Paradise Glacier and the Start of the Winter

The Paradise Glacier is a great alternative to the standard route going both down and up the Muir Snowfield. Being the eastern lobe of the same ridge when there is a wind event from the west this is where the snow goes. Terrain wise the area has a much better fall line then its neighbor to the west. The downside to this area is that there is a long flat and the end which can be painful for snowboarders. So if you are willing to add another 10 minute skin to the end of the trip the Paradise Glacier is a great place to go.

Arriving at the Paradise Visitor Center

Within 48 hours of landing in Seattle from New Zealand I was ready to get back to the mountains. I had planned to arrive in early December as it’s almost guaranteed you can find skiing. With a phone call I was off with my friends Amar and Andres on our way to Mount Rainier and arriving at the Paradise Visitor Center.

It had been a lean start to the season as we skinned up the summer trail in Paradise. Usually by this time the trail is buried in 10 feet of snow but this season was off to a bad start.

Heading out on the summer trail as we head for the Muir Snowfield

Taking an Alternative Route up Edith Basin

With the snow being this we decided to take an alternative route as compared to the terrain above Vista Point. Instead we came up with the plan to drop down to Edith Creek Basin in hopes that we could skin the entire route.

We loosely followed the Skyline Ridge trail dealing with the thin snow pack. We had to work with the terrain and the places that actually held snow as any ridge was stripped bare.

Following Skyline ridge attempting to skin the entire route

Soon we were in the open terrain below McClure Rock and heading towards the Muir Snowfield. Looking at the tracks above we could tell that the area would be a mine field of rocks on the way down.

Skinning up with McClure Rock in the background

While the snow was thin it still looked like there was some good skiing around. If we planned our route right there was a good chance we would be riding powder.

Breaking trail below McClure Rock with the **Tatoosh Range** and **Mount Adams** in the background

Back on the Muir Snowfield

Finally we wrapped back onto the Muir Snowfield and knew we would be able to skin the entire route. Our variation had been a little bit less direct but we were able to climb without our skis on our backpacks

Skinning onto the Muir Snowfield with the **Nisqually Chute** and the **Nisqually Glacier** in the background

In front of us was the 3,000 foot slog up the Muir Snowfield to the Muir Shelter. It was a beautiful day with no wind and great views of Rainier as we wrapped by the Nisqually Chute.

skinning up the Pebble Creek area on our way to the Muir Snowfield

Making our way towards the Muir Shelter we put our heads down and kept pushing forward. From what we could tell the wind had stripped the new snow bare and the conditions were firm. There was a solid skin track put in by now and as long as there wasn’t any major sidehills it was easy to get traction.

Skinning toward Camp Muir with Gibraltar Rock in the background

Arriving at Camp Muir

Before long we were taking the final steps up to the Muir Shelter. At the high point of our trip we ran into a few like minded ski tourers who were waiting in hopes that the snow would soften.

Once at the Muir Shelter we sat around for a little while chatting about what route to go down. We had seen powder down lower but the Muir Snowfield was in pretty poor skiing conditions. For the next hour we sat around and took in the views while refueling for the ski down.

The sky was dramatic as we looked towards the Southern Cascades. It seemed that the clouds were coming our way and that our sunshine would become a gray day.

Looking into the **Tatoosh Range** with **Sunbeam Basin** where the road drops elevation and **Castle Peak** being the high rock with **Mount Adams** in the distance

To the Southwest it seemed that there was some clear skies in the distance. If we wanted to wait for the sun it would be hours if it came at all.

Looking at **Wahpenayo Peak** in the **Tatoosh Range** and **Mount Saint Helens** in the distance

Skiing Down the Muir Snowfield

After waiting for an hour we became impatient for the weather to improve. We decided to start skiing down and search for some good snow along the way.

It had been a while since it had last snowed as we dodged other peoples old ski tracks that were now firm. While conditions weren’t bad it would be a stretch to call them good

skiing down with the sun trying to break through

Going for Plan B on the Paradise Glacier

Making our way below Anvil Rock we decided to traverse over and check out the Paradise Glacier. From our vantage point it seemed that this was the place that all the snow had gone to.

Amar looking towards the Paradise Glacier

With the conditions looking much better on the Paradise Glacier we decided it was the place to go. Andre was more than happy to break in the trail as he rode onto the open slopes.

Traversing onto the Paradise Glacier — Andre traversing into the Paradise Glacier

Watching him put his tracks down the Paradise Glacier we knew it was the right call. While the Muir Snowfield was covered in tracks we had a blank canvas to put in our own.

Amar being swallowed by the scenery in Mount Rainier National Park while skiing the Paradise Glacier — Skiing down the upper Paradise Glacier with the **Goat Rocks** on the Left and **Mount Adams** on the right

While the terrain was mellow it went on forever and we were able to open up knowing the snow underneath was soft. While it was wind packed it was still fun making our way down.

skiing down the Paradise Glacier — Enjoying wind packed powder on the Paradise Glacier

Finding Powder on the Paradise Glacier

We could see the Cowlitz Rocks off in the distance which represented the end of our run. It seemed that the further we made our way down the better the snow got.

skiing the open slopes of the Paradise Glacier — Skiing towards Cowltiz rocks

The moment we made our way to the steep roller the snow got much better. This was the spot were the snow was loading. It was the final pitch of the Paradise Glacier but by far the best.

Enjoying the scenery while skiing the Paradise Glacier — Riding down the lower section of the Paradise Glacier with our exit being the stream behind Andre

Knowing we only had around 700 more feet of turns on our line we made the most of them. Opening up we made high speed turns as at the bottom we would need speed for our exit.

Finding great powder snow while skiing the lower slopes of the Paradise Glacier — Riding down the final stretch of the Paradise Glacier

Exiting via Edith Basin After Riding the Paradise Glacier

Once in the flat basin we did a high traverse attempting to skirt around the flats. While both Amar and Andre were able to stay on there skis I had to do a quick 5 minute bootpack. Once on the ridge we took our final turns into Edith Creek Basin before riding down to the road.

skiing down Edith Basin after riding the Paradise Glacier — Andre skiing down Edith Basin

Once on the road we skinned 20 minutes back up to the Car in the Paradise Visitor Center. We were happy with our choice going for the Paradise Glacier and it was well worth the additional skin. While we had feared firm conditions while skinning up the Muir Snowfield we left our plans open and it paid off.

Skinning back up to the Paradise Visitor Center after riding the Paradise Glacier — Skinning back up to the Paradise Visitor Center

We arrived to the car at 4:30 quickly throwing our gear in the car. By now the Ranger was driving around the parking lot. He was letting people know that they were about to lock the gate and we needed to head down. We had made it back just in time to not have to stay the night up at Paradise. It was a great first day of My Northern Hemisphere season.

Thank you for reading this trip on the Paradise Glacier. If you want to see more ski tours within Mount Rainier Backcountry check out this link.