Another great day for hiking.. Today I hiked with some companions and thier little ones... The road up Mowich Lake was dry and very passable. If there are Prius's coming down the road, you know that any car can use the road. Jumped on the trail head around 1030. This was the first time for all of us on this trail, so it was alot of fun seeing new sights for the first time. Not too many people on the trail, but of course this was a Wednesday. We passed an older gentelmen who scolded us for not spraying our kids with DEET, we thanked him for is info and moved on. We stopped at Ipsut Pass for a breather and a cool breeze. After a few moments and picture we pushed towards the lake. Once we saw blue skies pass the trees we knew that Eunice Lake was close by. The lake was chilly, calm and beautiful. Unfortantely I didnt bring my swimsuit, so I didnt get to dive into the lake. We saw the lookout from the shores of the lake, which looked like a steep climb. We pressed on until we reached a clearing at the top and took pictures of purple flowers blooming and could see Mt. St Helens to our South West and Enumclaw to the north. Continuing on the trail we found some more shade until we came to the outlook, the view up there was amazing. Mt. Rainier in all its glory, pictures don't give this beast all its due justice. Its something that should be witnessed first hand. There were about 30 other people at top. We unloaded our kids and sat down for lunch. All in all in took us about 2 hours to get to the top. Worth every step..

Gorgeous hike. You'll see many of the major Washington peaks on this trail. Just a couple of pesky flies, otherwise bug free. Road is rough but passable for all vehicle types. Got to the trailhead at 9:30 and avoided the afternoon crowds. A nice cool breeze greeted us as we approached the lookout. Eunice Lake was emerald green. There are some steep sections as well as some tall steps on this hike, but the payoff along the trail and at the summit makes it all worthwhile. Bring plenty of water and enjoy the journey.

As far as the road being rough I understand from one of the NPS rangers that it was recently graded and it is one of the best dirt roads I've been on this year to get to a remote trailhead. A bit of washboard but any car really shouldn't have much of a problem as long as you are paying attention for potholes. That said it is extremely dusty so make sure your washer fluid is full, run your ventilation system on recirculate, and when you park avoid the temptation of leaving windows cracked regardless of how hot it is. On to the hike. The walk along Mowich is beautiful with Rainier peaking through the trees along the way. Once you head away from the lake the trail remains pretty smooth for most of the hike. If you're hiking in the morning the trail is in shade most of the way to Eunice Lake. At the cutoff for Ipsut Pass I highly recommend walking the little bit over to the pass, the view is incredible and their was a wonderful breeze coming through on our way in and out. One thing to note for this hike is that while the altitude gain from the trailhead to the Lookout is only 1100 feet you actually do around 1900 feet (1910 according to my tracker) due to the fact that you actually lose elevation during a couple sections of the trail that you then have to climb again. When you head up from Eunice Lake there is a small cirque bowl that was full of purple wildflowers, if you take a short trip the the left at this T you get an amazing panorama with Mount Rainier, St. Helens, and a view as far as the weather allows. From there head back up the other way and you are at the lookout. The view of the mountain from here is simply stunning with the lakes below it.

Most beautiful hike I've been on!!!

My husband and I hiked from Mowich Lake where we had camped the previous night. We left from the campground around 9AM and made it to the lookout between 11:30 and noon. The trail is very well maintained and surprisingly wide for the first stretch leading up to Eunice Lake. It was mostly uphill from the lake but there were switchbacks making it a bit easier. There were lots of wildflowers blooming and spectacular views. It was a beautiful, sunny day and we were able to see Mount St. Helens and Baker from the top and even the skyscrapers of Seattle. Total hike time was about 3.5 hours. A swim in Mowich Lake made for the perfect end to the hike.