Dewey Lake — Friday, Aug. 31, 2012

Mount Rainier Area > Chinook Pass - Hwy 410

I took my 7 year old daughter on our 3rd annual backpacking trip into the Wenatchee wilderness near Mount Rainier. We started off in 70 degrees with partly cloudy skies into fields of blooming colorful wildflowers and huge scenery of mountain peaks, forests, and lakes. Since we were coming in from Chinook pass we didn't see Mount Rainier until the next morning when we hiked around Dewey Lake. From there we sat on a white sandy beach with crystal-clear mega-views of Mount Rainier. But that's not what impressed my daughter. For her, it was all about the animal tracks and her field guide, which she used to identify some wolf and elk tracks and skats. We proceeded to follow them when they ended at the water's edge. The mosquitoes were pretty bad near our tent site. Since the weather was so warm we decided to go for a swim! Well, I did anyway, as she waded around near me. The trip was full of excitement and while we were sad some of our friends couldn't join us, we decided this would be the place to bring them next year. We ended up leaving late in the day, and didn't get to a place with cellular service until around 7pm when I realized my wife was very worried about us!