Trip Reports

Beautiful and easy hike, a lot of huckelberries, it tastes great and looks great.
Mount rainier as the background, the the meadow with the fall color in the forground is very very beautiful.

there are a several tarns along the way.

The weather was cold, but amazing! While it was raining pretty much every where in the Puget Sound area (as well as a majority of the drive up 410), it was actually lightly snowing at the trail head. We were stoked, being we thought we were going to have to turn back because of rain.

The fall colors were amazing and looked even better with the dusting of snow. The hike itself wasn't too strenuous. I have managed to fall horribly out of shape, and although the first mile or so definitely had me winded, things seemed to level out at some point. We hiked from the trailhead directly across the road from Tipsoo Lake. Not sure exactly which way that was (clockwise or counter clockwise) being that Mt. Rainier was no where in sight because of all the clouds!

Other than that, the weather definitely does change course a lot-- as weather and hiking experts warn. It started off chilly (but not too cold) with the snow falling, then the sun would come out and warm you a bit, and when we rounded one section of the trail, there were some chilly winds (even for me, who loves the winter)! Definitely a good idea to bring some thermals, gloves, or a hat of sorts.

Completed the look in about 3hrs, which included a lot of stops for picture taking.

Today was a perfect day for Naches loop. The fall colors are at their peak. It snowed overnight so the trees were covered in fresh snow, and there was some snow on the trail. Even though the temperature was in 40s, the snow didn't melt. The trail was in great condition, though there were many social trails that got me confused at first. Just follow the widest, best maintained trail you can see; don't follow skinny little trails. I couldn't see Rainier from Naches loop but while driving to the trailhead from the west I could see the Mountain all covered in fresh snow.
It was a wonderful day with fresh snow and amazing fall colors!
There are still some blueberries left but you have to dig for them in the snow...

Arrived at the parking lot after noon; crowded, but had no trouble finding a parking spot. No issues with the trail either; this is more of a stroll than a hike.

Few flowers were remaining, and the berries were past their prime. Lots of mushrooms instead. Someone spotted a mountain goat up on Naches Peak, and a group of Ptarmigan crossed the trail in front of us.

Sheep Lake & Naches Loop 9-10-09
I’ll make this short and sweet just like the hikes. Started at 8:00 AM on PCT trail, this was my first time going to Sheep Lake. I walked around it and took a ton of reflection shots, I noticed a bra and panties sitting on a large log but no owner, if you lost them they are still there..after that I met a few people doing the PCT trail from Mexico.. woman “socks” on her blog said she went through 5 pairs of shoes already.. I ate tons of berries on the way down and decided to hit Naches loop trail and look for bears..As I was heading up I saw a rainbow, it was very odd since there was no rain. Beautiful day and great tarns, lakes and mountain views.. colors are turning as you can see. Hike #74, I hope I can get to 100 this year it’s going to be close.

We arrived at the trailhead at Tipsoo Lake around 7am. The sun was just peaking over the ridge. It was a brisk 41 outside. We decided to hike the trail clockwise. Right out of the parking lot the wildflowers started. The hillside was covered with them. The entire hike through several gorgeous meadows was carpeted with flowers. The trail is in fabulous shape too.

Besides the flowers, we also hiked around several tarns. There was no wind so there were some good opportunities for reflection shots. The trail was littered with hoof prints. We were thinking elk or mountain goats. Someone else on the trail said he had seen elk in the area.

The day was crystal clear too see we had some fantastic views of Rainier. About 3/4 of a mile from the end of the loop, we came across a ripe blueberry patch. It was funny too because my husband exclaimed "there are ripe berries here!" Then I exclaimed "Yeah and there is a bear over there!" Sure enough there was juvenile black bear about 100 yards down the hillside eating his way through the berry patch. He stood on his hind legs to check us out and then moved on down the hillside. That was definitely the highlight of the hike.

A beautiful day, hiking east from the pass. West of hear, beginning at the pass itself, including the Tiposo Lake picnic area, still under pretty heavy cloud cover. Hordes of wildflowers, views, kids, and hikers. I can't believe there's a view with meadows and flowers this good just off a major road. This is a great hike for kids as it is entertaining, pretty flat, and not too long. Very few insects. You will not have solitude, of course, but the views and flowers more than make up for it.

Naches Loop 8-9-09
Decided I better get out and hike before the rain comes. Annie agreed to come with me, she’s never done this loop and flowers are still pretty good right now. We started around Tipsoo lake about 8:00. Fog and clouds were hanging around but blue sky peaked out at times. Never did see the mountain but that was okay. Annie will just have to come again when fall hits and see changing of the colors and mountain. It was quite mysterious at times with the low fog and clouds always changing. Very few bugs bothered us today. We stopped and identified several flowers today. Some I had never seen. I think my new favorite is Bird’s –beak Lousewort. We took a leisure stroll today, I wanted an easy hike we looked for wildlife in many open areas. There was hardly anyone on this popular trail today. I ate a few blueberries that were ripe, and they were delicious! At the end of the trail we both didn’t want it to end so we took a side detour to another small tarn and followed a path to a big rock spot and had lunch and relaxed watched the butterflies and spotted 3 deer on the hillside. Wonderful way to end the hike. Back home by 2:00, still time to get some housework done.

It was a beautiful day and this was a great hike. The hike was easy and in good shape and the bugs were not too bad. The flowers were in full bloom. They were so colorful. Passed by Tipsoo Lake and a couple of smaller lakes. Saw 4 deer walking thru the meadows. There was a beautiful view of Dewey Lakes. Came around the mountain and had Mt. Rainier in sight. I think this hike had everything. Well worth hiking.

Flowers in full bloom!

Avalanche lilies, pasqueflower seedhead, beargrass, penstemon, magenta paintbrush, columbine, smooth mountain dandelion, subalpine daisy, rosy spirea, fields of lupine and much, much more!

Mosquitoes in full force as well -- bring repellent and/or wear long sleeves and no shorts.

Do this hike clockwise -- that way Mount Rainier is in front of you and not behind you.

Happy trails.