The Big Outside Complete Guide to

Backpacking the in National Park

© 2020 Michael Lanza/The Big Outside

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Hiking and backpacking is a personal choice and requires that YOU understand that you are personally responsible for any actions you may take based on the information in this e-guide. Using any information in this e-guide is your own personal responsibility. Hiking and associated trail activities can be dangerous and can result in injury and/or death. Hiking exposes you to risks, especially in the wilderness, including but not limited to: • Weather conditions such as flash floods, wind, , and lightning; • Hazardous plants or wild animals; • Your own physical condition, or your own acts or omissions; • Conditions of roads, trails, or terrain; • Accidents and injuries occurring while traveling to or from the hiking areas; • The remoteness of the hiking areas, which may delay rescue and medical treatment; • The distance of the hiking areas from emergency medical facilities and law enforcement personnel.

LIMITATION OF LIABILITY: TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMISSIBLE PURSUANT TO APPLICABLE LAW, NEITHER MICHAEL LANZA NOR THE BIG OUTSIDE, THEIR AFFILIATES, FAMILY AND FORMER AND CURRENT EMPLOYERS, NOR ANY OTHER PARTY INVOLVED IN CREATING, PRODUCING OR DELIVERING THIS E-GUIDE IS LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, INDIRECT, EXEMPLARY, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES ARISING OUT OF A USER’S ACCESS TO, OR USE OF THIS E-GUIDE.

Cover photo: Jeff Wilhelm and Todd Arndt backpacking through Moraine Park on the Wonderland Trail in Mount Rainier National Park. Title page photo: Jeff Wilhelm enjoying a vista of Mount Rainier from near Skyscraper on the Wonderland Trail in Mount Rainier National Park.

Dear Backpacker,

Congratulations, you have just downloaded the most complete guide you’ll find to backpacking the Wonderland Trail around Mount Rainier in Mount Rainier National Park, a path that possesses nearly all of the qualities of a great multi-day hike—most conspicuously the countless, inspiring views of glacier-clad, 14,410-foot Mount Rainier. (This photo of me was taken near on the Wonderland Trail.) I’m confident that, like me, you will consider this trip one of the best you’ve ever taken.

This e-guide will show you how to plan and pull off one of “America’s Top 10 Best Backpacking Trips” in way that’s safe, appropriate, and enjoyable for your group, whether it’s highly experienced and fit backpackers pounding out long days or friends or a family following a more leisurely itinerary on all or part of the Wonderland Trail.

My recommended Wonderland Trail itinerary—one I believe most backpackers would find perfect—completes a 90.3-mile loop in nine moderate to strenuous days, places you in several of the best backcountry camps along the trail, hits many of the best vistas at ideal times of day, and spreads out the miles and long ascents and descents as evenly as possible. It is slightly shorter than the 93-mile full Wonderland Trail because of a few diversions off it, including a common alternate to one section of the Wonderland on the higher and more-scenic Spray Park Trail.

In the pages that follow, I will describe this trip’s character and highlights, and provide details on its total distance and elevation gain and loss, difficulty, and the degree of solitude you can expect to find along it during the peak season. I will give you extensive advice in Section 1 on how to plan this trip, including tips about seasons, getting a permit, travel logistics, gear, and what you need to know regarding safety and other issues specific to this trip. Section 2 lays out a daily primary trip itinerary, with key route details, as well as alternate itineraries for the entire loop or taking shorter backpacking trips on the trail’s best sections.

A few points: • I’m a big believer that much of the success of any outdoor adventure is determined before you leave home, so you’ll find abundant information in Section 1: Planning the Trip. I think you will find that my unique and thorough trip- planning advice is what most distinguishes my e-guides from other guides. • I don’t rate trips for quality or scenery. Instead of a dry, numerical rating, this e- guide will describe for you the trip’s unique character. Plus, every trip that I’ve created an e-guide for is excellent and highly recommendable, period. • I don’t provide GPS waypoints or tell you precisely where to take photos because I believe that excessive hand-holding sucks the mystery out of the wilderness and robs you of the joy of discovery. Instead, this e-guide suggests itineraries and describes the various designated camping areas and other highlights, with specific tips on how to maximize enjoyment and safety. • Please be aware of and always follow low-impact backpacking guidelines; learn about them at lnt.org. They ensure that we all have as pristine a wilderness experience as possible. Also, respect park regulations, they exist for good reasons. • Hold down your keyboard’s Control key when clicking on hyperlinks in this e- guide, and the link will open in a new window. If you don’t hold down the Control key, any link will open in the same window. (You could then click the back arrow in the upper left to return to the e-guide.) Alternatively, open this e- guide twice, to keep one copy open while clicking on hyperlinks in the second copy. • If you find any inaccuracies or typos—or to simply drop a note to tell me what you think of this e-guide—please email me at [email protected]. • Lastly, you have purchased one electronic copy of this e-guide for your personal use only. I retain all rights to its content, and I ask you to respect my legal rights and not distribute it by any means or for any purpose, including for illegal profit.

