Burroughs Mountain — Saturday, Oct. 6, 2012

Mount Rainier Area > NE - Sunrise/White River

While checking the road status for Mount Rainier, I noticed they will be shutting down the road to Sunrise on Monday. This left me with just this weekend if I wanted to hike the Burroughs trail this year and so off I went. I parked in the Sunrise Visitors center parking lot around 6:15 a.m. and was greeted by the sun coming over the horizon just as I crested Burroughs #1. It was a beautiful sight with the mountain colored in a golden hue by the sunrise. I paused for a moment to catch my breath and then moved on to Burroughs #2. The mountain, the views, the scenery were spectacular. I was still all by myself when I reached Burroughs #2. I paused on the stone bench provided and took some time for a few pictures. The sun was starting to warm the air and there was a light breeze from the south. Looking to the West, I spotted Burroughs #3 and the trail leading to the top. One small dot seemed to be moving down the trail. It was another hiker who had gone to the top ahead of me using a headlamp. I met a second hiker, who passed me on the trail up to Burroughs #3. Once on top, I found the views spectacular, but the winds at 24 MPH made it difficult to take a steady picture and keep my glasses on. So I sat down amongst the rocks, enjoyed the view, ate my trail bar and drank some water. It was at this moment I realized that to get back; I had to scale both Burroughs #2 & #1 again. Doing this the first time was easy, but now after climbing Burroughs #3, I would need a few more breaks on the way back. Reaching Burroughs #2, the trail started to get more crowded. I decided to return along the Sunrise Rim Trail, which always keeps the mountain in view. All in all, this was a great hike which I enjoyed immensely. Can’t wait till next spring to hike this trail again.