Skyline Loop Hike

Matt and I had been trying to put together a daddy daughter hike all summer, but had difficulty finding a date due to vacation and Rachel's busy schedule. We finally found at day at the end of September and chose to do Skyline Loop Trail at Mount Rainier. Though it didn't rain, the weather was far from ideal. It was a bit cold at Paradise and clouds obscured the mountain during the entire hike. The good news was the fall colors were out and there were lots of wildlife to see. Along the way we saw some bucks and doe and several marmots. The marmots had no fear of us so we were able to get some up close viewings of them.

The upper part of the trail was covered by fog and the temperatures dropped to near freezing. We weren't fully outfitted for the cold so it was a bit uncomfortable for this part of the hike. Of interest in this area was everything was covered in frost which made for a very unique and beautiful setting. Eventually as the trail looped back down the temperature warmed up and we dropped out of the fog. Near the end there were more marmots to meet and lovely streams and waterfalls to view.

I had never hiked the full Skyline loop before and found it to be a very nice trail. I didn't expect much for a Fall hike, but the weather conditions made for a memorable experience.