Even on summer weekends when Mount Rainier National Park is teeming with visitors there is a simple trick for finding solitude.
“Usually if you pick the trail that looks the least appealing and that is not close to the mountain and doesn’t have views you can find solitude,” said backcountry ranger Jennifer Rudnick.
One of the best examples is Three Lakes in the quiet southeast corner of the park.
On a July weekend while cars packed the parking lot at Paradise, nobody was on the Laughingwater Trail, the path that runs from state Route 123 for six miles to Three Lakes.
A logbook with a rusty spiral binding stashed behind the patrol cabin showed just how few visitors this area really gets.
There were six entries for the year as of mid-July and just two for all of 2009. The backcountry campsites were unused and the cabin was sealed, a wood crate over the chimney to keep out the wildlife.
The only signs of recent visitors were deer hoof prints in the mud and some bear scat near the third lake.
“It’s a long, uphill slog through the trees to a place with no views,” said backcountry ranger Daniel Keebler. “It’s not frequented.”
You can fish in the lakes, but the action is rarely very good, Rudnick said. And the mosquitoes can be miserable from May to late September.
With endorsements like these, it’s easy to see why so few people ever visit Three Lakes. But if you cherish solitude more than views, it is a destination worth visiting.
A quick look at the visitor log shows why some people enjoy Three Lakes. The few entries mostly echo the same sentiment: A perfect place to get away, take pleasure in the silence and enjoy some introspection.
Laughingwater Creek Trail climbs about 2,800 feet to Three Lakes, but it hardly feels like one of Rainier’s typical uphill climbs.
The trail is designed to give workers and their pack animals access to the Pacific Crest Trail, the 2,700-mile Mexico-to-Canada trail that runs along the east side of the park.
“The trail is graded at a much lower level for the mule skinners,” Rudnick said.
The trail starts with a long gentle climb above Laughingwater Creek. While views of the creek are rare, the sound of the rolling water is a constant companion for most the first three miles.
The trail bends through forest carpeted with thick green moss and past trees adorned with mushrooms the size of a child’s head. Most of the trail is in the shade, but fingers of light often poke through the trees highlighting the verdant beauty.
Keebler and Rudnick have both made the hike many times when they’ve been stationed at the patrol cabin.
The cabin is near the park boundary with the William O. Douglas Wilderness. Keebler says it is often used by law enforcement rangers who check to make sure backpackers have the right permits and that hunters don’t wander into the park from the neighboring national forest.
Rudnick, who made a trip to Three Lakes last month, says most of the visitors are typically day hikers. She’s also noticed many trail runners on the route.
Both say Pacific Crest Trail through-hikers rarely make the side trip because it is 1.3 miles off their route and a permit is required to camp.
However, if you are really hankering for a view of Mount Rainier after hiking one of the few trails in the park that lead away from the peak, extending the hike to the Pacific Crest Trail is a good option.
“There are good views of the mountain from the PCT,” Rudnick said.
This side trip will make the hike at least 14.6 miles, but many more miles can easily be added.
“Just go to the PCT and turn one way or the other and you can hike for weeks,” Keebler said.
As unpopular as Three Lakes is compared to other areas in the park, Rudnick still thinks it’s cool. She is reading Rocky Barker’s 2005 book “Scorched Earth,” an examination of the debate about how the Park Service deals with forest fires.
She was particularly intrigued by a passage that talked about how secluded areas such as Yellowstone and Mount Rainier used to be before they were inundated with tourists.
“There are so many visitors today,” Rudnick said. “It is amazing there are still places you can go to find to seclusion.”
Craig Hill: 253-597-8497
craig.hill@thenewstribune.com
blog.thenewstribune.com/adventure
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