Climbing Mount Rainier is a great introductory when entering the world of mountaineering. We chose to do the hike as an instructional course with International Mountain Guides (IMG), where we learned some self-arrest skills and glacier travel techniques. While we unfortunately ran into bad weather on summit day and did not reach 14,000 feet, our trip with IMG was still amazing and now we have every reason to visit Rainier again!
Trip Overview
Dates: September 5 – September 7, 2020
Miles: 16 (4.5 miles from Paradise to Camp Muir, 1 mile from Camp Muir to Ingraham Flats, 2 miles from Ingraham Flats to the summit [Columbia Crest], and 8.5 miles to return to Paradise)
Elevation: 14,410 feet
Fees and Permits: You must pay the Annual Climbing Fee each year ($65 for 2023), which helps provide for staff rangers and search and rescue incidents; you must also obtain a Climbing Permit from a ranger station. If you’re doing the climb through a guided group like we did, these should be included in your sign-up payment.
Trailhead: Paradise Visitor Center
Parking: Available parking at Paradise
Dogs: Not allowed
Getting There
The trailhead to start this hike begins at Paradise. From Ashford you drive east approximately 45 minutes on WA-706 and continue onto Paradise Road. From Seattle, this drive is about 2-1/2 hours (about 100 miles) without traffic.
Trip Details
Here is a summary of our guided 3-1/2 day summit climb itinerary with more details below:
Day 1: 1/2 day orientation in Ashford meeting our team, having a safety briefing, and going over our gear
Day 2: 5-6 hours of hiking from the trailhead at Paradise (elevation 5,420 ft) to Camp Muir (elevation 10,188 ft)
Day 3: Glacier travel skills and 1-1/2 hour climb up to Ingraham Glacier for camp
Day 4: Summit Day and return to Paradise
Day 1
On Friday we arrived at the IMG Headquarters in Ashford and had our orientation. We met the crew that we would be hiking with, our guides, and did a thorough gear check. They even helped show us how to pack our packs efficiently and get rid of any excess items that we wouldn’t need. After orientation, Teddy and I had to head to the store to pick up our meals for the weekend. Luckily, stores were still open in town and we were able to buy some dehydrated meals. We assumed that food was provided on this trip but due to Covid, we were in charge of all our own meals. That night we camped at Big Creek Campground, just 7 minutes away from Ashford.
Day 2
We met back up at the IMG Headquarters at around 8 AM on Saturday. Instead of typically riding (pre-Covid) in IMG’s 12 person passenger van, we each drove separately and caravanned over to Paradise. The hike from Paradise to Camp Muir took about 5-6 hours, with many breaks. Hiking with experienced guides was nice for us because it showed us how to pace ourselves, how and when to eat snacks and break for water, and how to preserve energy when on the trail. Normally when Teddy and I are hiking we keep a strenuous pace and don’t really stop for snacks when we really should be. The guides also showed us how to walk uphill in snow, kicking a step into the snow to create friction and achieve good footing, and to step into already created footsteps so you’re not sliding back down the mountain as easily.
When we reached Camp Muir, all our tents were already set up. We gathered together to learn the lay of the land (pit toilets, cell phone service at the ridge, meal times, etc.), and then relaxed for a bit. IMG provided us with hot water that evening and we all ate dinner together as a group.
Day 3
On Sunday we woke up at around 7 AM, ate breakfast, and went over the plan for the day. We would be practicing skills training in the morning, packing up, and leaving for high camp around noon. Our skills training consisted of glacier travel techniques where we practiced walking on short rope and making turns and also learning more effective walking methods to save energy. We also practiced walking with our crampons, ice axes, and did some self-arrest moves.
The hike from Camp Muir to Ingraham Flats (high camp) had an elevation gain of approximately 4,800 feet. We walked a portion of the way, then put on our crampons and roped up as a group of 5 for the rest of the hike. Again when we got to our next camp, our tents were up and ready for us to get unpacked.
