Spray Park, Mt. Rainier National Park Trip Report
September 23, 2002
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John Munyan
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John is an avid hiker, spending a goodly portion of his time up in the hills, or sitting in front of a computer.
Either way, most of what finds his eye is green, or blue, - organic, or lcd. John likes this website, hopes you do too, and invites you to write a review of a couple hikes you've done!
Directions: From Puyallup drive 13 miles east on Highway 410 to Buckley. Turn right (south) onto Highway 165 and proceed through Carbonado. Just beyond the Carbon River Gorge bridge, bear right onto Mowich lake Road. Follow the road about 17 miles to its end; the trailhead is at the far end of the Mowich lake Campground.
Trail notes: Spray Park is one of the most beautiful areas of Mount Rainier. Some would have you believe that Spray Park isn't as beautiful as some of the other Alpine Meadows in the Park. This couldn't be further from the truth. Spray Park truly stands out as a relatively undiscovered gem.
The trip to Spray Park starts off at Mowich Lake elevation 3700 feet. It is best to get there early and better yet to get there early during the middle of the week to ensure you get as much of the alpine scenery to yourself as possible. It wasn't crowed this day and I didn't see that many people. Still the awe of the landscape just seems to make the absence of people all that much more desirable. The trail starts off losing a couple hundred feet of elevation to round Fay Peak, Hessog Rock, and what appear to be some avalanche chutes. Make sure that you do not take the Wonderland Loop trail which you intercept about 10 minutes in unless you are heading to Paradise! Instead, continue on for about 30 minutes or so through alpine old growth trees shrouded for the most part with long stringy moss. Another thing which stands out about this section of the trail is the quiet you that gets ever more pervasive with elevation and forests in particular. After the first half hour you reach the lowest elevation of the hike and begin the upward journey. The uphill isn't bad and frequent trailside attractions present themselves. The first is Eagle Cliff look out which was the location of the best picture of Rainier I have taken (()). If you are arriving later in the day for this hike you will likely find people here. After this point the trail takes on more of a mine car like feel. In a way the trails construction reminds me of the scene in Indiana Jones and The Temple of Doom where they are racing coal cars. The trail sort of has that I can't believe this is real feel. It just seems the trail makers much like the makers of the Indiana Jones scene simply couldn't make such a creation. In the case of Indiana Jones they couldn't and used computer generated graphics. In the case of the trail quite clearly they did make it - after all you are now walking on it right?
The next stop up the trail another 20 minutes or so is the spur trail over to Spray Falls. I opted to catch this on the way back since I was eager to get up to the meadows and enjoy the environs. If you are short on water, which you shouldn't be at this point fill up here since water isn't so reliable until you are in Spray Park proper. From the Spray Falls spur the trail gets steeper and switchbacks it's way up for about 20-35 minutes depending on your speed. Care should be taken on the way down if traveling with kids since there are a few of the switchback turns could be ‘an adiós amigo’ if one isn't careful.
As I came up the switchbacks I began noticing the undergrowth lightening up and suddenly as often is the case Whamo I am out in Spray Park proper - Wow! It seemed there was an entrance to Spray Park just past the bridge entering the first meadow. I wondered what kind of wonder I was in for. Spray Park it actually quite large as alpine meadows go. In fact once you have entered the Spray Park proper you will be ascending albeit more gently than the switchbacks for the better part of an hour to the Saddle. Don't fret your legs won't feel anything since the surroundings are so magical. In the distance you will see two large cinder cones up against Mount Rainier; they are (from left to right) Echo Rock and Observation Rock. It really didn't seem real. During this time you will see as many alpine flowers as you probably have anywhere and also likely seem several marmots. Do please stay on the established trail though several people have gone over hill and dale and in places it does show.
Upon reaching the Spray Park Saddle you have a great view down into Seattle Park which if doing a trough hike to the Ipsut ranger station would be the way to go (would seem to be an awesome idea!). I wasn't so instead I turned my attention toward Echo and Observation rock. At the saddle there is a climbing trail leading directly up toward them. Like most everything in the Park they appear closer than they actually are, and I was content to head up this trail for about an hour. During this time there seems to be endless Kodak moments with hidden lakes making themselves apparent, and the discovery of stone shelters. Anyway it is just a wonderful place to take lunch, a break, and contemplate the wonders of nature.
The time was growing later and I still wanted to see what was going on at Spray Falls so I began my return. The return is just as neat as the ascent was, probably nicer if you prefer the downhill. Upon reaching the spur to the Falls I turned off and walked across the log bridge. The falls are about 10 minutes from the main trail and are definitely worth the extra effort. Spray falls is quite large, in height if not in flow.
Returning to Mowich Lake was quite nice too and ultimately yielded the parking lot. Upon reaching the lake I knew what time it was - time to take off my boots and get some of that ice cold water on the hot feet - ahhh! 
A word of advice, if you are doing this hike there is a trade-off to be made. If you come early in the season late June-July the wildflowers will be more colorful but be aware there will likely be bugs. If you don't mind the skeets, by all means come early and experience the full beauty. Alternatively if you visit in late August-October it will be dry as a bone and no bugs to speak of.
