2026 Pacific Northwest – Mt. Rainier

On to Washington State...

Sunday morning, we packed up and headed further north towards Mt. Rainier. Our drive took us through the area near the base of Mt. Hood, and we had some nice views. We continued just east of Portland and crossed the Columbia River into Vancouver, WA. Finally, we headed towards the east and into the Mt. Ranier region. Our campsite was at Dockside Resort (formerly Rainbow Resort) in Eatonville. The evening included a “docktail” at the side of Tanwax Lake. In case you’re wondering, a cocktail is an adult beverage you enjoy at home, at a bar, or at many other locations. A “walktail” is an adult beverage enjoyed while going for a walk (especially in a campground “shopping” for a new RV). A “docktail” is the adult beverage that is enjoyed on a dock by a lake, river, or the ocean.

Monday we were up early and headed into Mt. Ranier National Park. We arrived at the entrance by 8:35am and only had to wait in line for about 20 minutes before we got through the entrance station. Apparently, the lines can be several hours long for late arrivals. Our destination was the Bench and Snow Lakes Trail. We got lucky and found a parking spot right close to the trail head. The hike was about 2.5 miles out and back with a bit over 600 feet of elevation gain. It offered great views of Mt. Ranier and we had excellent weather. In particular, Bench Lake offered a great reflection view of the impressive peak.

We then headed into Box Canyon and found a nice picnic area in the forest to enjoy lunch. While driving and hiking in the park, we were pleasantly surprised to see many wildflowers still in bloom.

Next stop was the Paradise Visitor Center to get the obligatory stickers and other souvenirs. There we did a short hike to Myrtle Falls. The area has a very “alpine” feel to it but was a bit too “peopley” for us. Time to head back to camp.