was hatched, permits were obtain and a trip to Rainier was planned. As a new resident of the Pacific Northwest, a three day introduction to Mt. Rainier in the backcountry seemed just appropriate.
 |
| A view down Carbon River |
Trip Logistics
Per usual last minute plans, the goal was to maximize fun with the permits still available. We were able to score two nights at Ipsut Creek Campground, an old car camping campground, near Carbon River on the northwest side of the park. It seems like this side of the park gets the least amount of traffic and is a convenient drive from the greater Seattle area. We aimed for two more relaxed day and one big day hike in the middle.
Permits can be obtained through recreation.gov. I would recommend scheduling early as the park is extremely popular. We were only able to obtain permits by visiting a less popular site during the week. Permits will have to be picked up at a ranger station either the day before or the day of the start of your trip.
No need for bear canisters on this trip if you are staying at Ipsut Creek Campground as bear boxes are available. Additionally rain gear is definitely recommended as weather can change quickly.
Trip Report
On Sunday morning at around 5 am we departed the ever so distant land of Portland, Oregon to get to the trailhead. Thankfully the traffic was light and the drive was relatively pretty so a 3 hour trek up was not too bad. We arrived at the trailhead around 9:00 am after we had picked up the permits.
It looks like there was a washout on the road right before the official parking so all the cars are now parked on the side of the road. Technically this might be in the neighboring USFS land so you might not actually need to put your NPS pass on the dash, but does not hurt to do so just in case.
 |
| The parking situation. Exciting, I know. |
Day 1
After getting the gear together and packing up, we were off by around 9:30 am. It would only be 5 miles to camp with a gentle 600 feet of climbing. The gravel road is fairly buffed out and wide the whole way. Definitely a comfy route and would be a great first time backpacking trail to get comfortable.
 |
| The lush forest starting the hike in |
The trail itself starts by moving away from Carbon River but gets closer and closer as you move farther from the trailhead. There is lots of deadfall on the side of the trail (both fresh and old trees) so definitely be careful in windy conditions. The many uprooted trees did not inspire confidence.
 |
| More lushness!! A far cry from California |
 |
| Back to Carbon River |
As we continued farther in we passed Greenlake Trailhead on the right hand side. Later on we passed Chenuis Falls trailhead as well. We would circle back later in the day to the falls but for now to camp!
We arrived to Ipsut Creek campground fairly early in the day. The campground is a fairly large loop nestled into the lush green forest. Some of the sites have areas to lock your bike and a couple of group camps as well. We dropped our gear, pitched the tent, and then ate lunch.
If you hike a little past the campground you will arrive at the ranger wilderness station as well as the bathrooms. The pit toilets were a bit smelly with lots of flies. Definitely not world class facilities but having pit toilets was definitely nice.
After an hour so of lunch we broke out the day pack, packed up some snacks, and went back to see Chenuis Falls. This would require us to cross the Carbon River and the bridges are prone to washouts so who knows what to expect.
 |
| Crossing Carbon River. The bridges do not last the whole way. |
 |
| Mt. Rainier peeking out in the distance from the river crossing. |
The crossing itself was not too bad. There was section where a single log spanned a thigh deep section of river. We used branches to balance across but you could likely just take off your shoes and get across just fine.
The water at the falls was extremely clear but very cold. Feel free to take a dip but you have been warned. After a short snack we turned around and slowly made our way back to camp. Dinner was cooked and we turned in as we had a big day hike ahead of us.
Day 2
This is where the fun begins! We have 16.5 miles with about 5200 feet of elevation gain on the docket. The goal? To hopefully get a nice view of Mt. Rainier and the accompanying glaciers. The morning was a bit of a slow start, getting on trail by 10:15 am.We started by heading south towards the ranger cabin. Passing the cabin and crossing a log bridge we took a right to start our way up the Wonderland Trail.
The climb upwards towards Ipsut pass started gently. As we got farther along the 5 mile ascent the trail got rockier and steeper. Eventually we left the dense forest and entered a clearing. For the final mile and a half or so we transitioned from dense brush to rock field and back to dense brush.
 |
| Exiting the dense forest into the dense brush. Everything is dense here. |
 |
| More ups! |
 |
| Looking back down |
Eventually we reached Ipsut Pass. As we crested the climb, the wind and drizzle whipped in. We both immediately went from t-shirts on the way up into layers and shells in a matter of minutes for the descent to Mowich Lake. As we descended we passed more and more day hikers. Definitely less hellos than the backpackers we saw earlier in the day.
We followed the trail on the left once we got to Mowich Lake. We found a nice place on a rock to snack and rest before continuing. Please try not to trample the meadows and only take park defined trails to the lake. Use trails are not good!
 |
| The worlds most average picture of Mowich Lake ever taken |
Sadly because of the fog we were unable to see any of Mt. Rainier. We continued onward towards Spray Park Trail. This would be the final climb of the day and take us back to Wonderland Trail.We dipped back into the dense woods and eventually started heading back upwards toward Spray Park falls. We eventually took a short detour to the base of Spray Park Falls. Sadly no good way for me to get a solid picture of the falls itself. Looks like you'll just have to come out here and see it for yourself!
 | |
| Looking away from Spray Park Trail |
We continued upwards on Spray Park Trail. The trees began to slowly thin out and the terrain turned into a more alpine environment. The temperature slowly dropped while the wind picked up as well. I'm sure we would have seen a beautiful view of Rainier here but the dense fog continued to hide the mountain from our view.
 |
| A look into the meadow |
 |
| Looking back on Spray Park Trail |
Eventually we got to the point where the trees had disappeared. The trail was rocky and the glaciers were visible. Still no part of Mt. Rainier could be seen.
 |
| Still going up! |
 |
| Finally time to go down |
Eventually we topped out at around 6500 feet and began our descent. On the way down we got to cross a small portion of the Lee Glacier. As we descended a bit of precipitation began to collect on my fleece. I did not think how much it was sprinkling until I stopped for a snack and my backpack was soaked! The sprinkle picked up even more so we dawned rain gear to make the final descent more comfortable.
 |
| Right when we realized it was sprinkling. |
This began the final descent. We weaved in and out of the trees slowly making our way down. After jumping over a fair amount of trees, pushing through a bit of brush, and chatting with a poor guy who missed a turn resulting in a 30+ mile hike instead of his 18 he had planned, we made it to the bottom of the trail. This intersected with the Carbon River which we would be able to cross via a suspension bridge. We made our way across the jiggly bridge one by one. It was definitely cool but a little bit sketchy with some of the boards definitely on the verge of falling off.
 |
| The suspension bridge |
Once we crossed the suspension bridge, the light of the day started to fade. We began to pick up our pace in hope to get back to camp before the sun set. This was a futile task as by around 8:00pm we were hiking in the dark. We were able to hold off on headlamps for a while but ultimately had to break them out to get back. After a long day we finally got back to camp at 8:30 pm. We cooked a quick meal and called it a day.
Day 3
This is the most uneventful day. We packed up camp and hiked back to the car! Nothing wild, just 5 miles of good hiking to finish off a fun three days.
This ended up being an amazingly fun trip! The perfect amount of relaxing and hard. I would definitely recommend Ipsut Creek Campground as an introduction to backpacking campground or a great jumping off point for more experienced backpackers. The easy approach makes this great for beginners but the steep terrain beyond can definitely make a challenging trip if you'd like.
Happy hiking!
-m
Boy do I love reading this blog--by far the best one out in the universe! Beautiful pictures, this trip sounds amazing!!! Thank for writing such a great piece, very much enjoyed!!
ReplyDelete