Thanks again for purchasing this e-guide. I hope it helps make your backpacking trip on the Wonderland Trail around Mount Rainier very special.

If you would like my personalized trip-planning help, or you have questions about how to safely and successfully pull off this or any trip I’ve written about at my blog, I can help you. See my blog’s Custom Trip Planning page for more details. If you want personalized help with this trip, I will deduct the price of this e-guide from my fee.

Please be sure to follow my stories about my adventures at The Big Outside, and join The Big Outside for full access to all stories at my blog.

Have fun and be safe out there,

Michael Lanza Creator of The Big Outside

CLICK HERE NOW for a full menu of my e-guides at The Big Outside.

Jeff Wilhelm backpacking the Spray Park Trail in Mount Rainier National Park.

Backpacking Mount Rainier’s Wonderland Trail

Location: Mount Rainier National Park,

Primary Route Distance: 90.3 miles/145 km (approximately)

Approximate Cumulative Elevation Gain and Loss for the entire Wonderland Trail: Over 44,000 feet/13,400m

Difficulty of the Wonderland Trail, on a scale of 1 (easiest) to 5 (hardest): 4

Strenuous, with significant elevation gain and loss, steep terrain, possible severe weather (mostly rain or thunderstorms in summer, possibly snow in September and October), and remoteness—but no navigational challenges, elevations over 6,800 feet, or need for technical skills. Lakes and creeks are often frequent along the Wonderland, although you may hike two hours (or more) between water sources on some sections. The trail is well-maintained and well-marked and often consists of a soft treadway of packed dirt in the forest. All significant river and creek crossings have bridges (unless any have recently been damaged or destroyed by high water). Good fitness and intermediate-level backpacking skills and experience recommended. See the Need to Know section below for specific details and my blog story “Training For a Big Hike or Mountain Climb.”

Todd Arndt backpacking over Emerald Ridge on the Wonderland Trail.

Overview There simply is no multi-day hike in the contiguous that compares with the Wonderland Trail around Mount Rainier—in no small part because there’s no mountain in the Lower 48 like Rainier. The third-highest U.S. peak outside Alaska at 14,410 feet, Rainier is the most glaciated in the Lower 48, and ranks third among all U.S. —behind Alaska’s Denali and Hawaii’s Mauna Kea—in topographical prominence, a measure of how high a peak rises above its surroundings, which for Rainier is 13,210 feet. Hiking on the Wonderland Trail, one repeatedly sees Rainier fill the horizon at a seemingly unbelievable scale, a sight always thrilling and inspiring. The wonders of the Wonderland extend beyond vistas of Rainier. You’ll walk through meadows choked with an abundance and variety of wildflowers matched in few places and cross numerous crystalline creeks and frothing rivers gray with “glacial flour.” Roaring waterfalls leap off cliffs and cascades plunge for hundreds of feet. Mountain lakes shimmer in sunshine or offer a mirror image of Rainier. You will hike intensely quiet forests of giant trees like Douglas fir, western red cedar, and western hemlock at lower elevations and subalpine fir and mountain hemlock up higher. On the Wonderland Trail, you will probably see wildlife like mountain goats—my last trip on it included sightings of around 30 goats—marmots, deer, and perhaps black bears, elk, and possibly even a mountain lion, all of which inhabit Mount Rainier National Park, where 97 percent of the park’s more than 236,000 acres are wilderness. While strenuous, the Wonderland can be backpacked in shorter sections: My wife and I took our kids on a three-day, 22-mile hike when they were nine and seven.

See my story “5 Reasons You Must Backpack Mount Rainier’s Wonderland Trail” and watch for my upcoming feature story about backpacking the Wonderland Trail (which will require a paid subscription to my blog to read in full).

