Flowing in and out of places at a whim can leave us a little unprepared. We came up to Mt Rainier with an assumption that it’s part of a well advertised national park, and as such, things like food should not be difficult to find. After all, it had several lodges, including one equipped with a restaurant. After waking up leisurely, we didn’t even bother to put on our riding boots to make the short trip up to Paradise Inn – the promised land of breakfast and internet access. But more on that later.
The morning was foggy and dreamy. There were no other vehicles on the move. As we made our way up the twisty road, we had to stop to admire how the clouds parted over the valley carved by Nisqually River. The telltale mix of rocks in the riverbed pointed to a glacier feeding it up the slope, although we couldn’t see it behind the cloud cover.
As we reached the inn, we noticed that the wall of snow around the parking lot was several feet high. Our puffy jackets were just about enough for the chilly temperatures. I wondered to myself how much hiking we’d really be able to do here, but I delegated that thought to the after-breakfast me.
Coming inside, we realized the restaurant was not open for breakfast, and the only option was a convenience store with pre-packaged sandwiches, fat free yogurts, and drip coffee. The sandwiches were small, expensive, and looked more sad than they really ought to be. Bring all your own food next time, if there is ever a next time, I told myself. To warm up the sad sandwiches there was a sad microwave. To wash them down, we got coffee. “Refills are free!” – quipped the cheery cashier as she poured our cups.
We sat by a window in the inn’s large ornate lobby, and quickly finished the sandwiches. The weather was still on the gloomy side, so we got coffee refills and settled in, doing something very important on our phones.
Eventually we decided to stretch our legs and go for a hike to see Myrtle Falls. The trailhead was right next to the inn. On the map everything seemed easy, but in reality the thick slab of snow concealed all the trails and markers. There were numerous footprints heading into the general direction of the falls, but it took us longer than expected to figure out the correct path.
It was still foggy and the views around us were very limited. We could barely see the falls even once we reached the spot. There was no hope of seeing the mountains and valleys in the distance. The fog visually blended with the white snow and made it seem like we were floating in milk. Slightly disoriented, we gravitated to the rare patches of exposed rocks and realized that one such patch had a marmot sitting on it. The animal barely moved and appeared to be just an extension of the rock it was sitting on. There were plenty of other trails to follow, but in these conditions there was no point in going much further. We headed back to the inn.
In the parking lot, we retrieved the coffee cups previously stashed in our motorcycle bags. We purchased more microwaved sandwiches, and received complementary coffee refills with no questions. By the time the sandwiches were eaten, the sun burned off most of the fog, revealing beautiful landscapes all around. We got more coffee and moved our party to the outdoor deck, where the warmth of the sun made us feel very alive and very relaxed at the same time. A couple of chickadees joined in, sharing this surreal moment, sunbathing and measuring up our willingness to share snacks.
It was hours before we agreed to leave this blissful spot for more sightseeing. We made a brief stop at the Narada Falls and enjoyed a hike from the campground that took us across rivers and through the forest. As we paused on a bridge across Paradise River, the clouds opened up to the most perfect view of Mt Rainier. Soft golden shadows moved across the valley as we made our way back to the tent.
