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Trip Report    

Goat Island Mountain

Beautiful meadows with glorious views of the Summerland area, Little Tahoma and Mountain Rainier.

  • Tue, Aug 4, 2020
  • Goat Island Mountain
  • Scrambling
  • Successful
  • Road suitable for all vehicles
  • With the hordes of people descending on Mount Rainier National Park we opted to avoid the Fryingpan Creek trail by using the east ridge for our ascent and descent (with a traverse at ~5900’ to reach the open meadows).  A few pullouts/parking areas along the road between the Fryingpan Creek trailhead and the White River Campground turnoff offer congestion free parking with easy social distancing.

After walking the road shoulder a short distance we jumped on the Wonderland Trail for a short distance south before turning west for our cross country travel up the east ridge.  Did not see another soul the entire day, although the pullouts were completely full with cars by the time we returned (I suspect they were lounging by the river below).  Total time for this ~7 mile/3200’ gain trip was ~8 hours, with lots of time on leisurely breaks to enjoy the vast vistas.  Photos from this and other trips to this venue can be seen here.