I drove through the park starting at the Nisqually Entrance.  I stopped for a short hike in a glaciated valley with neat bridges made from whole trees.  And I loved all the rocks everywhere.  I continued up the road, around each bend looking for the mountain top.  Can you see it? 

I looked at Narada Falls from the first vantage point. Hmm.  Not very impressive.  So I moved on, stopping at the Visitor Center.  I was quite impressed with the architecture.  There were those binocular viewing things and you could see people climbing up the mountain.  It was pretty neat.

I like pulling off the road at every turnout, because you never know what you'll be able to see.  And boy was I surprised when I got a look at Narada Falls from another angle!  It was HUGE! 

Next stop was at Reflection Lakes.  There weren't any cars here, so it must not have good viewing, but I stopped anyway.  Nope, not very good viewing because the ice was still on the lake!  But I caught one spot where the ice was melting and perfectly framed the mountain top.  I guess it was a good stop.

As I drove, I noticed all the valleys - both glaciated and carved by rivers - and also the rock slide channels.  Those channels left huge scars on the mountain that you could see from miles away!  And then when you get up close, you realize just how big they are!  Lets just say you wouldn't want your car where the channel crosses the road. 

I decided to head to Yakima for the night.  The plan was to hit Glacier on the way home.  I got part way to Yakima, only to find the road was closed!  A logging truck tipped over dumping a bunch of logs that blocked both lanes of the road.  Everyone had to turn around and head back.  I was a little grumpy - it was getting late and I needed to find someplace to camp.  But I was greeted with this gorgeous view of the sunset over Mt Rainier on the way back.  I finally pulled into a campsite near the park around 10 pm.  So much for my schedule. 

Once again, I know I want to return.  I just read about the floods in Nov 2006 that washed out a bunch of roads and campgrounds and utilities.  Crazy!  I wonder what it all looks like now?  Hwy 123 that I took to get out of the park now has a washout 70 ft deep?  Another spot on a highway washout drops hundreds of feet!  Scary!  I just hope they get everything fixed up and safe so people can get back to enjoying the park!

When traveling through the State of Washington looking for waterfalls, the Mount Rainier National Park is a must to add to your itinerary. Established back over a hundred years ago, March 1899, it covers nearly a quarter of a million acres and elevations from under 2,000 feet to its high point at Mount Rainier itself at 14,410 feet. The mountain itself is an active volcano having erupted only 150 years ago and is covered with snow and ice. Glaciers are also found covering more than 35 square miles of upper portions of the area. The old growth forest below is full of many types of trees and the stunning wildflowers are found around many of the meadows. If you are out for a scenic drive this is a great park. Of course there is plenty of challenging hikes and mountain climbing available. Camping is available at several sites and there are six visitor or information stations.

Then back over the pass and on towards Mount Rainier National Park.  This park is absolutely loaded with waterfalls, being situated on the south side of one of the tallest mountains in the United States, but most are well off the highway and require miles of hiking to see.  We did get to see several, although I cannot identify most of them.  The other things that bothered me at this point was that we drove right past a few falls that although close to the highway were not noted with signage.  If a sign had been there we certainly would have stopped to take pictures.