This summer, I visited Sunrise to see the sunrise with my family. We crawled out of bed at 2 AM and prepared for the long drive ahead of us. At 5 AM, we finally arrived. The sun wasn’t up yet, and none of us were fully awake, but despite how tired we were, the view of Mount Rainier was still breathtaking.
“The sun’s rising!” my brother shouted. We all turned and saw the sun peeking through the treetops. As it climbed higher in the sky, the snow on the mountain turned whiter and whiter. When we finally piled back into our car and prepared for the long trip home, the sun was already high in the sky. Even though our trip was short, it was still incredibly memorable. The trip truly made me appreciate the vision of Congress when they first established Yellowstone National Park in 1872 “as a public park or pleasuring-ground for the benefit and enjoyment of the people” and thus all subsequent national parks.
Sincerely,
Mount Rainier National Park
Majestic Mount Rainier is the highest peak in the Cascade Range and an active volcano with more glaciers than any other mountain in the United States. Just an hour's drive from Seattle, the park's wild landscape feels much further from civilization. The forests, parkland, wetlands, lakes and rivers offer 260 miles of trails and varied habitat to dozens of plant and animal species.
State(s): Washington
Established: 1899
“They're a valuable part of life in the Pacific Northwest!”
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Greetings from Mount Rainier National Park
Our family vacation to Mt Rainier in 1996 is a favorite. We camped 5 days at Ohanapecosh and then 4 days at White River. We hiked a different trail every day, attended the Ranger education lectures and evening sing-alongs. Our daughters got their 1st "Junior Ranger" badges (something they continue…
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