A flower report for Glacier Basin to 3rd Burroughs and the Wonderland back to White River Campground.

The first 2.5 miles of Glacier Basin is quite flowery right now. The highlights for me were the (pink,photo 3) Lewis' monkeyflower, (yellow) subalpine monkeyflower, yellow willowherb, arrowleaf groundsel, pearly everlasting, and even some fairly thick patches of broadleaf lupine.

Heading up to Burroughs the thick area of green false hellebore is just starting to bloom, there are lots of small, but pretty, strawberry brambles, as it opens up there are lots of bunches of scarlet paintbrush and sandwort (species?), there were a few alpine false dandelions, and one clump of orange agoseris.

On the alpine tundra of the Burroughs there is lots of alpine wild buckwheat, dwarf lupine, partridgefoot, Tolmie's saxifrage, Davidson's penstemon (on 3rd Burroughs, photo 1), there are some tundra asters, shrubby cinquefoil, alpine smelowskia (photo 2), cliff paintbrush, golden fleabane (photo 1), and Rocky Mountain goldenrod. The standouts around Sunrise were the subalpine daisies, alpine asters, elephant-head lousewort (by the lake), and patches of lupine and arnica. Towards the White River there were a lot of little prince's pines (couldn't get a decent photo)-:.

(photo 4) While trying to confirm in the 'map' tab of the Washington Wildflower Search app that the penstemon I saw on 3rd Burroughs was Davidson's, I stumbled upon this new, wonderful (for Mt Rainier flower lovers) feature. It shows reported sightings of a flower within MRNP. It confirmed without a doubt that it was Davidson's. It also confirmed that the lewisia I saw going to Knapsack Pass was (white) Columbian. Note, there are under-reported areas, areas that I know have a particular flower, but did not show up when I was playing around with this feature (Berkeley Park, Cowlitz Ridge, and I am sure there are more). But, for well-reported areas this is a fantastic new tool! 

My husband and I did an overnight backpacking trip to Glacier Basin camp. We arrived at the parking lot around 8:30 on Wednesday and there were still many spots available. The hike up to the camp was very beautiful! Lots of shade and quiet. There were some exposed parts so I recommend you wear sunscreen when needed. The wildflowers were outstanding! 

Once we got to camp and settled in, the bugs were quite annoying. We had bug spray which really helped. The flies were relentless, but luckily not the biting kind. 

The camp was very nice! There are two large bear barrels to store your food in when not in use. We didn’t encounter any bears, but the ranger at the White River station said there had been many sightings, so definitely be sure to store your food and any scented items securely.

After setting up camp, we set out to hike Mt Ruth, but were unable to find a safe way to cross the Inter Fork (the amount of water was quite strong/high), so we ended up walking along the unmaintained Glacier Basin trail for about a mile or so. We used our trekking poles and had micro spikes, but didn’t need those. The trail was easy to follow, despite being unmaintained. We returned to camp once we were too tired to go further and had a very pleasant evening.

On the way down to the car the next morning, we ran into a couple hiking up with a large pit bull mix that they had leashed, but it was clear they were having trouble holding the dog back from running (it was not aggressive, just poorly trained). My husband casually asked, “A dog in a national park?” and the man replied, “It’s a service animal.” It was very obvious that this dog was untrained and it did not have a vest, but I don’t know a lot about whether service dogs are allowed on the trail or not. I thought it seemed risky to bring a large, untrained dog figuring how many bears had recently been sighted.

Aside from that, people were respectful and friendly on the trail. The wildflowers were simply spectacular! Lots of chipmunks, and my husband saw a marten when out taking photos.

A happy eventful morning MON 17jul2023 while doing a ramble of Emmons Moraine Trail, Glacier Basin Trail .. for i had my first ever Bear sighting .. 😃👍😅

After viewing Emmons Moraine, and getting on ~0.2 mi of Glacier Basin Trail, ~(B), from the bush on my front-left ~15 ft ahead, a brown bear dashed out from the bush .. and ran across a small clearing to another bush area. i waited for a minute or 2, hoping to see the bear again, but it's disappeared 😪 i would guess that the bear was ~3+ ft at the shoulder, ~5+ ft in length .. a beauty 👍👍👍 

Spotted total ~10 chipmunks, and some wildflowers.

My O&B route: (P) > (E) > (B) > Glacier Basin Camp > ~0.6 mi of "Un-maintained Trail" to (V) > (P). Lovely views of Emmons Moraine, and at (V) .. with peak-a-boo view of Mount Rainier .. 

The ~0.6 mi of "Un-maintained" trail between Glacier Basin Camp and to my turn-around at (V) was a "mix" of dirt, rocks, loose stones, sandy, dirt .. i did alright with my Trekking Poles and treading v carefully .. 

On my way OUT to Emmons Moraine, i passed 2 Day-Hikers who were leisurely-paced going OUT too. From Emmons Moraine to (V), i only encountered a man and his boy coming Back (Backpacking). After turning around at (V), from the Glacier Basin Camp to (P), encountered a total of ~12x Day-Hikers, and 3x Backpackers coming in. Everyone was cheery and friendly.

i was the ~8th to arrive at the Hikers-Picnickers parking at ~06:15. When i got Back ~5+ hours later, it was almost full.

Stats per Gaia: Distance 10.1 mi / Ascent 2559 (-2607) ft / Total Time 5:42 / Moving Time 5:02

Happy Trails Everyone 🌈

Beautiful day and hike. Got there about 7:15 am,10-15 parking spots still available. Wildflowers blooming, maybe a week before they will be in full bloom near Glacier Basin. Bugs not too bad, didn't even need bug spray. Not too crowded early. Wonderful hike!

FYI, met couple trying to get to Mt. Ruth using Emmons Moraine trail. Couple could not complete loop beyond where trail was maintained due to significant overgrowth.