Sunny in Seattle (part 3)

It was always there, even when we first arrived, although the clouds hung in the air just covering it. Sometimes in my wanders, I would catch glimpses from the highway, or I would hear people talk about it in hushed tones. But when I finally saw it, white and glistening in the sunlight, it spoke to me. In the same way that Denali spoke to me when we finally caught a glimpse in Alaska. Mount Rainier, that 14,000-foot volcano on the outskirts of Seattle, sits calling us all to come witness its majesty.

My first real glimpse, from the Boeing plant the week before (big shout out to Maddy for erasing the fuel tank from the photo!):

Getting there was no easy feat, with the heavy snowpack and runoff this year, the seasonal roads were washed out or under repair. But I knew not getting there was simply not an option. Wednesday promised the best weather, so I set off early-early so I wouldn't miss a minute.

First stop was in a small town outside the park for a delicious savory scone and black tea. I watched a local standing on the porch hitch up his pants and his gun fell out of his waistband onto the floor. I was impressed that he didn't seem concerned about this - as if it happened regularly to him. I guess he didn't want the extra encumbrance of a holster, preferring to have the gun metal nestled against his ?. Anyway, I lost my appetite after that.

After 3 hours of eye-popping driving through high forest, I reached a dead end - the road I had planned to for access to the ranger station was closed for repairs. I resorted to plan B so I could traverse the southern edge of the park and get a better glimpse of the volcano.

Happily, there was a detour an hour down the road that took me up to the ranger station. The area was still feet deep in frozen snow but there were people everywhere enjoying the snow and the mountain views. I hiked for a while until I found a place to sit and have lunch in full view of summit. A Stellar Jay came along and stole part of my sandwich while I was distracted. He knew the routine; it was not his first lunch heist.

I took a bunch of pics of a woman who was biking(!!) UP the mountain (the ONLY person I saw biking). At the top I got her number and sent her the photos - she was thrilled and grateful. I'll admit, it never occurred to me that she wouldn't get to the top, or that I wouldn't meet up with her there. It all worked out perfectly.

More hiking and asking lots of questions of rangers and volunteers followed. The main concern is the possible eruption of Rainier - the last one was 5,600 years ago. The next one will take out parts of Seattle. They have signs for volcano evacuation route on the mountain, but I doubt the lava/lahar will pause to read and follow directions. Still, no signs of eruption that day, so a splendid, awe-inspiring outing was had.