Forecast said fog, throughout the park, may lift by 11:00 am. We had arrived to Paradise at 6:30 am. We had breakfast in our car. 43 degrees outside. 

Sun never came out, and neither did ANY of the Mountain View’s. We still had a lovely time. Hiked well over 6 miles by returning on Golden Gate trail. I loved the solitude and multiple meadows on the Lakes trail. Huckleberries and cool mist gave us so much energy for the uphill climbs. The flowers were better than they were on the busy skyline trail, except at the creek by Paradise glacier trail. The monkey flowers all closed up, due to the cold, but so lush and plentiful. I look forward to coming back when I can see the views, and the red huckleberry bushes in the fall. 

Trip Report for Friday, August 9: Skyline Loop Trail to Golden Gate.

We’ve had the goal of a sunset hike for a long time and finally made it happen the evening of Friday, August 9 at Paradise. Normally we are early morning hikers so we were concerned about the crowds at Paradise on a Friday late afternoon / evening. We needn’t be. No line at the gate at the Nisqually entrance and when we pulled into Paradise, there was even parking available in the upper lot. Still busy but not the hoards of crowds we’ve seen in the past hiking there. The hike turned out to be shorter than we anticipated so that we could catch the sunset starting after 6pm. We clocked only 4 miles total starting out at Myrtle Falls, continuing counterclockwise on the Skyline Trail. This section gets a little bit technical, but the trail was in great condition. We’ve seen it much muddier and much drier on past hikes. When we continued up past the Lakes Trail intersection, the bugs became ferocious so we just kept moving and moving and watching the sky change colors. There is definitely haze, assuming from the smoke wildfires from the east. But it didn’t stop the views. Continued on skyline all the way to Golden Gate where we took Golden Gate the remainder of the way down to the Paradise Lot. For some reason we’ve never done this section of skyline and decided it was one of our favorites with ridge views of Mazama , Tahoma and the sunset to the west. And surprisingly very, very few crowds. We probably came across two dozen people total on the trail the entire evening. The wildflowers are in full bloom and beautiful right now, but carry your bug spray and apply it often.

This morning was like choosing between two possible Wordle words-Sunrise or Paradise. I went with Paradise because I was worried about air quality. I arrived at the Jackson Visitor Center parking lot at 6:15 a.m. and got one of the last official spaces. So...busy busy day on the mountain. My route was Skyline to Alta Vista (short, but super steep-steeper than Skyline), to Skyline, to Glacier Vista (no snow), back to Skyline up to Panorama Point (there is one small inconsequential snow patch over the trail-no gear needed), to high Skyline (not sure if they call it that anymore), down to Golden Gate, and back to the car. The state of the flowers: they are dazzling. It seems at its peak in most places. The heather is almost done. The American Bistort (little white flower) is dominating. Any time I hit the Skyline trail I felt taken out of the hike and thrust into traffic. That's what you get on a weekend morning I know. I used to be able to get there early and beat the crowds but now with the reservation system the crowds start early to beat the reservation system. The entire route is roped so that is encouraging for restoration. This is a full exposure hike with stats that sound perfectly doable, but it's rocky with high step ups, steep sections, a small scramble in the high skyline area, and a lot of people. Bring water. If you have sad knees like me, bring hiking poles. 

We parked at the lower parking lot at Paradise at 8:30 am. on a Wednesday.  There were plenty of parking spots available.

Myrtle Falls wasn't very busy, so we walked down the hill to view the falls.  The Skyline trail heading towards Paradise Glacier was shady.    No problem with bugs and lots of wildflowers to see.    The paintbrush are in full bloom with beautiful orange and magenta colors.

We walked across the snowfield beyond the end of the maintained path for Paradise Glacier and headed up the hill for views of Mount Adams, Mount St. Helens, and Mount Hood.   Sat and enjoyed a snack for a while.

On the way back, we rock hopped across the water by Sluiskin Falls on the Skyline trail again.    Using our poles, we made it with dry feet - but I did see a guy slip off a rock and go ankle deep in the water.

At the juncture with the Golden Gate trail, we started the long downhill.   By that time, there were a lot of hikers on the trail.    I was glad that we were going downhill, because there was no shade and it was getting warmer.

Hiked the Skyline loop by way of Alta Vista on the way up. Paintbrush and  pink heather are  blooming in profusion on the slopes of Alta Vista.  Encountered a few young marmots on that trail.  There is still a lot of snow at Glacier Vista and snow on the part of Skyline trail adjacent.  Not too slippery but we were going up, not down :) Clear views of Tatoosh range and Mt Adams/St Helens at Pan Point.  Another snow field beyond Pan Point but after that just a few more smaller patches on trail.  Wildflowers dotting the rocky landscape here.  Penstemon, phlox. We chatted with a park ranger who advised us that the snow fields were still dicey beyond the Golden Gate turnoff so we we took Golden Gate instead of going the long way.  Avalanche lilies are blooming in profusion on lower Golden Gate.  Some lupine and a few pops of yellow and pink beginning to peek through. But mostly the white flowers are in bloom.  

P.S. Timed entry reservations are now required at MRNP between 7am-3pm.