Today our Tacoma Mountaineers group hiked several trails in the Reflection Lakes area.
Distance: 9.5 miles | Elevation Gain: 2,400 feet
A beautiful day exploring the trails around Pinnacle Peak Saddle, Snow Lake, and Bench Lake with The Mountaineers! The group enjoyed a rewarding hike through the stunning mountain scenery of Mount Rainier National Park, with plenty of opportunities to take in the views, fall foliage and enjoy the changing season.
Talk about fall colors. As we started at Reflection Lakes we strolled along the Wonderland Trail to take photos of the mountain's reflection in the sunrise.
Pinnacle Peak saddle, tucked neatly into the Tatoosh range, was a nice spot to take an early lunch with Adams in the background. We then headed west to a small area just below Plummer Peak for more views before returning.
Along the Wonderland we walked until the trail met the Stevens Canyon Road. Just a short distance beyond is a small parking area that was full so we made a good choice by walking.
The Snow Lake trail is a challenging up and down trail with many roots, rocks, and steep ups ad downs. Thankfully it is short and worth the minor hassles as we stopped at Bench Lake first.
Next we threaded ourselves through the small trails to Snow Lake. We found the campground area to have the best views of the lake and imagined how beautiful this is with winter snow surrounding Unicorn and Stevens Peaks.
It was the last day for watermelon in the mountains, making for a refreshing and fitting treat at the end of the day! As we hiked, with high cirrus clouds slowly rolling in, it added a moody touch to the landscape reminding us that fall turns to winter quickly as it rapidly made its way into the early sunset.
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