Sunrise is one of my favorite places in the world, so I was so happy to take my 4-year-old up for the first time thanks to an invitation from a new friend! This is my first time to Rainier since the new reservation system, there was no wait at the entry gate, and we were easily able to get a good parking spot at Sunrise. My kiddo can only do about 3-4 miles before he starts getting really tired and cranky, so for our first Sunrise hike together we decided to hike to Shadow Lake.
The trail was in excellent condition, well-kept and no obstacles. There were a few snow patches off-trail but nothing on the actual trail. We didn't take a peek at any higher areas to report if there is still snow on other trails. It's mostly very dry dirt, some rocks and roots but not much.
We started out on the service road, which is a nice wide dirt road, and turned left at the trail leading to Sunrise camp. At that junction, we were greeted by a few marmots who seemed disgruntled at our presence. They came closer than I've experienced before, I've never been approached by a marmot before, I was quite surprised! They eventually lumbered off into the meadow.
My son and I are newly into backpacking so we checked out Sunrise camp while we were there as a potential place to take the kiddos in the future. I was pleased to see a camp toilet that was in excellent condition and very little smell. The campsites are well-marked and very clean and well-kept. My only confusion was the presence of food lockers at each site. I know bear canisters are required at the national parks, and that they should be stored 200-ft from camp, so I was confused by the lockers so close to each sleep area. A food locker seems a lot more convenient than carrying the extra 2+ lbs of a canister, and perhaps they are there to remove the need to trample through the meadows, but I can't understand why they are so close.
Just past the campground is Shadow Lake. It's not the most beautiful lake you've ever seen, but the surrounding scenery can't be beat, and the shade was welcome. The kids found a large frog in the lake and tried to coax it over with their own croaks and ribbits. No luck.
We took the Sunrise Rim trail back and it was just a gorgeous day with beautiful views. A few cute little wooden bridges crossing creeks. Sunrise never disappoints, no matter what trail you do. Garmin tracked the loop at 3.2 miles, link included below.
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