Trip Report
Winter overnight - Mazama Ridge
3 days and 2 nights of winter camping on Mazama Ridge, with glorious spring-like weather and a day trip to explore the area around Paradise.
Colin Chapman
- Fri, Mar 15, 2024 — Sun, Mar 17, 2024
- Mazama Ridge (Mount Rainier)
- Snowshoeing
- Successful
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- Road suitable for all vehicles
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Our trip was a few very sunny days after a pretty significant snowfall, so the snow was beautiful but a bear to trek through. All previous blazed paths had been covered by the recent snow, so we had to break trail the entire way.
Avy danger was moderate at the trailhead (Narada Falls) and considerable at and above our camp on Mazama Ridge. We heard and saw lots of avalanche activity (from a distance) over the weekend.
Weighed down with our winter overnight gear, we departed from the Narada Falls trailhead at approx 10:30am. We slowly made our way up the Lower Lakes trail, and then headed east along the High Lakes trail. Weaving our way through forest, we eventually reached the open stretches of Mazama Ridge. The skies were clear and the views were glorious.
From trailhead to camp it was 3.3 miles and 1100' gain, but it sure felt like a lot more than that!
We set up our tents, dug out our communal kitchen, had dinner, and then went on a short trek north along the Skyline trail. We had a very windy first night.
The next morning, the wind had died down and we had more fabulous views. Some folks showed off their winter cooking skills.
We then headed out for our day trek to explore the area around Paradise.
After many hours of exploring we returned to camp, relaxed, and had dinner.
Our second night was much quieter, so we all slept better and stayed warmer than the night before.
Day 3 was an early breakfast, and we then broke down camp and headed back to the trailhead!
It was a fantastic weekend, full of great views and great company!