Spray Park — Monday, Jul. 19, 2021

Stats:
   Duration: 7-1/2 hours
   Distance: 13.3 miles
   Elevation Gain: 2835 feet
   Weather: Sunny, light winds, low 80s
   Takeaway: OMG, the bugs; flower season will have multiple waves - I'll  be back

We participated in the Mt Rainier "blood drive" and fed the bugs over the course of the day. It was not too bad in the woods, and earlier in the day, but in the meadows late day, it was definitely a swarm scene. We saw quite a number of folks heading up late in the day with exposed arms and legs... I have to start my report with "The bugs were very bad" :) I did not have any exposed skin, and had bug spray on my clothes, but still have bites on my hands, elbows and ankles. The bugs got creative and went for my eyelids... under my sunglasses! :)

Now that that is out of the way... 

The drive out to Mowich Lake is pretty well graded and we saw a good mix of cars...did not appear to be a problem for anyone. No potholes to speak of. But it is VERY dusty, and we were blinded by sun and dust numerous times on the descent late in the day. Had to take is slower on the return. I like this entrance... easily the closest to my house, and generally less busy. Mowich Lake is beautiful - next time we will hang out with our hammocks and pack rafts.

The "Spray Park" trail from Mowich Lake to treeline has lots of stream crossings, a good lookout at Eagle Cliff with a unique view of the mountain, and of course Spray Falls (no picture here; all my waterfall pictures are of streams crossing the trail). Lots of water, big trees and interest on this part of the trail. It is up-and-down in this section; make sure you have some gas for the return, as the "up" part of the trail seemed more significant on the return! After the junction to Spray Falls lookup, the trail ascends fairly steeply via a series of switchback to treeline, and then into Spray Park. 

The meadows are, it goes without saying, stunning with lots of flowers, mostly notably Magenta Paintbrush and the most profuse concentration of Washington Lilies that I have ever seen. Breathtaking. The flower season here must regenerate in waves - my pictures from August last year have different species, and concentrations in different places. One spot I remember from last year does not even have any buds yet, most of the area still being under snow. Not that much Lupine - yet.

We made our way to the high point of the trail at the boundary of Spray and Seattle Parks (will return for the loop trail which keeps going). There are snowfields to cross, but all doable without any special equipment. The trail is somewhat steeper as you approach the high point. A large (multi-foot) cairn marks (for me) a boot-path trail off to the right (uphill) towards Inspiration and Echo Rocks. To me, this is the most beautiful part of the hike, with a high-alpine (otherworldly) environment of rock, succulents, heather and flowers (mainly Red Paintbrush and Subalpine Daisies right now). We did not have the gear to reach Echo Rock (snowfields/glacier) but one can go fairly far without crossing snow, and this part of the hike will make you want to linger and relax. If you see folks with ski equipment on the trail, this is the area where many of them are headed. The only caveat of course - one needs to stick to the boot-path to preserve the beauty and protect the fragility of this area.

What I remember about the descent is basically two things: 1) The bugs - whoa; 2) That "UP-and-down" trail below treeline back to Mowich Lake. I think we all gauge our "gas" by anticipating the trail. I forgot how much "up" there is on the return. My buddy comments when taking that trail in the outbound direction that it seemed "pretty easy" for a trail heading up above treeline... that is the "down" part that becomes "up" later ;)

A great day, and a different experience than Sunrise or Paradise, with a more remote feel and different perspectives of the mountain.