Tolmie Peak Lookout - Eunice Lake — Tuesday, Jul. 26, 2005

Mount Rainier Area > NW - Carbon River/Mowich

For the conclusion of our post-wedding hiking, we took the short (5.5 mile roundtrip) hike to Tolmie Peak Lookout. We started at Mowich Lake Campground, hiking along the west shore of Mowich Lake and reaching Ipsut Pass in about 1 mile. We then climbed another mile or so through the forest to reach Eunice Lake and its columnar cliffs. The lake was delightfully cold after the hot hike up. It was another .8 or .9 mile up, through a flowering meadow, to the Tolmie Peak Lookout, where we enjoyed lunch and the views of Rainier, St Helens, the Olympics, Glacier, and Baker. In keeping with our leisurely pace of the week, it took us about 5.5 hours to cover the 5.5 miles. The trail was in great shape and there were a few bugs.