Solitude The Wonderland Trail passes through or near some areas of Mount Rainier National Park that draw high numbers of dayhikers and tourists, including the Cougar Rock, White River, and Mowich Lake campgrounds, Longmire, the Reflection Lakes and Louise Lake, Summerland and Panhandle Gap, and the trails around Sunrise. But it also features long stretches in some of the park’s most-remote corners, such as Box Canyon north to Panhandle Gap, the north side of The Mountain between Berkeley Park and Mowich Lake, and the longest leg of the WT that crosses no roads: the 34.2 miles from Mowich Lake to Longmire around the west side of Rainier. Plus, the park’s permit system and limited number of backcountry campsites keeps the number of backpackers on the trail low enough to not feel crowded (and campsite availability books up very quickly after the park starts accepting permit reservation requests in March). Thus, even during the peak season for backpacking, from late July until around Labor Day, the typical experience for backpackers will be a trail that ranges from moderately busy to periods of solitude. Given that all available backcountry campsites get filled throughout the peak backpacking season, there are only two ways to experience deeper solitude on the Wonderland Trail: • Obtain a walk-in (or first-come) permit after the reservation season ends in late September, ideally during a window of extended good weather. • Hit the trail early every morning, ahead of most backpackers (and dayhikers), and/or hike into the evening, after most other backpackers are in camp.

Get my personalized help planning your Wonderland Trail hike and I’ll refund you the cost of this e-guide. See my Custom Trip Planning page to learn how I can help you.

A backpacker hiking the Wonderland Trail from Panhandle Gap toward Summerland.

Section 1: Planning the Trip

Season The peak season for backpacking the Wonderland Trail begins once most of the snow has melted out from higher stretches of trail, which generally doesn’t happen until late July, and often extends well into September and sometimes into October. July and August are the driest months, with temperatures averaging in the 60s and 70s Fahrenheit during the days and the 40s at night, varying with elevation—often perfect weather, although on a hike as long as the Wonderland Trail, it’s likely you’ll see rain at some point. September grows cooler by several degrees on average, day and night, and by October highs are often in the 40s to 50s and nights near or below freezing. While the park receives substantial rain and snow, it varies greatly from the wetter west side to the drier east side, and more snow falls at higher elevations. Wildflowers bloom profusely soon after most of the snow melts and peak into mid-August, sometimes lasting until late August or early September at higher elevations along the trail. Mosquitoes and biting flies are typically thick from July through much of August and taper off significantly by late August or September. Late August into September is also the time that huckleberries ripen, their bushes often lining the trail. You’ll also find wild raspberries in some areas; we saw many on The Mountain’s southwest side in the first week of September. Summer is also wildfire season, and climate change has brought measurably larger wildfires more frequently across the West. A large wildfire can cause the park to close areas; and even when trails remain open, smoke from distant wildfires can greatly obscure views and compromise your experience. No one can predict wildfires in advance,

of course. The website airnow.gov reports air quality across the country in real time; it’s a useful resource if you need to change your backpacking plans at the last minute and are looking for a destination not enveloped in wildfire smoke.

Insider Tips If you want to start a Wonderland Trail backpacking trip somewhat early in the peak season—in early to mid-July, when snow often still covers sections of the trail at higher elevations—begin with lower sections of the trail. Hiking clockwise, start at Box Canyon Trailhead on Stevens Canyon Road. Snow will be melting quickly for several more days before you reach the highest points on the primary route (below), on the north and east sides of Mount Rainier. Although demand for Wonderland permits is very high, applying for a start date in mid-July may improve your chances of getting a permit reservation because the demand may be less than it is from late July into September. September and early fall often deliver good backpacking weather in Mount Rainier National Park, with comfortably mild days and cool nights that may range from the 40s Fahrenheit to below freezing. But watch the forecast, because early- season storms can also dump fresh snow in September and October, and windows of good weather lasting a week or more are somewhat rare.