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You don't want to do this hike
Reviewed By: FabulousFreddyFarkwater on Monday, August 15, 2011 @ 03:25:15 PM
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See, I set the rating to poor and the difficulty to strenuous so as to turn off more hikers to what is without question the very best hike in the park. There are 10000k of hikers who crowd this trail and parking and even if you get there real early you'll park about 3 miles from the TH and come back to your dust and dirt covered vehicle. But of course that's after you've stuck your hot feet into Mowich and kooled them very nicely. I guess if I really had to say something bad about this it's the bugs so take bug juice and enjoy sticking your hot, tired radials into Mowich. Can't hide it forever. All seriously now, go when the wild flowers are at the peak and when you summit over the last little ridge before being (in what I call Spray Park) you will get the most beautiful fragrance you've ever come across provided the wind is blowing down the hill. Take the side journies to OB and Echo rocks and climb them a bit if you can (about 500' if I recall correctly) and you'll see a grand site. Not to mention the mountain of course. Enjoy!
This is the most breathtaking hike of the summer
Reviewed By: Anonymous on Saturday, November 4, 2006 @ 09:41:34 PM
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We did this hike with our friends and 5 year old daughter- although a little slower than our usual pace due to all the switchbacks- she made it up just great! There are so many picture opportunities on this hike and the falls are worth the hike- just as you are beginning the entrance to Spray park the wild blueberries are abundant!! I have never tasted a blueberry so sweet and juicy!! We stopped at a small hidden lake with an amazing view of majestic Rainier! Definately worth the hike up to this beautiful alpine meadow.
Spray Park
Reviewed By: Glenn on Wednesday, July 26, 2006 @ 06:24:29 PM
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Completed the Lake Mowich to Spray Park hike on 26 July 2006 (about 6.0 miles (+/-) roundtrip). The adventure really begins with the final 17 mile drive on a rough gravel road once you leave Highway 165 enroute to Lake Mowich. In addition to testing your automobile's suspension system, your car will look like the trail vehicle in an Afrika Korps convoy due to the dust. Once on foot from the Mowich Lake trailhead (4,925 feet), the trail is easy to locate and is 3.0 (+/-) miles to the edge of Spray Park. The first 2.0 miles have the typical downhill, level, and uphill segments common to many Mount Rainier trails. The shaded trail is rough with rocks and tree roots eager to snag the inattentive hiker. There are multiple water sources on the trail (but always purify first). If you've not broken a sweat by the time you reach the Eagle Roost campsite area (about the 2.0 mile mark/4,885 feet)), don't worry. The final 1.0 mile to Spray Park begins with a series of sweat inducing switchbacks that climb steadily for about 1/2 mile before the trail eases to a gradual uphill climb as your enter Spray Park (5,833 feet). Today, the wildflowers were in full bloom but past their peak. Some scattered snow patches are visible but the itself trail was clear and easy to traverse. The trail within Spray Park never really "levels off", but continues to gradually climb. There are also multiple side trails off the main trail that appear legitimate/Ranger approved and take hikers to small ponds and great lunch spots with drop dead views of Mount Rainier. The flying bugs were active today including horseflys more tenacious then an IRS audit. I hiked the main trail within Spray Park uphill another 20 minutes until I reached 6,144 feet and stopped for lunch at a vista overlooking Mist Park to the north (with Mount Rainier to the east). At the higher elevation, there was a nice breeze and fewer insects. Several groups, both dayhikers and backcountry transients, were using Spray Park as a lunch stop. No bears were sighted. My roundtrip travel time was 4 hours and 10 minutes and included about an hour within Spray Park. For fellow hikers, bring your camera, binoculars, and bug spray in addition to your standard hiking equipment. I counted 50+ vehicles at the Mowich trailhead and the trail had a steady stream of hikers even for a Wednesday. Although Spray Park is described as "moderately difficult", it's not a stroll around Seattle's Green Lake or along Tacoma's Ruston Way. If Uncle Ernie has trouble getting to his seat in the 300 level at Safeco Field, give him a bye on this hike. It won't reduce you to tears but will give you a good workout and some spectacular views for your efforts. Happy Trails!
Beautiful summer hike!
Reviewed By: Mario Kratz on Sunday, July 31, 2005 @ 12:21:54 AM
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Review: We loved every aspect of this hike. We did it on the last Saturday in July. The weather was perfect, a blue sky without a cloud. As expected there were quite a few people on the trail, but not to the extend that it bothered us. The trail itself is in really good condition: kudos and 'Thanks' to the trail teams that worked here! Although the elevation gain of 2600 feet might make a lot of people think that this is a strenouus hike, we both felt that it actually is not as it is never really steep. Also, if you feel you are getting tired, you could just do the shorter 6-mile roundtrip to the beginning of Spray park and back; this would still be a very enjoyable day hike. What we liked particularly about this hike is the really neat mix of great views (Rainer; Central Cascades, which can be seen only if you climb all the way up), colourful wildflowers everywhere, walks in the forest, and water (Mowich Lake and Spray Falls).
Very much recommended, particularly on a nice, clear summer day!
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