We had an early dinner at around 5 PM and headed to bed at 7:30 PM. Even though it would be hard to fall asleep as it was still light outside, our guides told us to just lay there, close our eyes, and give our bodies rest. We would be waking up at midnight to start the journey to the summit. Even if we didn’t fall asleep it was a good way to get some rest in. I think we were able to get a couple hours of light sleep before we were woken up at our normal bedtime.
Day 4
At an alarming 12 AM we got our wake up calls and slumbered out of our tents. We all ate breakfast, packed up what was left of our already packed day packs, and headed off in groups to the summit! We were grouped up 2 to 1 – 2 of us to a guide. I don’t really remember the details of where we were climbing as everything seemed to happen so fast, but I do know we rushed past an area known as the Bowling Alley, named for [I assume] for an area known to knock rocks onto climbers. This ridge feature of the Disappointment Cleaver is very dangerous – on our way up our guide just say we should hurry through this area. After it was decided that we wouldn’t be summiting due to bad weather, we took a break and our guide told us that the previous week a man got hit by a rock through the Bowling Alley… He ended up being okay but his guide passed away trying to help him… a very chilling story and a reminder that anything can happen in nature and on the mountain.
After we got back to Ingraham Flats at around 6 AM, we all napped for a couple hours, packed up, and headed back down to Paradise. The hike down was not as bad as I thought it would be. We glissaded much of the way and slid down many parts on the slush with our boots.
Even though we couldn’t summit this trip, we learned so much during our climb and now have another reason to go back and try it again!
Need to Know (for a guided climb)
- There are no prerequisites for the program that we did, just a good base of cardiovascular physical fitness
- You should have previous experience carrying an overnight pack
- Most of your gear can be rented through IMG
When to Climb Mount Rainier
Safe climbs can be done on Rainier from May to September. May and June is earlier in the season so you just have to find a good weather window, but this is a great time to go as the snow is at its best and there are more direct routes to the summit. July and August is peak Rainier climbing season and the odds for good weather is high. In September after Labor Day, there are less people climbing the mountain which is good, but there is more snowmelt and snow is firmer on the upper areas of the mountain.
What to Pack for Climbing Mount Rainier
- Base layers
- Midweight insulating layers
- Soft shell jacket and pants
- Hard shell jacket and pants
- Gloves – lightweight and heavyweight
- Sun hat
- Beanie
- Buff
- Glacier glasses/goggles
- Sunscreen
- Lip Balm
- Headlamp
- Trail shoes
- Gaiters (optional)
- Climbing boots
- Backpack
- Trekking poles
- Climbing helmet
- Climbing harness
- 2 locking carabiners
- Crampons
- Ice Axe
- Sleeping bag
- Sleeping pad
- Hand warmers
- 2 wide mouth water bottles
Our Essentials for Backpacking
- Hydration: We usually start with 2-3 liters of water, each, and pack a water filter and some iodine tablets. If you’re hiking where there’s snowpack, you can boil some snow to have drinkable water. Electrolyte packets are also very useful for hydration on the trail.
- Nutrition: We usually eat a bar or oatmeal and a piece of fruit before starting off on our backpacking trips. Then for snacks along the way, more bars, jerky, or trail mix. For dinners, we either eat dehydrated foods or even leftovers from a meal we ate on the road trip out to the hike (cold pizza makes a great dinner!).
- Stove: We love our Jetboil to boil water for drinking and to heat up our dehydrated dinners, oatmeals, coffee, etc. For this trip, hot water was provided so we didn’t need to pack a stove!
- Navigation: For hikes with more difficult trails to follow, you may want to invest in a GPS tracker. For simpler hikes, we use the GPS system on our phones and a tracker such as Gaia GPS or AllTrails.
- Headlamp: I usually also pack our inflatable solar latern by MPOWERD and attach it to the outside of my pack.
- Sun protection: Sunscreen, sunglasses, and sun-protective clothes – always a must!
- First aid: Our first aid kit consists of band-aids, gauze, medical tape, Compede Bandages (love this more than Moleskin for blisters), antibiotic ointment, alcohol wipes, ibuprofen, tweezers, pocket knife
- Shelter: We usually use our Marmot Tungsten 2-Person Tent (3 season, 4 lbs, 13 oz). For this trip, shelter was provided and it was so nice not having to set up camp!