Permit A permit is required for backcountry camping in Mount Rainier National Park. You can make a reservation or obtain one first-come, but a reservation is a better strategy because many backcountry campsites—and typically all camps along the Wonderland Trail—become fully booked from July through September. The park begins accepting reservation applications on March 15, online only, for up to about 70 percent of backcountry campsites, for trips beginning through the end of September; after that, permits are only issued first-come, in person. For 2020, due to the coronavirus, the park is issuing all permits only in advance. All requests received between March 15 and March 31 are processed in random order, so submit a reservation application during that time period: The park stops accepting reservations for the Wonderland Trail on March 31. (In past years, all reservable campsites for the Wonderland were often booked for the entire backpacking season by April 1.) There is a non-refundable, $20 fee per confirmed permit. Find more information at nps.gov/mora/planyourvisit/wilderness-permit.htm— which includes a link to the reservation request form and to a frequently updated list of backcountry camp availability during the backpacking season. See also my “10 Tips For Getting a Hard-to-Get National Park Backcountry Permit” and “How to Get a Last-Minute, National Park Backcountry Permit.”

Insider Tip When applying for a backcountry permit reservation, improve your chances by including a range of possible starting dates, in case you don’t get your first choice. There are numerous backcountry campgrounds along the Wonderland Trail, allowing you to vary the total number of days on the trail as well as the starting date. You can also hike this route in either direction (see below).

Which Direction? When thru-hiking the Wonderland, you face two big choices: where to begin (and end) and direction of travel. Your choice between hiking clockwise or counterclockwise dictates whether you ascend or descend the longest, steepest sections. So which is harder, going up or down a long, steep section of trail? You may get a different answer depending on who you ask. Long stretches of steep downhill can pound the leg muscles and joints and cause stiffness in quads and calves, creating a lot of soreness, whereas long, steep uphills are certainly fatiguing on leg and back muscles. You might hear a veteran of the Wonderland advise you on the preferred direction, but I suggest you decide based on knowing how your own body does on big hills. If you don’t like steep downhills, hike it counterclockwise (as I have done). But I think that most backpackers prefer going down steeper hills than up, so this primary route is described hiking clockwise. Doing so, you will descend rather than hike up some of the hardest sections of the Wonderland Trail and the Spray Park Trail, including: • The 2,120 feet in 2.6 miles from Sunrise (elevation 6,400 feet/1951m) to White River campground (elevation 4,280 feet/1305m), at 815 feet per mile. • The 1,629 feet in about 2.5 miles from Panhandle Gap (6,750 feet/2057m) to Indian Bar (5,120 feet/1561m), at 652 feet per mile. • The 2,185 feet in approximately 3.5 miles from the point labeled as 5,485 feet (1672m) on the Cowlitz Divide south of Indian Bar to Box Canyon Trailhead (3,300 feet/1006m), at 624 feet per mile. • The 1,600 feet in under two miles from Emerald Ridge (around 5,600 feet/1700m) to the South Puyallup River (3,999 feet/1219m), at about 840 feet per mile. • The 1,765 feet in 2.8 miles from Klapatchie Park (5,515 feet/1681m) to the North Puyallup River (3,750 feet/1143m), at 630 feet per mile. • The 3,100 feet in roughly 3.7 miles from the high point in Spray Park (around 6,300 feet/1920m) to the Carbon River suspension bridge (3,196 feet/974m), at about 840 feet per mile.

Photo: Todd Arndt backpacking the Spray Park Trail, Mount Rainier National Park.

Backpackers and lupine on the Wonderland Trail, Mount Rainier National Park.

Management Mount Rainier National Park, nps.gov/mora. Find more information at nps.gov/mora/planyourvisit/index.htm and nps.gov/more/planyourvisit/wilderness- guidelines-and-regulations.htm.

Getting There Mount Rainier National Park is located in west-central Washington, within a few hours’ (or less) drive of several major cities, including Seattle, Tacoma, and Yakima, Washington, and Portland, , and about two hours’ drive south of Seatac International Airport and 2.5 hours from Portland International Airport. The park is accessed via five highways and roads, all of which provide access to trailheads for the Wonderland Trail: • WA 706 to the Nisqually Entrance and the Nisqually-Longmire Road in the park’s southwest corner, the primary entrance for the Wilderness Information Center and other services in the small town of Longmire. • WA 615 and the Carbon River Road in the park’s northwest corner. • WA 410 to the Sunrise Road in the park’s northeast corner. • WA 123 to the Stevens Canyon Entrance in the park’s southeast corner. All of the park’s access roads are narrow and winding, with 35 mph speed limits in most areas, so driving around the park is very time-consuming. Only WA 706 and the Carbon River Road provide year-round access to the park, except during extreme weather; other roads are closed in winter.

