Seattle | This Trail Is Now My Favorite

📍 Alpine Lakes Wilderness Last weekend was overcast, and I didn’t start until after 2 PM. With low expectations, I randomly picked a trail along I-90 for a quick workout. Trail Details 🥾🥾🥾 This trail is definitely hard, so inexperienced hikers should avoid it. Once again, AllTrails deceived me—it claimed 7.7 miles, but I ended up hiking 10 miles. Two routes to the summit: 👉 Scramble route/Winter route: Requires climbing rocks on all fours. 👉 Red route: Covered in snow and quite steep. I took the red route up and the scramble route down—total time: 5-6 hours. Photo Tips 📷📷📷 Last weekend was foggy (Figure 12), but at 4,800 feet, I suddenly broke through the clouds and saw the sun and Mount Rainier in the distance! The summit has a lookout (closed to entry), but you can rest, eat, and take photos beneath it. 📷 Use the lookout as a foreground to frame Rainier—absolutely stunning! I stayed until 8 PM and witnessed Rainier during golden hour—breathtaking‼️ Highly recommend catching the sunset here 🌅. Important Notes ⚠️⚠️⚠️ Bring spikes and trekking poles—snow still covers the summit. If hiking for sunset, bring a headlamp and start descending by 8:30 PM to exit the scramble section before full darkness. This area is steep and ridges have drop-offs on both sides. Pack extra layers—the lookout is extremely windy. #SeattleHiking #AlpineLakesWilderness #MountRainier #SunsetHike #HardTrails