Never has sitting atop a Skyscraper been so enjoyable. Though no official trail leads to the mountaintop, this rounded peak is easily scaled by just about anyone. Indeed, summit seekers have beaten a boot track up the flank of the peak that rivals most established trails in the park. And from the summit, you'll enjoy views that stretch from the ever-present Rainier to the south, to Mount Baker to the north. Just don't expect complete solitude. Even if no other human hikers scale the Skyscraper, you'll find the local residents are typical nosy neighbors who have to check out any visitor. A small colony of marmots resides atop this peak, and I've yet to visit the top without having one of the big yellow-bellied beasts popping out to check on my lunch. Enjoy visiting with the big beggars, but don't share your food: the marmots don't need your granola, and feeding them just encourages unneighborly behaviors on their part.

With the plethora of trails leading out of Sunrise, you have multiple options for getting onto this route, but the best bet is to scale Sourdough Ridge right off the bat. Head north from the parking lot to the crest of Sourdough Ridge. At the Y-junction 0.2 mile out, go left, and at the ridge-top junction, stay left again to hike west along the spine of Sourdough Ridge. At about 1 mile, pass a side trail on the right leading down to Forest Lake in Huckleberry Basin. Continue straight ahead to reach the shores of Frozen Lake at 1.5 miles. Within 0.1 mile of Frozen Lake, no less than four trails branch off the main Wonderland route.

For our journey, we want the Wonderland Trail, though, so follow its signs or simply keep moving west, avoiding trails leading north to Fremont Lookout or south to First and Second Burroughs Mountain.

A descending mile past Frozen Lake, the Berkeley Park Trail drops off to the right. Stay left to climb out of the shallow cirque you just dropped into. About 1.2 miles farther on, you have left Berkeley behind and have reached the top of the ridgeline at 6700 feet. The Wonderland bends sharply south here and descends once more. Our path, though, goes north less than 0.5 mile, up the face of Skyscraper Mountain. If you'd rather not make the hike up the boot path, simply rest at the 6700-foot ridgeline and enjoy the views from there.

Skyscraper Mountain (7078 feet) boasts a small, rounded, rocky top with plenty of perches for hikers to sit on and enjoy the 360-degree views. The green cirque of Berkeley Park lies to the east; the broad band of Winthrop Glacier fills the valley to the west. On the skyline stand Mount Fremont and Redstone Peak; the huge, table-flat meadow of Grand Park covers a good portion of the northern view; the stark face of Willis Wall on Mount Rainier dominates the south view.