There are no commercial shuttle services available in Mount Rainier National Park. If you’re backpacking a section of the Wonderland Trail rather than the entire loop, you will have to arrange your own transportation between trailheads. See nps.gov/mora/planyourvisit/directions.htm.

Map National Geographic Trails Illustrated Mt. Rainier National Park map no. 217, natgeomaps.com. While planning this trip and reading through this e-guide, consult the park maps at nps.gov/mora/planyourvisit/maps.htm and Wilderness Trip Planner with extensive information and a map showing all park trails and trail segment distances at nps.gov/mora/planyourvisit/upload/Wilderness-Trip-Planner-2020-combined_508.pdf. Digital maps can be obtained from various online sources, including: caltopo.com mytopo.com/maps natgeomaps.com/trail-maps/pdf-quads nationalmap.gov/ustopo

Backcountry Campsites There are 18 designated wilderness camps and three non-wilderness campgrounds (White River, Cougar Rock, and Mowich Lake) along the Wonderland Trail for parties up to five people. Most of the wilderness camps have group campsites for parties of six to 12 people. The designated wilderness camps each have up to eight marked campsites that usually accommodate five people and/or two tents. All have composting toilets and bear poles for hanging food; hang one food stuff sack per person so that no one sack is overly heavy. Campfires are prohibited throughout the park’s backcountry; stoves are permitted for cooking. Backcountry camping in cross-country zones is allowed in certain areas of Mount Rainier National Park with a permit for it, and with restrictions. But Wonderland Trail backpackers must use the designated camps. See a complete list of the wilderness and non-wilderness campsites along the Wonderland Trail, including the elevation of each, and other information about backpacking the Wonderland at nps.gov/mora/planyourvisit/the-wonderland-trail.htm.

Services, Lodging, and Campgrounds Mount Rainier National Park is surrounded by rural areas and small towns. Within the park are these areas with varying levels of services: • Longmire, located 6.5 miles inside the Nisqually Entrance in the park’s southwest corner and accessible year-round, has the most services, including the Wilderness Information Center, a store where you can purchase some food, fuel, and other supplies, a museum, and the National Park Inn. • Paradise, located 19 miles inside the Nisqually Entrance in the park’s southwest corner and also accessible year-round, has the park’s main visitor center with ranger programs, a gift store, and cafeteria; the Paradise Climbing Information Center inside the Guide House, and the Paradise Inn. At 5,400 feet, Paradise also

has several trails with outstanding views of Mount Rainier, abundant wildflowers in its subalpine meadows in early summer, and winter recreation. • Sunrise, in the park’s northeast corner, the highest point reached by a road in the park at 6,400 feet, also has a visitor center, guided interpretive programs, food service and a gift shop, and several trails with outstanding views of Mount Rainier and abundant wildflowers in its subalpine meadows in early summer. • The Carbon River entrance has a ranger station, the Mowich Lake entrance has bathrooms, and the Stevens Canyon entrance has bathrooms plus a ranger station nearby at Ohanapecosh campground. The National Park Inn and Paradise Inn are both operated by Rainier Guest Services, a concessionaire, mtrainierguestservices.com. Gas is not available anywhere in the park. There are only a handful of gas stations in the rural areas surrounding the park, including Ashford, Packwood, Cliffdell, Enumclaw, and Buckley. Fill your car’s tank before arriving at the park. The park has three developed campgrounds accessible by car at Cougar Rock, Ohanapecosh, and White River. The Wonderland Trail passes through or near all of them, and WT backpackers can stay in those campgrounds. While there are limited first-come campsites during summer at Cougar Rock and Ohanapecosh campgrounds, most campsites require reservations, made at recreation.gov. See nps.gov/mora/planyourvisit/index.htm.

Need to Know • Elevations along this hike do not exceed 6,800 feet, which do not affect most people more than causing a little shortness of breath hiking uphill. • Thunderstorms are common on summer afternoons; and storms can bring a sudden, large drop in temperature, cold rain, and snowfall even in summer. Prepare for all possible conditions. See my blog story “How to Prevent Hypothermia While Hiking and Backpacking.” • Water sources are generally frequent along this route, although scarce on higher stretches of trail. You can often carry just a liter, and probably don’t need to carry more than two liters of water at any time on this trip. Rivers originating in glaciers are too silted for drinking; get water from clear creeks and lakes. • All significant river and creek crossings have bridges (unless any have recently been damaged or destroyed by high water). In July, early in the backpacking season, trail crews may still be clearing trees downed across the trail and rebuilding log bridges, most of which are usually destroyed over the winter and spring, but those repairs are often done by August. See updated trail conditions reports at nps.gov/mora/planyourvisit/trails-and-backcountry-camp- conditions.htm. • Black bears and mountain lions live in Mount Rainier National Park, and close encounters with either are extremely rare. If a black bear or mountain lion approaches you, yell, wave your arms, and throw rocks or other objects at it. Never leave food unattended. Hang all food, trash, and odorous items in stuff sacks from the bear poles located in all backcountry camps. Backpackers generally do not carry pepper spray in Mount Rainier National Park. See my blog post “Ask Me: Should I Hike or Backpack Solo in Bear Country?”

