Tolmie Peak Lookout - Eunice Lake — Sunday, Jun. 7, 2015

Mount Rainier Area > NW - Carbon River/Mowich

It was such a clear day today it seemed like a no-brainer to pick a hike with a good view of the mountain. We'd read a trip report from the previous week that the gate on Mowich Lake Road was open, so we headed that way to hike the Tolmie Peak trail, only to find that it had been closed again, about 5 miles from the trailhead at Mowich Lake. Having already driven all the way from Seattle and with almost 12 hours of daylight still available to us, we decided to suck it up and hike the extra miles on the road. The gradual ascent on the forest road was hot and exposed for most of the way, with waterfalls and gushing streams providing a constant soundtrack. We saved some time by taking the Grindstone Trail shortcut, which is steep and muddy but cuts the distance to Mowich Lake down to about 3.5 miles. As we got closer to the trailhead the glacier lilies lining the trail got more and more prolific. The trail from Mowich Lake to Eunice Lake is in fine condition and completely snow free. Despite being mostly shaded, it was a hot hike up the final few switchbacks to the lake, where we stopped for our lunch break. We were rewarded for our road hike by being the only people at the lake, probably a rare occurrence on a day like this. We dipped our feet in the clear, frigid water and enjoyed the sunshine. It was so still and quiet we could hear the voices of other hikers way up on top of Tolmie Peak. The final ascent up to the peak took less time than we expected, and made the extended hike totally worth it. Mount Rainier was a resplendent backdrop to opalescent Eunice Lake, and in the distance we could make out Mt St Helens, Glacier Peak, Mt Baker, Puget Sound, and even what we think was the Seattle skyline. We spent 90 minutes or so exploring the lookout area, admiring the amazing ranger's cabin and watching the antics of a gregarious chipmunk. Again, aside from a small party who arrived as we were starting to wrap up our time at the top, we had this incredible spot all to ourselves. On our way back we took a small detour to walk a short way further around Mowich Lake, which looked unbelievably clear and blue on this sunny day. Total mileage for the day including the short cuts and detours was around 14 miles, which took us around 7.5 hours including a couple of long breaks at the lookout and at the two lakes. An incredible day to be out on the trail!