Arrived around 9:30am and found parking not far from the trailhead along the road. The road is washboarded as reported by others, definitely passable but a little grueling because it's so long. I was ready with window cleaner and sunglasses and was glad for both. There were others on the trail but it didn't feel over-crowded to me. Lots of blueberries ripe along the path. The trail is very mild, little rolling ups and downs, for a long distance from the trailhead. It begins to climb to the lake and climbs steeply with high rise steps (over a foot high steps) but chances to navigate as needed and take it slow. The weather was gorgeous sunny in the 70s+ when we arrived, but the clouds rolled in as we climbed towards Lake Eunice and by the time we reached the peak we couldn't see the mountain in front of us. It was very windy at the lookout, but we didn't get rained on and I was grateful for that! Still, the lake and views were beautiful. It just started to sprinkle when we got back to the car around 2:30pm. I'm planning to return to see Mt. Rainier views next time. It was a great day in the mountains!

We left Seattle at 5am and got to the trailhead by maybe 7:30am. The road up to the trailhead is long, dusty, and washboard-y, but we saw vehicles of all types—even motorcycles—make the trip. When we arrived there a few vehicles near the Tolmie Peak trail sign, and maybe 20 cars down by the campground. When we left at ~12:00pm the entire lot was full and cars lined the road for some distance. The trail was in good condition, albeit bumpy/rocky/root-cover in some places. This was our first hike using trekking poles and I'd highly recommend it, they really help you to keep your balance and take load of your legs. Eunice Lake was pristine, we made it there in just over an hour. The hike up to the peak is only maybe a mile(?) but very steep. Views from the top were ridiculous…ly gorgeous! There was a massive lenticular cloud positioned above Rainier but didn't block the view. There were maybe 10–15 people at the top, but most dispersed and by the time we head down there were only 4-5 nearby. 10/10, would hike again. Other notes: • When we got back from the hike bathrooms by the campground had a massive line. We gave up and just used the bathrooms 10mins up the road by the paybox for the park. • If you 100% can't make the full hike to the peak from Eunice lake I recommend going up the first third to the slope where you can near equally good views of Rainier and Eunice lake. • If you do have a high-clearance vehicle I recommend trying out the little obstacle mounds near the Evans Creek ORV area. My Jeep is no Wrangler, but it was fund to climb up the rocky mound.

The road was not nearly as bad as I thought it would be based on other trip reports, but I was also driving an SUV that could have made all the difference. It was bumpy but there were not big potholes until you got into the National Park (which is the last five miles or so). The road is also quite wide which is nice so you don't have to worry about letting larger cars get by like on some back roads. I parked near the campground and hiked on the side of Mowich Lake for awhile. Note that you can start way down the road if you want and get rid of about .5 mile from the hike. I really liked the walk along Mowich though and there was hardly anyone on that section of the trail, so I'd recommend starting at the campground to get that extra scenery. :) The trail wasn't very crowded until I got to the lookout. Everyone was very friendly that I encountered on this trail. Eunice Lake is beautiful and a great spot for lunch - wish I would have taken my bathing suit to go for a swim! You can see the lookout from Eunice Lake and it seems daunting, but it's not that bad to get up to it. I read on a few other reports that you can stop at Eunice Lake and call it a day there but then you'd be missing out on the best views. Even if you don't make it all the way to the lookout, at least go half way up and you'll see amazing views of Rainier and Eunice Lake. From the lookout you can also see Mowich Lake in the distance. Great hike with beautiful views!

It was beautiful! There are moments that are very steep and difficult but my niece and nephew (6 and 8) did very well. The lake is a nice refreshing break even though it is freezing. You do have to pay $25 but that is for the week if you plan on going multiple times. Parking was difficult but as expected with such a small parking lot on a beautiful saturday in August.

Best hike yet! The 17 miles in/out on the dirt road was not fun, but it's passable for cars. There were a few spots with pretty good sized potholes. We took it slow and it was fine... I just pulled off to the side at viewpoints several times to let larger/faster moving vehicles pass. There were plenty of great viewpoints from the road. This hike is absolutely fantastic. The views are spectacular... stunning really. There were some friendly bees, but we made it through sting/bite free. We took our time, stopped for tons of photos, and had lunch at the top and it took us about 3.5 - 4 hrs.