• Other large animals, including mountain goats, may seem docile, but can get aggressive. Never approach any animal and maintain distance from them. • Do not leave your pack unattended for long; besides the danger of a bear tearing it apart, goats and marmots may chew up pack straps for the salt you’ve sweated into them. Similarly, any clothing left outside could get chewed up.

Todd Arndt crossing the Tahoma Creek suspension bridge on the Wonderland Trail.

Caching Food Backpackers can cache food at any of four locations along the Wonderland Trail—Longmire Wilderness Information Center, Sunrise Old Gas Station, White River campground, and the Carbon River ranger station—by either mailing it at least two weeks in advance of your trip (to ensure that it gets there in time) or dropping it off at your chosen location(s) upon arriving at the park. Food caches must be packaged in a clearly labeled, plastic container to protect the contents against rodents, and fuel cannot be included in the container. See all details on caching food at https://www.nps.gov/mora/planyourvisit/caching-food-and-fuel.htm. Should you cache food? For many backpackers and long-distance thru-hikers, the weight of more than about six to seven days’ of food—often at roughly two pounds per person per day—justifies the time you will spend preparing and arranging a resupply or cache.

Gear No specialized gear is needed for the Wonderland Trail during the peak season of summer and early autumn. In summer, given the typically moderate temperatures and the fact that designated backcountry camps along the Wonderland Trail are relatively protected in forest, you can use lightweight to ultralight gear, including your pack, tent, bag, and footwear. Here are some gear tips for backpacking in Mount Rainier National Park—but this should not be considered a complete packing list: Bring clothing layers appropriate for the range of temperatures forecast, a higher- quality rain jacket with an adjustable hood that provides full coverage, and adequately supportive, waterproof-breathable shoes or boots that will keep your feet dry in wet conditions. See my reviews of “The 5 Best Rain Jackets for Hiking and Backpacking,” “The Best Base Layers for Hiking, Running, and Training,” “The 10 Best Down Jackets,” my “Pro Tips For Buying the Right Hiking Boots,” and all of my reviews of backpacking boots and hiking shoes. A backpack of 50 to 65 liters will have adequate space for water, food, and clothing, and you will be happier with as light a pack as possible. See my picks for “The 10 Best Backpacking Packs” and the best ultralight backpacks. Trekking poles are indispensable for the Wonderland Trail’s many long descents and ascents. See my picks for “The Best Trekking Poles” and my stories “How to Choose Trekking Poles” and “10 Best Expert Tips for Hiking With Trekking Poles.” Campsites are fairly protected in forest and summer weather is often pleasant, so a lightweight tent is adequate for the Wonderland Trail. See my picks for “The 8 (Very) Best Backpacking Tents.” A lightweight sleeping bag rated around 30 degrees is all you’ll need in typical summer temperatures, and it will help keep your pack lighter—unless you get cold easily, in which case you may prefer a 20-degree bag. In September and early autumn, many backpackers will prefer a bag rated about 10 degrees warmer than the bag they would use in summer. See all of my reviews of sleeping bags and my 10 Pro Tips For Staying Warm in a Sleeping Bag” and “Pro Tips for Buying Sleeping Bags” at The Big Outside. I always prefer an air mattress to a foam pad for sleeping on the ground. I sometimes bring a short or cutoff foam pad that’s only as long as shoulders to mid-thigh, for extra cushion and to lie or sit on in camp. See all of my air mat reviews. Bring a lightweight and compact method of water treatment. With water sources rarely more than an hour apart, I often keep perhaps just a half-liter of water in my bladder while carrying a filter bottle like a Lifestraw Go filter bottle or Katadyn BeFree and quickly refilling it when I wanted a drink. For a group of four or more, I like the convenience and ease of a gravity filter. See my review of backpacking accessories, and all of my water filter reviews at The Big Outside. Bring a lightweight and compact method of water treatment, in case some of the potable water sources along the corridor trails are not available and you must get water from creeks (listed in the Need to Know section, above). Bring a very lightweight and compact treatment, like a collapsible filter bottle. See the ones covered in my review of “22 Essential Backpacking Gear Accessories” and all of my water filter reviews at The Big Outside.

