Experience the best of Mt Rainier National Park

Mount Rainier is a volcano of 4,392 metres whose upper slopes are covered by glaciers, and its summit is visible from Seattle on clear days. The park around it was set up in 1899 and holds old-growth forest, rivers fed by melting ice and many waterfalls.

Paradise, on the southern slope, is known for subalpine meadows of wildflowers in summer, while Sunrise, on the drier north-east side, is the highest point in the park reached by road. The Wonderland Trail circles the whole mountain for about 150 kilometres, and the Grove of the Patriarchs shows giant cedars and Douglas firs beside the Ohanapecosh River.

Wild huckleberries grow on the slopes, and the towns around the park, such as Ashford and Enumclaw, serve pancakes, burgers and strong Pacific Northwest coffee. Snow lies on the high trails into July, wildflowers peak in late summer, and heavy winter snowfall buries much of the park.