Mowich Lake, anyone heard of Mowich Lake? Many of you must go there. You invite great friends and drive in chuck holes the size of a Volkswagen with the views of the century. My experience never fails me however, so just do as I do. Drive to the top, park, then watch the crazy people pass you as they stir up dust while you cough. Such an amazing view and heck my car needed a good bath anyway!

The hike begins at Mowich lake, you gain some elevation in the forest until you reach an open meadow and Eunice lake. From there you can look up to see the Tolmie lookout on top of the hill in front of you. It looks difficult and many people turn around at the lake but it isn't as bad as it looks and the view from the top is amazing! Overall a short hike, took me a little more than an hour to reach the lookout. There were plenty of annoying bugs, but it I still enjoyed the hike. After completing this hike I did the Spray Park hike which is nearby.

My first time on this trail. Spectacular, magnificent! It's my new favorite trail. I may not need to return to Paradise. I went on a Monday; still more people than I'm used to, but it was fine. I got there at 9:30, and all the other hikers were going the opposite direction, arriving earlier or later than I. I was alone at Eunice Lake, and also at the lookout for most of the time I was there. Lots of roots and boulders in the trail. I was very thankful for trekking poles. People were complaining of the bugs at the lake, but they weren't liking me much. The lookout from the lake looked unattainable (to a 64 year old), but I was determined. Turned out not to be any worse than what had already been hiked. And fewer roots and boulders. The view from just before the lookout, as well as from the lookout, is breathtaking. I could see all four peaks. A little hazy toward the Olympics. I read you can see Seattle, but I couldn't. Do this hike! (There is the bone-jarring, car-rattling 16-mile approach. Just take it slow and watch for the holes.) Read more on my blog post.

My friend and i went in to finish the Wonderland Trail. We hiked the south and east sides two years ago, and we hiked the north side last year. We attempted to hike the west side this year, but we basically found a no vacancy sign on our itinerary. I went to Longmire the day before our journey was set to begin. Being that all permits this year were walk-on, I figured it would have deterred many hopefuls from coming out without knowing where they'd be, as did the rangers. We were very, very wrong. The rangers told me people have been coming before they open the day before they wish to start to get an itinerary. I was handed a list of full camps for five nights at the wilderness center, and nearly every camp on the Wonderland was full the following two nights. On our desired side, Golden Lakes was available for our first night, but in order to finish the west side we would have to trek to Longmire from there because all of the west side was full from there. It was disappointing since I'm not sure when I'll have the opportunity to take that trip again, but we decided to make the best of the hand we were played and take whatever adventure we could get. We camped by the Carbon River the night before taking our mini Wonderland journey, drove up to Mowich Lake, pieced the packs together and hit the trail. We only had one Wonderland campsite, and we were going to take it. Mowich Lake to Golden Lakes Trail: There is no real hike info on this trail, but using figures from the map the trail descends 2324' from Mowich Lake to South Mowich River. From the river crossing there is roughly 2700' of elevation gain, most of which comes from what seems like an endless beating, switchback frenzy ascent through the forest. I also learned that after the few creeks just past the river crossing, there are no further water sources until the Golden Lakes Camp. I had bottled here, but I should have bottled more and ran out of water about halfway to the campsite from there. I also learned on the ascent that my pack was way too heavy. Everything about this trip was last minute, and I did not pack very light as a result. Physically I paid quite a painful price for my mistake, and I'll definitely not be making that mistake again I hope. There were several trees down across the trail, but we passed a group of rangers with a chainsaw on our way in, and they were all cleared on our way out the next day. The trail can be hard to follow at the river crossing. Keep an eye out for cairns to guide your way. Bugs were a bit annoying at Golden Lakes, their numbers were fewer at South Mowich and Mowich Lake. Some blueberries growing on the forest between Golden Lakes and South Mowich The hike back from Golden Lakes was cold, rainy and a little breezy. despite having a rain cover, my pack and everything else were soaked. I savored my lunch time at the South Mowich Camp shelter, keeping dry and enjoying every second the pack wasn't on my shoulders Tolmie Peak: After our cold and wet return to Mowich Lake, we forced our sore and worn bodies to hike to Tolmie Peak. Even on a Wednesday morning, there was quite a bit of traffic on the trail. I wasn't too fond of seeing two different people with dogs on the trail, but I let the rangers handle their own business. The trail is in perfect shape. Hikers going past the lookout along the ridge to the summit and beyond should take caution with loose gravel on the ridgeline. The road to Mowich Lake is a little rough, a few minefield sections of potholes in areas. A woman gearing up for her Wonderland trek had unknowingly popped a tire, which brought to her attention. A flat tire is no obstacle for the trail, though, so she will continue. I do hope someone will help her change that tire when she returns Notice for Wonderland hikers in the northwest area. Word was going around on the trail of a black bear sow and her cub at the Carbon Camp

First time up Tolmie Peak. The hike was a bit steeper than expected since the trail is not actually 7.5 miles long; guess closer to 5.5-6.5 (signs and maps put it somewhere in that range). However, the payoff in views from the lookout made it worth it. Views were amazing an all directions with Rainier as the star. Mt. St. Helen's and bit of Glacier we're visible as well. A volunteer ranger was at the lookout so we were even able to go in and check it out. We arrived at the trailhead around 11:30 and parking was already up to a mile from the Mowich Lake Campground area. However, there is a cutoff to the Tolmie Lookout trail that you can take from the road that eliminates about .5 mile of the walk down the road. The trail is in rough shape in some places. Be prepared to from some rather rooty and gravelly sections of trail along the way but overall it's a nice hike. My husband did the trip with our 1 year old in an Osprey carrier so it's not too difficult. Wildflowers were in full bloom around the lake and up towards the lookout. Spectacular! Reds, blues, whites - very beautiful. Bugs around Lake Eunice we're terrible. Bring plenty of bug spray or plan not to spend much time there. Even with quickly hiking through the area my arms and shoulders are covered in bites. The good news is that this was the only section where bugs were bad. Overall, a great day out on the mountain. If you're looking for a quick, easy to complete hike with a huge payoff in views this is a good one.