Bring an ultralight headlamp (four ounces or less) that’s bright and dimmable, with fresh batteries or a full charge. See my review of “The 5 Best Headlamps.” Find categorized menus of gear reviews, best-in-category reviews, and buying tips at my Gear Reviews page at The Big Outside. See also my “Essentials-Only Backpacking Gear Checklist.”

Whether you’re a beginner or seasoned backpacker, you’ll learn new tricks for making all of your trips go better in my “12 Expert Tips for Planning a Wilderness Backpacking Trip,” “10 Tricks for Making Hiking and Backpacking Easier,” and “A Practical Guide to Lightweight and Ultralight Backpacking.” If you don’t have a paid subscription to The Big Outside, you can read part of those stories for free, or download the e-guide versions of “12 Expert Tips for Planning a Wilderness Backpacking Trip” and the lightweight backpacking guide and the 10 tricks here without having a paid membership.

Other articles at The Big Outside that may be useful in preparing for a Wonderland Trail hike include:

5 Tips For Staying Warm and Dry While Hiking 8 Pro Tips For Avoiding Blisters How to Prevent Hypothermia While Hiking and Backpacking 10 Pro Tips For Staying Warm in a Sleeping Bag Video: How to Pack a Backpack 7 Pro Tips For Keeping Your Backpacking Gear Dry

Training for a Big Hike or Mountain Climb 5 Tips for Getting Out of Camp Faster When Backpacking 10 Tips For Spending Less on Backpacking and Hiking Gear 12 Expert Tips for Finding Solitude When Backpacking How to Know How Hard a Hike Will Be 5 Questions to Ask Before Trying a New Outdoors Adventure

Backpackers on the Wonderland Trail west of Sunrise in Mount Rainier National Park.

Section 2: The Hike

The Primary Route: A 9-day Wonderland Trail Loop

The Wonderland Trail makes a loop of approximately 93 miles around Mount Rainier—and I wrote “approximately” because its precise distance is unknown: On my most-recent hike (September 2020), we met rangers who were out measuring the trail. It can be thru-hiked in its entirety—in anywhere from a very aggressive three to six days up to, more commonly, nine to 10 days—or you can backpack shorter trips of varying lengths on sections of the Wonderland. This primary route totals 90.3 miles rather than 93 miles because of one major diversion off the Wonderland Trail (onto the Spray Park Trail) and two minor diversions (at Sunrise). The detailed, day-by-day itinerary below describes a nine-day loop from Sunrise that I believe most backpackers would find perfect because it: • Places you in several of the nicest backcountry camps along the trail. • Includes a popular variation on the higher, more scenic, and somewhat harder Spray Park Trail instead of the Wonderland’s segment from Mowich Lake to the Carbon River suspension bridge. • Hits many of the trail’s finest vistas at ideal times of day. • Spreads out the miles and long ascents and descents as evenly as possible—and goes down the steepest sections. • Conveniently allows for a food cache almost exactly mid-trip on day four—so you’re never carrying more than five days of food weight.

• Begins and finishes on some of the trail’s most glorious and inspiring miles. The itinerary shows that days five through eight are the hike’s hardest. But those come once you’ve gotten your trail legs and as your pack is getting lighter. Many WT thru-hikers begin at Longmire, which has some conveniences. But when hiking clockwise from Longmire, you start with either a very short day of under five miles to Devils Dream—which is fine if your travel schedule results in you not starting the hike until afternoon, but sets you up for longer days ahead—or a very hard first day of 12.4 miles, with substantial elevation gain and loss, to South Puyallup camp. Presumably, a party that wants to average under 10 miles per day (on a 10-day itinerary) does not want to begin the trip, when their packs are heaviest, with one of its most strenuous days. Of the many advantages listed above of hiking clockwise from Sunrise, perhaps most importantly, it gives you options for spreading out the miles and the cumulative elevation gain and loss of over 44,000 feet on a schedule that will feel more manag