We took off from Seattle at about 8:45 am on Saturday morning to go on the snowshoe trip we have been promising to go on for probably 3 years now. We decided on Mowich Lake at Rainier given it's rating as 'easy' in our guide. Fortunately we took the 4x4 Toyota truck with high clearance because soon after turning off to Mowich Lake Rd., the snow started, deepening up to a couple feet. On the way, we stopped to help a driver in a ditch in his Honda 2 door. Don't even try it without chains or all-wheel drive! We pushed on past the ORV parking lot. It seemed we were the first ones to travel past the ORV lot on 4 wheels, and it was getting deeper, so turned we around. We were blocked by two ATVs that were stuck also trying to go back up the hill to the lot so pushed them out too. FYI from the ORV community, consensus was there was too much snow at this location. We finally parked in the ORV lot, got on our snowshoes and set out for Mowich Lake at about 11:45 am, not knowing how far we were from the National Park boundary or trailhead. There was 2-3 feet of dry powder with little if any snow packed as a base. The snow was practically pristine, broken only by the snowshoe prints of (we later learned) 2 other hikers who left before us. The snow was stacked up on the tree limbs overhanging the road, and threatened, whenever the wind kicked up, to mist you with the dusty powder or even hurl a clump or two at you. This wintry scene more than made up for the clearcuts on both sides prior to reaching the park boundary. We did bump into 3 more snowshoers on the way to the trailhead parking lot. All told it was about 3 miles to the trailhead, so by the time we all made it to the lot (around 1:45 pm), we set up at a picnic table, chowed down fast, took a picture or 2 and turned around. The way back is mostly downhill, so we were back to the car by 4pm. A few other big trucks & SUVs traveled further up the Mowich Lake Rd than we had, but no one made it all the way to the trailhead lot. This was a great hike for us to go on to christen this snowshoeing season and our equipment. This wouldn't be my first choice to do again, but worthy of trying out, especially if you aren't confident with your gear or fitness yet.

Two buddies & I decided to celebrate a gray drizzling St. Patrick's Day looking for snow on the Mowich Lake Rd. The drive out wasn't bad. Down trees have been cleared, though one threatens to fall. We broke out of the clouds about halfway up. Great view of Liberty Cap against blue sky! The road is snow free to the gate at the Paul Peak trailhead. We did see broken glass at the gate. We didn't carry our skis more than a few hundred yards. The snow was thin and rocky up to 3950 by my altimeter. Snow cover was about 1 - 2 feet deep most of the way. Lots of nice roadside waterfalls - sure sign spring melt is in progress. The road was shaded by the tall trees in most spots. Nice given the warm reather. Occasional breaks revealed views of Tolmie Peak. We kept looking for the Grindstone trail but there was lots of debris on the snow that made it hard to find. The debris wasn't invitng on skis so we stuck to the road. We found lots of melt crust that got pretty hard by the last hairpin. At the top of the hill we were rewarded with a gentle sunny ski down to the campground. The kiosk and the bear pole barely poked out of the snow. We found a nice open snowy beach with a view of the lake and a few hills to play on. After an hour of goofing off heavy gray clouds blew in cramping our sunny fun. So we hoisted our packs and headed down the road. My buddies set up a great pace double poling down the softened snow. I'm getting old - working up a sweat to keep up on the way down! It took us 2.5 hours to ski up and 1 hour to ski down. Not bad for a geezer?

What a BEAUTIFUL day for a hike...ski trip actually. The road is open all the way to the Paul Pk TH. Here I parked near the gate across the road and donned the skis (8:30am). It was a quick trip up to the lake. Just before reaching it, at the high point on the road just before the parking lot, you get your best view of ""the mountain"". It sure was out today. I mosied on over to the patrol cabin. I honestly hoped to have lunch there. Some friends had taken shelter on the porch a short two weeks ago. Well gosh, golly, gee...it's snowed and how! The cabin is almost completely buried and the only way to the porch is through a gopher hole. So I headed back to the high point on the road for view of the lake and mountain. I got it of the lake, fog was enveloping the mountain. I really wanted to head up Elizabeth Ridge. Really, really I did. But I was travelling alone, had only told one person where I was headed, and I'm still a beginner skier. So the safe option was to head back down to the car. That's OK. I had a nice quiet 60 minute lunch at the lake. I wasn't molested but even one camprobber. That was the biggest surprise. I was back to the car by 2pm. Stats: 11 miles, 1500' gain, 4.5 hours (not including lunch)

Four of us skied and snowshoed the Mowich Lake Road. Fresh snow the night before made the drive in adventerous. High centering my Pathfinder meant stopping at 3300 feet, 2.3 miles and 300 feet gain before the gate at Paul Peak TH. Bring chains and a shovel if you go soon. Fresh snow also meant we didn't have to carry our skis on the way out. We did an 8.5 mile day and 900 gain. Didn't make it too the lake. The day started overcast with light snow. It was wet spring snow. It would stick to our skis and snowshoes if we stood around too long. The soft snow made things very aerobic and slowed our pace both ways. The grade is gentle and wide so it's good for beginners working on trail technique. The trees had a fresh snow dusting. The warming day dropped plenty of snow bombs. We saw lots of animal tracks, elk, deer, coyote, rabbits and ermine. Icicle displays on rock out crops were cool. On the way back big, wet snow flakes fell as far as the gate. As we passed the cuts outside the park the sun and blue sky came out. We got a nice view up the Mowich Glacier. It also melted most of the new snow, very thin skiing! We were pretty worked at the end of the day. It was nice to get to the car.

Today was forecast to be such a gorgeous day that at the last minute I suggested to Kim that we head down toward Mt Rainier. Not looking for an overly ambititious trip or a long drive to the south end of the park we decided to head to Mowich Lake. What a treat. The road is clear all the way to the Paul Pk TH but I chose to park just outside the park boundary lest a diligent Park Service employee write me a ticket for not having a National Park Pass. It doesn't add much to the trip. The trip starts by following FS79 and gains it's elevation (1400' to the lake in about 5 miles) so leisurely that you hardly notice that you are climbing. The road winds around Martin Pk and skirts Mowich Meadows. After a sharp switchback in the road look for a trail marker showing the start of the Grindstone Trail. You can follow the road if you like because in the summer it goes all the way to the lake. In the winter, the trail cuts off a few of the switchbacks in the road and takes you into dense forest. Before you know it, you've popped out on the road just shy of the Mowich Lk campground. The views of the lake are stunning. At the lake there was maybe 18"" of snow. We shoveled off the snow from the top of one of the picnic tables and enjoyed a great lunch in the sun. Watch out for the camprobbers. They've learned a lot of bad behavior no doubt reinforced by being fed by campers at the lake suring the warm summer months. We were repeatedly harrased by at least 8 of the jays often with a few making mad dashes at one of us at the same time. One siege of the birds actually succeeded in steeling the last bit of Kim's sandwich right out of her hands. After a short lunch, we walked the 0.1 mile to the ranger hut nestled in the woods. While the day was beautiful (sun and no wind) it was pretty darned cold so we wasted no time packing up and heading back. We didn't see anyone on the trail/road the whole time we were out. This surprised both of us considering how easy the trip was and the wonderful weather. That's OK, it was a nice chance for peace and quiet on the trail. Stats: 10 miles, 1400' gain.