Vicinity Location:
About 58 miles southeast of Seattle, WA in Mt. Rainier National Park.
Directions:
From Seattle: Follow I-5 South for 25 miles and take exit 142A to merge onto WA Highway 18 East toward North Bend/Auburn. Drive 4.4 miles and take the Auburn Way/WA Highway 164 East exit toward Enumclaw for 0.2 mile.
Make a slight right at 6th St SE then turn left at Auburn Way S/C St SE/WA Highway 164.
Continue to follow WA Highway 164 for 14.7 miles then turn left at Roosevelt Ave E/WA Highway 410.
Continue to follow WA Highway 410 for 37.3 miles.
Make a slight right at Sunrise Park Rd and follow it for 15.0 miles.
From Portland: Take I-5 North towards Seattle and drive for about 75 miles.
Take exit 68 for US-12 East. At the top of the off ramp, turn right onto US-12 and travel about 71.8 miles. This takes you past Morton and through Packwood.
Make a slight left onto WA Highway 123, driving for 16.1 miles. This road is seasonally closed. Continue straight onto WA Highway 410 for 3.5 miles.
Make a sharp left onto Sunrise Park Rd and follow the road for 15 miles to the Sunrise Visitors Center.
The road to Sunrise is usually only open from July through September.
There are bathrooms and water at the trailhead.
Pets are not allowed on the trails in National Parks.
A permit is needed to park.
Trail:
Sourdough Ridge Trail, Burroughs Mountain Trail, Sunrise Rim Trail, and Wonderland Trail, and with connections to Huckleberry Creek Trail, Mt. Fremont Trail , Northern Loop Trail, and various other trails.
Trail Maps:
Topo Map, National Park Map, Download Garmin .gpx file
Length and Elevation:
6.7 miles round trip via Sunrise Camp. One way elevation gain of 1,200 feet and loss of 200 feet to Second Burroughs. Elevation gain of 800 feet and loss of 380 feet between Second and Third Burroughs. Elevation at the trailhead at 6,400 feet, highest point is at 7,828 feet. Lowest elevation is 6,400 feet.
Review: August 24, 2009.
On a sunny day be sure to bring a hat, sunscreen, and sunglasses for sun protection because almost all of the trail receives full sun and you get sunburned much faster at 7,000 feet than at sea level.
Park at the Sunrise Visitors Center and perhaps take in the exhibits at the Visitors Center and see the climbers ascending Mt. Rainier from the telescope next to the Visitors Center.
For a great view of Mt. Rainier and a good chance to see Mountain Goats, hike to Third Burroughs and back.
Start from the Sunrise parking lot, walk up the paved road and after a short distance, turn right and walk up the wide gravel trail. Enjoy looking at the hordes of people as you head uphill about .1 mile and turn left at the Y-junction to Sourdough Ridge Trail.
After about .75 mile, the trail levels off and actually drops down a bit. Continue on the dusty trail, crossing a large scree field but the trail is well maintained and fairly wide. Follow the signs west towards Frozen Lake, passing the junction with the Huckleberry Creek Trail.
At Frozen Lake, 1.4 miles from the trailhead, turn left at the 5-way junction and take the trail to Burroughs Mountain. Enjoy the increasingly teriffic views of Mt. Rainier and start looking for mountain goats on the hillsides because they like the slopes of Mt. Fremont and Burroughs Mountain.
Frozen Lake is fenced off because the lake is the water supply for the Sunrise area. Frozen Lake is a turning-back point for many tourists and from here the foot traffic really drops off.
It is a steady, steep climb from Frozen Lake up to First Burroughs, which is flat on top. This stretch of trail can be dangerous until late season snow melts off the northern facing slopes. Check with the rangers at the White River entrance if you plan to hike this in July. If this slope is covered in snow, it can be a fatal slide down the snow.
The trail levels out after about 2.4 miles as you reach the top of First Burroughs. There are great views from First Burroughs of Mt. Rainier, Little Tahoma, Fremont Lookout, and to the northeast. From there the trail drops down a bit, then climbs up to Second Burroughts at 7,400 feet. As you walk up towards Second Burroughs, the ground gets more and more desolate. The climate is too harsh for trees to grow, and there are just small flowering plants mixed in with fields of pumice and sand. Great views of the Winthrop Glacier on the right and Emmons Glacier on the left await, on a clear day.
From Second Burroughs, drop down across the saddle, pass the junction to Glacier Basin, and head up to Third Burroughs. Most years the snow lingers well into August along and over the trail. On a hot day, you can put a little snow in the top of your hat and let it cool your head as it melts.
Once you get to Third Burroughs you also get a great view of Carbon Glacier to the west and Goat Rocks in the distance to the east.
On the way back, at First Burroughs is a junction for Sunrise Rim Trail. Turn right and take this nice alternate back to Sunrise, 2.6 miles away.
The trail descndes fairly steeply down to the Sunrise Walk-in Camp. Soon you’ll come to a 3-way junction. The easiest way back to the trailhead is to continue straight ahead on the Sunrise Rim Trail.
At the Sunrise Walk-in Camp there is a stinky outhouse and old boarded-up restrooms.
About 500 feet past the camp is an unmarked junction, take the right-hand fork to return to Sunrise Visitor Center. The left fork goes a short distance to Shadow Lake.
In about 300 more feet is the outet stream from Shadow Lake and another trail leading to Shadow Lake. Branch off to the left to see Shadow Lake then come back to the junction and continue down the trail back to Sunrise Visitor’s Center.
The trail meanders a little and is mostly level back to Sunrise. There are some glimpses of Mt. Rainier off ot the right. In about a mile you cross on a wood bridge over a nice bubbling stream that drains a small wildflower meadow. You can hear the stream tumbling down a small steep valley to join the White River far below.
Shortly after you pass the stream, you come to the junction of the Wondewrland Trail leading down to White River Campground. Stay to the left and from here and continue gently uphill to the parking lot and past the junction for Glacier View Trail, which is a worthwhile side trip. The trail is a short walk down to a nice overview of the White River Valley and the Emmons Glacier.
You may notice breathing is more difficult because of the elevation. The trail is above timberline and large sections of the trail can be seen from a distance.
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