Rainier Trail to Gobblers Knob

There are so many beautiful camp sites at Mt. Rainier, and so many wonderful places to backpack in and camp. Of course the lodges in the Park are historic and should definitely be visited whether you stay there or not. Instead I chose to stay at Alexander's Lodge, just outside the Park entrance to Paradise. This lovely lodge built in 1911 is such a delight, with its own restaurant, a picturesque fish pond in the back with a pretty little waterfall, gardens, backed on forest, and in front this moving water wheel and little pond. I saw lots of birds and also deer close up, right in the gardens. It was such a comfortable stay, I recommend you try it out.

My second day at Rainier my friend and I hiked the Lake George to Gobblers Knob trail in the Lower Forest of the mountain, an old growth forest. This trail is 11 miles round trip if you make it all the way to the Knob. The highest point is 5,485 feet. Here you see the silt in the rushing Tahoma Creek of melted snow off the mountain, which towers in the distance. Although we didn't see any, the Ranger assures this forest is home to pine marten, weasel, flying squirrels (they actually glide using flaps, no flapping), and 500 pairs of spotted owls. The Forest Service is now reintroducing fishers as well.

Beautiful Mt. Rainier from the "back side," the most west view. The trees in this forest are huge, producing lots of shade, although we were there on a hot summer day and the wider parts of the trail were open and hot. Speaking of comfort - be sure to take bug spray! Take it from me you're going to need it. Fallen trees and standing tree snags are all animal habitats and also provide nutrients to plants around them. There are western red cedar trees (no needles), douglas fir (needles surround a branch in a circle), hemlock (very tiny cones and short needles that are not symetrical).  There are not many deciduous trees here because there's not enough light let in, but there are big leaf maple, skunk cabbage, and ferns.

There are also lots of berries in the summer, wonderful treats for animals including bears (foreshadowing)

The trail branches off straight into Lake George, which was the perfect temperature for tired toes on this summer day.

Peaceful spot for a picnic rest before continuing on the remaining short trail to Gobblers Knob

A sparkling summer day. The other side of the indented hour glass you see is where the lake really opens up wide.

A quiet, green spot by Lake George

Part of the trail leading from Lake George onto Gobblers Knob. It's about a mile to reach the knob. At just about this point our directions were to bear right - as it turned out it meant literally

Excitement to see within 60 feet this active black bear enjoying the forest as well, and no doubt some of the berries all around. Apologize for the lack of focus here, and also no zoom - the bear was moving pretty quickly, I was slow on the camera buttons, and yes my hand may have been shaking just a little. We didn't see any other bears with this one, but this bear appeared to be a juvenile probably born last year and since juveniles normally still stay with their mama we suspected she was close by, no doubt watching us intently.

Picture thanks to Tristan Dewdney, a very nice hiker who we met on the trail. He was visiting from the East Coast and was nice enough to share this incredible sweeping view from the top of Gobblers Knob. You see it all from this peak: Mt Adams, Mt Hood, Mt. St. Helens to the sourth and east, and also the Olympics to the west. Well worth the hike

Picture thanks to Tristan Dewdney, the incredible long view from the top of Gobblers Knob. This spot got its name from the turkeys that the old miners used to keep up there for food. It was a little disappointing to find that out; it had sounded to me like something that could be out of Harry Potter. No reports of wild turkeys up there now.

Picture thanks to Tristan Dewdney. Here's the renowned Mt. Rainier viewed from Gobblers Knob.
Thank you again Tristan Dewdney very much for letting me share your great photos on this blog!

Stopping on the way home at Alexander's Lodge one more time for a dinner feast, here are pictures of the baby bird nest above their outdoor deck. These six hungry babies were keeping their mother bird constantly busy.

You've heard of wide mouth bass?  Here's wide mouth bird

Mt. Rainier adventure rating: Glad I went, can't wait to go back