Lost and found department: Reply here or email at christoblehbleh@gmail.com if you lost a pack cover near frozen lake Tuesday. My bad if you were going back for it later. 😬

Did a loop from White River down the Glacier Basin trail and up to 3rd Burroughs. Then hit Skyscraper mountain and ran down through the Sunrise Visitor center lot before getting on the Wonderland back to White River. So eerie seeing Sunrise empty on a sunny day, hard to believe it’s already fall. 

Nothing really notable, trails were in great shape. Sunny but a little hazy. Really only reported for the lost and found. 

Bottom Line:

I headed over from Naches Peak Loop in the morning, to find this trail relatively tranquil despite the crowded parking lot at White River campground. Beautiful fall color up in Glacier Basin itself, although with a later afternoon start, one can expect a mainly shady basin this time of year (which rapidly cools once the sun sets behind Rainier and the lip of the basin). This is a great spot to see wildlife, from goats to bears - today was a goat day :) 

Stats:

• Distance: 8.9 miles
• Duration: 3-1/2 hours
• Vertical: 2340 feet
• Road/Parking: Hwy 410 summer construction is finally finished, and the road is a thing of beauty. The Ranger station is still manned on Sunrise Road, so a daily fee or annual National Park pass is required. The trailheads for Owyhigh and Summerland were packed (cars lining the road beyond the Summerland trail head for quite a distance), as was the White River Campground, which is "the end of the road" with the road up to Sunrise now closed for the season (seems early); White River was predictably busy as a result, but was able to find an open parking spot in the lot in the afternoon, despite cars being parked along the road all the way back to Sunrise Road
• Weather: Sunny, warm (70s - 50s), a little hazier than the morning at Naches Peak but still not smell of smoke; breezy up in Glacier Basin with a chill - I changed into 3 wool layers and put on a wool hat
• Trail: Given the later afternoon start, the sun was just setting on Glacier Basin when I reached Glacier Basin camp (only one tent); the trail up to that point is relatively uneventful (an old mining road most of the way), but there are many pretty stream crossings along the way (a surprising amount of water this late in the season), views of Rainer and White River, the spur to view the terminus of Emmonds glacier, etc. From Glacier Basin, the rest of the trail is marked "unmaintained", but do not let that you deter you - continue for a rocky, near/above tree line adventure up to the end of the basin. I have never done this hike this late in the season, which now substitutes flowers and alpine streams for fall color and deep shadows. We always see goats on this hike, and today was no exception, although guys, I am not that scary! (they were pretty skittish)
• Takeaway: A mix of fall color on this trail, with mostly green vegetation down low, and some beautiful fall color in the upper reaches of the basin; a little dark (and chilly) for an afternoon hike, making photography a little more of a challenge, but I can say that I caught the area in a different light than I have before. I might have stayed until sunset for better light.

Beautiful hike for the autumn time. The air wasn't too cold and was a nice refreshing temperature for a day hike. The trail is easy enough for all ages and I would recommend it for anyone at a campsite near the trail. We parked our trailer at a nearby campsite and made sandwiches for the hike. The hike starts with a weaving trail through the autumn trees and if you go far enough you are put at the valley of the glacier basin river. And just over the fun and precarious bridge is the stunning blue lake! A hike that is worth it for sure. Make sure to bring water and snacks as the hike can be longer than it seems.

In the first week of October I usually am looking for bright fall color. This year it has been more about avoiding the smoke.  Of course it is very hard to predict what part of the state will have the best air quality.  Purpleair.com is very useful but there is a sad paucity of sensors up in the mountains. I really wish there was a sensor at Snoqualmie Pass and another one at Sunrise.  Maybe some day.  Fortunately there are sensors at Crystal Mountain and they looked like the best air quality that I could find in the Cascades.  It turned out to be a great choice with really great air quality for most of the day.  It did start to get a bit hazy after 2pm.

We did a very steep side trip up to the ridge that leads up to Ruth Mountain.  To reach the trail you have to cross the creek.  It has a fair water flow but we were able to find a dry boot crossing.  Poles were helpful for this.  The trail passes by some really cool mining relics from the old Storbo copper mine that was very active in the early 1900's.  At one time there were multiple building and even a hotel.  The NPS report below gives a very detailed review of the mining history including some cool photos. The photo on page 97 shows the Inter Fork Glacier extending into the upper basin in 1912.  Now it has receded way up the valley. 

https://www.nps.gov/mora/learn/historyculture/upload/2017-mining-glacier-basin-burtchard_web.pdf

The last 1/2 mile of trail to the ridge is very steep (~1400ft/mi) and has soft soil. Poles were very helpful for this part.  The view of Emmon's glacier from here is amazing.

We only crossed paths with 6 people all day.

RT 9 mi, 2600 ft

A beautiful day at Rainier.  The air was cool, the sun was warm and the park had few visitors.  There are some lovely scenic views of the mountain if you pause and look back as you hike towards the Basin.  Going past the "trail not maintained" sign gets rugged and a bit of a scramble.  The reward is you can look "around the corner" and see the glacier that used to extend down into the Basin.  I'm guessing that I'm seeing a part of the Emmons Glacier at that point?  The attached picture is looking at the glacier "around the corner" and the other is back towards Glacier Basin Camp.