THE WONDERLAND TRAIL DAY 3 :: MT. RAINIER NATIONAL PARK, WA :: We started our third day early on another cold and misty morning. Today would be a challenge, requiring eight hours on the trail. Our next stop at Cougar Rock Campground was over 15 miles and 3500 vertical feet away. The plan was to meet up with the girls, enjoy a nice meal, warm up by a fire, camp, resupply, and continue around the mountain without Dave.
The scenery continued to amaze us: melting snowfields, sharp ridges, narrow bridges, brilliant wildflowers, open prairies, dark forests and remnants of the great flood in November 2006. The skies were overcast throughout the day, so we were not able to see much of Rainier. Fortunately, it didn’t rain.
The going was extremely tough to the Suspension Bridge. We climbed 500 feet, dropped 2000 feet, climbed 1600 feet, and dropped down again 1300 feet. Dave and Jayson sped ahead while Jake and I trudged along, falling far behind. We met up at the bridge and refueled for another grueling 1000 foot ascent to Indian Henry’s Hunting Ground. Along this climb I thought I had finally caught my second wind, motivated by the thought of soon meeting Kristie (and steak and beer!), I surged up the mountain and kept pace with Jayson, but upon reaching the relatively flat prairies at Indian Henry’s, I completely bonked out. I can’t recall ever feeling anything like that before. I wasn’t sore or in any pain; I just no longer had the energy to move my feet another step. I told Jayson to go on ahead, and I sat down and munched through some gorp, waiting to see if Jacob would catch up. I did this several more times, making my way very slowly to Devil’s Dream. From there, I caught another burst of energy and was running down the mountain to Pyramid Creek. Here I was too tired to use my water purifier, and took large gulps directly from the silty river. I was also taking far fewer photos.
I caught up with Jayson and Dave again at the devasted Kautz Creek crossing and cheered up, thinking it was all downhill to Cougar Rock from here. Nope. A few unanticipated steep climbs destroyed my spirit, and I bonked out over and over, needing to stop, rest and eat several times. It was only a few miles to camp, but I was overwhelmed with frustration and despair. It sucked. I knew I would eventually make it to Cougar Rock, but for the first time, I was beginning to seriously doubt whether I would be able to finish the Wonderland.
I somehow caught up with Jayson again on the road to Cougar Rock. We knew it wasn’t much more than a mile from this point, so we marched briskly up the hill, avoiding the oncoming traffic. Still no sign of Jacob.
It was awesome seeing Kristie at the campground. I was so happy and so relieved. There were also piles of food and beer on the table that Jessica, Elizabeth and Bex had brought, along with some fancy cupcakes to celebrate a niece’s birthday. Jayson and Jessica finally found Jake at Longmire when they went on a run for firewood. Together again, it didn’t take long to agree that Rainier had kicked our asses; we would end our attempt of the Wonderland. Jayson had a monstrous blister the size of a baseball on his heel and Jacob had strange lumps the size of golfballs on his wrists. I was relatively unscathed, but had to admit I was way too out of shape to finish. There were much tougher days ahead of us and we hadn’t planned a reasonable amount of time. Perhaps we’ll try again next year.
We enjoyed burgers and steaks that night, along with those cupcakes and beer. We were exhausted, so we retired early, but not before an obligatory round of Chubby Bunny.
The scenery continued to amaze us: melting snowfields, sharp ridges, narrow bridges, brilliant wildflowers, open prairies, dark forests and remnants of the great flood in November 2006. The skies were overcast throughout the day, so we were not able to see much of Rainier. Fortunately, it didn’t rain.
The going was extremely tough to the Suspension Bridge. We climbed 500 feet, dropped 2000 feet, climbed 1600 feet, and dropped down again 1300 feet. Dave and Jayson sped ahead while Jake and I trudged along, falling far behind. We met up at the bridge and refueled for another grueling 1000 foot ascent to Indian Henry’s Hunting Ground. Along this climb I thought I had finally caught my second wind, motivated by the thought of soon meeting Kristie (and steak and beer!), I surged up the mountain and kept pace with Jayson, but upon reaching the relatively flat prairies at Indian Henry’s, I completely bonked out. I can’t recall ever feeling anything like that before. I wasn’t sore or in any pain; I just no longer had the energy to move my feet another step. I told Jayson to go on ahead, and I sat down and munched through some gorp, waiting to see if Jacob would catch up. I did this several more times, making my way very slowly to Devil’s Dream. From there, I caught another burst of energy and was running down the mountain to Pyramid Creek. Here I was too tired to use my water purifier, and took large gulps directly from the silty river. I was also taking far fewer photos.
I caught up with Jayson and Dave again at the devasted Kautz Creek crossing and cheered up, thinking it was all downhill to Cougar Rock from here. Nope. A few unanticipated steep climbs destroyed my spirit, and I bonked out over and over, needing to stop, rest and eat several times. It was only a few miles to camp, but I was overwhelmed with frustration and despair. It sucked. I knew I would eventually make it to Cougar Rock, but for the first time, I was beginning to seriously doubt whether I would be able to finish the Wonderland.
I somehow caught up with Jayson again on the road to Cougar Rock. We knew it wasn’t much more than a mile from this point, so we marched briskly up the hill, avoiding the oncoming traffic. Still no sign of Jacob.
It was awesome seeing Kristie at the campground. I was so happy and so relieved. There were also piles of food and beer on the table that Jessica, Elizabeth and Bex had brought, along with some fancy cupcakes to celebrate a niece’s birthday. Jayson and Jessica finally found Jake at Longmire when they went on a run for firewood. Together again, it didn’t take long to agree that Rainier had kicked our asses; we would end our attempt of the Wonderland. Jayson had a monstrous blister the size of a baseball on his heel and Jacob had strange lumps the size of golfballs on his wrists. I was relatively unscathed, but had to admit I was way too out of shape to finish. There were much tougher days ahead of us and we hadn’t planned a reasonable amount of time. Perhaps we’ll try again next year.
We enjoyed burgers and steaks that night, along with those cupcakes and beer. We were exhausted, so we retired early, but not before an obligatory round of Chubby Bunny.
Fun time. too bad we did not make it all the way around. My fault mostly. Next time (and when it isn’t so cold)!