The plan was to park at Laughingwater Creek trail on 123 and loop CW, up the Cowlitz Divide Trail > Wonderland > Panhandle Gap down to the road then, Owyhigh Lakes > Eastside Trail > Grove of the Patriarchs. I overslept so got a slightly later start than originally planned. In the larger picture it didn't matter... 

Generally speaking the trails were in great condition. I honestly don't recall having to climb over any downed trees on the whole route... If I did then they weren't notable. Water was plentiful with all the melt. There was some lingering snow above 6,400' from starting above Indian Bar up and over Panhandle but after the group site at Summerland there was no more on the route. I carried yaks (traction devices, not the long-haired domesticated bovid naturally found throughout the Himalayan region) but they stayed in the pack as the snow was soft enough and there was a good boot pack to pass even with trail runners. I did get a nice glissade in before the gap...

The trail up to Owyhigh is nice and wide! I met a group coming down that told me about a bear up by the lakes. I was hoping to see this fellow but that was not to be. Not surprisingly, he did not avail himself to me. He did however leave lots of fresh sign that he was in the area; poo piles and freshly clawed trees... This defiantly seems to be his area...

It was nice coast down to the Eastside trail as a lot of blow downs had been cleared throughout this section. Nice work MRNP!!

Moving towards the Grove of Super Ginormous trees, I happened upon my second ripening huckleberry patch...I found a smaller one going up the Cowlitz but this patch was certainly further along. I ate several table spoons of berries as I moved very slowly through ( I may even have stopped for several minutes)...

The Grove of the Patriarchs are a must see and although I've been through here before I had every intention of going back in. After a loop I was back at the car in no time.

It was a beautiful trip through an amazing place. It's sooo cool to live in a place where this is just a two hour drive away...

Wildlife roll call:

5 mountain goats, a bazillion marmots, chipmunks, pine squirrels, frogs, sooo many birds!!!

Managed to squeak in one last trip Wednesday. When conditions are good, and wow, they were perfect, it’s hard to argue that NE Rainier isn’t the finest hiking area in the state. What views! No bugs, not cold, no snow, no rain and very few people. In fact I encountered a total of seven people from the trailhead to Goat Island to Summerland to Indian Bar to Cowlitz Park and back to Summerland over the course of two and a half days. Two of those folks were rangers. Everyone greeted me with friendly salutations. I could see other hikers in the distance but that’s such a vast area the midweek crowd was widely dispersed. On the other hand, headed home on Friday I met 23 hikers in the four miles from Summerland to the trailhead. Everyone there was also friendly but that makes for a somewhat different experience. Likewise, getting walkup Wonderland permits midweek worked out well. It makes me ever thankful I have some flexibility in my schedule.

Anyway, the brief report:

The road was fine, of course. And will be at least until winter comes. I love this drive, especially after you turn off 410 onto the White River Road and start to see eye-popping views of the big mountain in the early light. There’s a self-serve entrance fee kiosk now, for when rangers aren’t staffing the gate. Having an annual permit I did not try the kiosk.

Trail conditions were excellent- except for the drop from Ohanapecosh into Indian Bar where the innumerable log bars create steps too tall for my old knees. Apparently they are too tall for a lot of folks so parallel treads have developed. I did my best to use the intended trail as much as I could but some of those steps are just formidable. Some trail rework seemed to be in progress.

No bugs troubled me day or night.

Snow was not an issue. There was one tiny patch of old hard snow on the trail from Panhandle down into Ohanapecosh but it was trivial to cross.

There was plenty of water to be had on both the Summerland side and the Ohanapecosh side of Panhandle Gap.

Animals: wow! Elk bugled through the night at both Summerland and Indian Bar camps. On my pre-dawn Friday departure out of Indian Bar I met one of the buglers at a distance too close for comfort. Those boys are big! I’m not sure what the proper protocol is for passing a rutting bull elk. I ended up just speaking in a regular voice and walking on past as calmly as possible. I also saw lots of cows and young elk too. And lots and lots of goats. The Rainier goats seem comfortably reticent around people so interactions are generally mellow. I was sitting with a cup of coffee at Panhandle when a mother and kid burst from the krummholz and seeing me took off in full sprint up the ridge. Incredible how fast they can climb technical terrain. Also saw up close a beautiful lounging buck who held so still I had a hard time convincing myself he was real. Saw some ptarmigans and other birds. Marmots and pikas, of course. Saw something that looked like cat scat. Saw no bears. A ranger told me she hadn’t seen bears in the Indian Bar area for some weeks, suggesting maybe they have gone to ground for the season.

There was a small wildfire down in the Ohanapecosh valley but smoke did not come up as far as Indian Bar so skies were blue. I foolishly neglected to bring sunscreen so got a bit burned spending all day Thursday above tree line.

We day hiked from the Fryingpan Creek trailhead across Panhandle Gap, coming out at Box Canyon - about 17 miles. The Wonderland Trail is in very good condition through here. There is current trail work being done near the Fryingpan Creek crossing on the way to Summerland.

Very little snow remains on the trail. We crossed one short stretch north of Panhandle Gap, and two other patches along the traverse toward Indian Bar, none of which are hazardous.

Late summer wildflowers offer a good display, particularly in the meadows as the trail descends into Indian Bar. We encountered some flies in this area, but not a major nuisance.

We were surprised to meet hikers near Indian Bar with a rather large dog - strictly against park regulations. Poor air quality kept us from enjoying the long views along the trail. cfpinnix, Olympia.

So this is most definally my favorite section of the Wonderland trail. The hike out of Summerland is not to crazy as you hike up to panhandle gap at spots where you almost feel like your on the moon. crossing the gap you with hit some snow but easy walk across. Take your time and look around there a ton of great views on the whole trail. transitioning back to meadows and trees you drop hard into Indian bar where we saw a bear in the meadow by the camp sites.

Wonderland trail.

Did a full loop around Mt. Rainier, Wonderland hike. Started from Longmire and finished Longmire, clockwise. Did it in 11 days.

What a great experience. Awesome and very hard. At least for me. My backpack was way too heavy. Learned a lot from this hike. 

I was walk-in for my itenirary Tuesday morning, second in line at 7 am. Had my 11 days written out and had to change only 3 of the days. Was on the trail at 8:30 am.

Lot of bugs on a west side and north. Wear a net around the face. On the east side bugs were not too bad. Some stream crossings where dangerous by whintrop and white water crossings. Please be careful and do not cross if you are not sure.

Most of my campsites were nice and quiet, but it is well known park so expect some crowds on few of the sites where dayhikers camp out. 

There were bunch of berries along the way and piles of bear scat. I did not see any bears but they are around for sure. 

Views of the mountains are awesome. I got up and going most mornings by 6:30 am so many of my views were without any other hikers for a while.

Some snow patches between Indian Bar and maple creek. Early morning snow is still hard so watch your step. 

Just an awesome experience to be able to right this hike off my list.