PNW Camping,  Travel

Family Camping at Mount Rainier National Park {Washington}

April 17, 2019 / 735 Comments

Mount Rainier National Park, an icon and guarded treasure of Washington State, ascends to a whopping 14,410 feet above sea level. Mount Rainier is not only an active volcano, but the most glaciated peak in the contiguous U.S.A., giving birth to five major rivers. You will find wildflower meadows blanketing the higher elevations of the icy volcano while ancient forest with 1000 year old trees fill Mount Rainier’s lower regions (source). There are several beautiful campgrounds to immerse yourself in the landscape and so many beautiful hikes and sights to see while you visit, it’s no wonder it is a must-do family vacation for anyone in the Pacific Northwest!

Our family selected a few family-friendly favorites on this short but remarkable 3 day camping trip to Mount Rainier.

Gorgeous view on the drive around Mount Rainier National Park

Camp at Cougar Rock

You can visit Mount Rainier in a day, but to really enjoy the national park, staying for a few short days at one of the 4 campgrounds at Mount Rainier National Park allows you to do so much more. We stayed at Cougar Rock, which was beautiful, clean, and very family-friendly. There are no electrical, water, or grey water hookups in any of the campgrounds but our pop-up camper functions amazingly without needing hookups. All of the sites at this campground were decent sized with lots of trees and brush to add privacy to the sites.

Stop at the viewing points along the drive

Driving around Mount Rainier offers many sights you can stop and see without hiking, you simply pull off to the side at one of many turn outs where you can capture stunning views of the hills and valleys around the mountain. The drive itself is also breathtaking!

My favorite lookout point (left) and a cool tunnel embedded in the mountain side (right)

Hike the Bench Lake/Snow Lake Trail for breathtaking views

A favorite hike of ours is the Bench Lake/Snow Lake Trail. It’s only 2.5 miles round trip and moderately easy with a wooded stair step path leading up to a wide open stretch in the mountains that is breathtaking. Continuing further you will go downhill towards the lakes. The path first reaches Bench Lake after .75 miles and then reaches Snow Lake after an additional .5 miles. In summer you will find the this area covered with a variety of wildflowers and you will have beautiful views of Mount Rainier. We found it to be an easy and fun for all for the kids, even our 2 year old! Some kids may require assistance on this hike.

The view at the top is breathtaking (left) and the lake at the end is crystal clear and icy cold (right)

Visit Paradise and the Visitors Center

While you are camping at Mount Rainier National Park you must visit Paradise and the visitors center. There is an abundance of hikes to choose from in the area, and the new Paradise Jackson Visitor Center which has several exhibits, the new park film, various guided ranger programs, a book and gift store and a cafeteria.

Paradise sign (left), Visitor Center (center), iconic stairs at Paradise (right)

Stop to Photograph Mount Rainier at Reflection Lakes

Drive 3 miles east of Paradise to Reflection Lakes, an easy drive up sight that offers one of the most iconic and most photographed views of Mt. Rainier. Get your camera out and capture the beauty of Mount Rainier’s mountain peaks and the crystal waters of the alpine lakes at this must-see sight.

Hike the Grove of the Patriarchs Trail to see 1000 year old Douglass Firs

The Grove of the Patriarchs, along the Ohanapecosh River, is home to some of the oldest trees in Mount Rainier National Park. Some of these trees are upwards of 1,000 years old, including Douglas fir and western red cedar trees. The trail is an easy 1.3 mile loop that includes crossing a cool suspension bridge. Our kids all enjoyed this hike, and the trees were incredible!

Info sign (left), suspension bridge (center) and a huge, 1000 year old tree (right)

Stop and buy a bottle of Mount Rainier wine

At any of the gift shops stop and buy some souvenirs to go. Of course, the Washington wine lover that I am, I picked this delicious bottle of Mount Rainier Chardonnay to commemorate the trip!

Visiting Mount Rainier National Park is one of the most beautiful trips our family has taken. It will take many more trips to see the whole park but the short 3 day camping trip to Cougar Rock campground provided us the rustic getaway we needed. The hikes were easy, fun, and breathtaking, and everyone in the family enjoyed them.

Check out more PNW campground reviews here!

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