Owyhigh Lakes, Tamanos Mountain — Thursday, Jul. 16, 2020

This is an outstanding Mt Rainier alternative to the more popular hikes at Sunrise.  We hiked to Tamanos Pass which affords excellent views of Rainier without having to scramble up to the peak.

The small lot had only 5 cars when we arrived at 9:15.  The first 3 miles gently climbs (500 feet/mile) through a nice old growth forest.  Nice variety of trees including Doug Fir, Western Red Cedar, Western Hemlock, Noble Fir, Amabalis Fir, Alaska Yellow Cedar, and even a few Western White Pine.

Owyhigh Lakes are surrounded by beautiful bright green meadows dotted with nice wild flowers.  

0.3 miles beyond the lake is an unmarked but obvious turn off for Tamanos Pass/Mountain.  This trail is gullied out to a depth of about 1.5 feet in places but is actually fairly nice dirt without many rocks.  A little brushy initially but then breaks out into scenic meadows. It is steep. It gains 1000 feet in 0.8 mi (1250ft/mi).  Once you reach the pass you are rewarded with an excellent view of Mt Rainier.  We when left from the pass 0.1 mi to a lesser peak with excellent views.  We decided not to expend the energy to climb to the top of Tamanos Mountain since the views were perfect from the pass. It would be 500 feet of elevation gain in 0.3mi from the pass to the peak.

RT 10.2 mi, 2700 feet. Mosquitos and flies were a bit annoying at the lake and at the pass but Deet worked well. Only saw 6 other people all day.

More Information on this Trip Report

• https://photos.app.goo.gl/GzbGAEVFRSnXF3tZA
• https://www.alltrails.com/explore/recording/recording-jul-16-03-18-pm-4996dcc