Muir

If you've never been to Camp Muir, get in shape. Then go. Because sometimes it can really hurt. Especially the next day.

Muir is located at about the 10'K mark on Rainier. It's approximately 4.5 miles (one way) from Paradise (with an elevation gain of about 5'K feet.) Lots of people use Camp Muir as a staging point for a peak ascent. Others use it to train for climbing Rainier. A bunch of people go up so they can ski / snowboard down. And then there are people like me: I go just because it's a fun hike. With amazing views.

Muir in April is entirely in the snow. Paradise was under at least twelve feet, and there's only more snow as you climb. This was my first time up for the year, and I went prepared because the weather can change quickly and drastically. I wore plastic mountaineering boots, thermals, shell pants and a jacket, hat, and gaiters on the way down. Oh, and socks. Socks are nice. Underwear, too.

Let's move on.

The hike was beautiful, but chilly. I went with my friend Mike and his friend Forbes. This being our first time this year, we went up in about five hours and down in about half that. It's a long day! To the right is a photo of how Muir looked when we went up. Not much there, huh? The best part is down (of course) because all the snow allows for glissading.

Glissading sounds like a complicated, technical term, but really it just means sliding down on your bum. You get to go fast and it's a great time. And it gets you down quickly. :o)