Information about this hike provided in partnership with
Mountaineers Books.
Copyright © Dan A. Nelson/The Mountaineers Books Carter Falls
Featured In:
Day Hiking: Mount Rainier National Park Trails,
by Dan A. Nelson and Alan L. Bauer.
A portion of all book sales from the links above benefits WTA and helps protect and maintain our trails. Find the trailhead to the right; you want the path that heads east on the Wonderland. The trail is nestled alongside Paradise Road for the first 0.5 mile and then is pinched tight between the road and the Nisqually River for a few hundred feet before the road angles left away from the river and trail. The forest around the trail is Douglas fir and cedar. An assortment of wildlife thrives in this rich forest environment, and the most visible member of the forest community is the fearless gray jay, a.k.a. camp-robber jay, a.k.a. whiskey jack. These birds act as if they are all starving as they flit from limb to limb in the trees around the trail whenever hikers are near. The brazen beggars will even go so far as to land on a raised arm, a shoulder, or a head if there is a chance of a quick bite of bread or granola. The chittering, flittering chaps are harmless, and if you can resist their piteous begging, they will leave you alone. But be warned: feed one, and all will want a bite. At 0.75 mile, the trail skirts the line between forest and riparian environments, with the Nisqually River just a stone's throw away to the right. The trail stays fairly level alongside the river to the 2-mile mark, where it passes the picnic area of Cougar Rock Campground. This is the last time the trail approaches the road, because the trail crosses the wide Nisqually on a stout bridge or footlog and climbs up the Paradise River valley, while the road sticks to the Nisqually valley. (Be sure to check with the ranger to make sure the Nisqually River bridge safely crosses the river.) The Paradise River is a smaller, more scenic stream, and the trail sticks close to its banks as it skirts along the base of the steep slope of a narrow gorge for 0.5 mile. The gorge slowly opens up; at 3.3 miles, the trail passes Carter Falls and at 3.6 miles, Madcap Falls. Both cascades are pretty plunges of the Paradise and are worthy of a photo and leisurely contemplation. Turn around after visiting Mapcap for a modest day's outing.
Driving Directions:
From Tacoma, drive east on State Route 7 to Elbe, then veer left onto SR 706 to enter the park at the Nisqually Entrance near Ashford. Continue east to Longmire. Park in the large lot behind the hotel, and find the trailhead on the south side of the road. Recent Trip Reports
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trip reports for this hike.
Day hike
Features:
Fall foliage
Issues:
Water on trail | Snow on trail
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SNOW, my friends!!!!!!!! There is snow at Paradise and even Longmire. At least we trust there's snow at Paradise. Sadly,...
SNOW, my friends!!!!!!!! There is snow at Paradise and even Longmire. At least we trust there's snow at Paradise. Sadly, the road never opened past Longmire, so we're taking the ranger's word for it. BUT you have options if this happens to you.
The loop starting on Trail of the Shadows across from the Longmire Inn climbs up to Rampart Ridge and a viewpoint down to Longmire. Past the viewpoint the trail wanders through the woods before veering left and around the ridge on the other side. There were 5-6 inches of snow at the top and boot tracks to follow. No snowshoes or traction devices needed, though the former could have been used from the viewpoint on. The trail connects up with Wonderland Trail after ~3 miles. Go left to Indian Henry &c, right to Comet Falls or back to Longmire (just over 2 miles). The Comet Falls/Van Trump trail goes off the to left pretty soon after the junction. There is a sign. This is a beautiful trail to do in the snow. Total mileage just over 5 miles and elevation gain around 1,300 feet. Back at Longmire by 11 but road still closed, so we hiked along the Cougar Rock and Carter Falls trail to Paradise River Camp. This trail through the woods, along and over the river is stunningly pretty in the snow, and there was plenty of it (on the ground and coming down)! Remember chains - required until April and your parks pass, and go play in the snow!!! They said the road will open more regularly once there's more snow (less ice). More pics at: http://www.flickr.com/[…]/ Day hike
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Mudholes
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Have hiked this trail numerous times,snow shoe it a bit too. Enjoyed again. Trail in good condition....
Have hiked this trail numerous times,snow shoe it a bit too. Enjoyed again. Trail in good condition.
Day hike
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Hiked up to Carter falls and then another mile or so to just past Paradise River Camp. The trail...
Hiked up to Carter falls and then another mile or so to just past Paradise River Camp. The trail was clear and dry with the exception of one small stretch with some real gooshy mud but it was easily bypassed. There had been some trees over the trail that were recently cleared. While there weren't near as many flowers at this elevation as there were at Paradise, there were still and handful to be found along the trail.
Carter Falls
— Jul 02, 2011
— jimmythegeek
Day hike
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Trail clear and in great condition. Falls were wonderful. We were going to go further up but ran...
Trail clear and in great condition. Falls were wonderful. We were going to go further up but ran into heavy snow maybe 1/4 mile past the falls. No clear trail, some potential for injury, so we headed back. But no problem at all from Longmire to Carter Falls. Beautiful.
Day hike
Issues:
No water source
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We started this hike from the pull-out along the road and not from Longmire. The sign on the side...
We started this hike from the pull-out along the road and not from Longmire. The sign on the side of the road said 1.1 miles...ummm...our GPS told us 2.7 miles ONE WAY. This is not any easy waterfall to see or photograph. The "bridge" over the rive is very scary, but after crossing it the trail is very clear and very wide. It is a pretty steady climb, but mostly under tree cover.
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Carter Falls. Photo by Bonnie Shamblin.
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