At Sunrise for the Sunrise: Road Trip to Mount Rainier

Sunrise at Sunrise, Mount Rainier National Park

We continued our exploration of national parks with a road trip to Mount Rainier.  We had to hit the road at 4:30 a.m. in order to arrive at Sunrise for the sunrise at 6:50 a.m.  Our timing was perfect, and we pulled into the Sunrise viewpoint with two minutes to spare!

Sunrise at Sunrise

View of Mount Adams in the distance

We breakfasted with a picnic in the brisk, clear air — hard-boiled eggs, small tomatoes, pre-cooked bacon, cheese slices, rice crackers, mango juice.  Snow-capped Mount Rainier loomed over our picnic table.  Then we drove to the Naches Peak Loop Trailhead where we stepped out for an early morning hike.

“I could walk forever with beauty.  Our steps are not measured in miles but in the amount of time we are pulled forward by awe.”
— Terry Tempest Williams, The Hour of Land

Here are some photos from the trail:

Reflection of Mount Rainier in Tipsoo Lake

Dewey Lake in the distance

And finally, we ended our visit to Mount Rainier with a gondola ride up Crystal Mountain where we had lunch at the Summit Restaurant.  We sat on the outside patio in the blazing sun so that we could enjoy the view.

Summit of Crystal Mountain

Gray jays

Mount Rainier from the Summit Restaurant at Crystal Mountain

Our visit to Mount Rainier National Park was about as perfect as we could have wished.

 

 

Daybreak Over Tulips

“Distinctive realms appear to us when we look and hear by poem-light.”
— Jane Hirshfield, Ten Windows:  How Great Poems Transform the World

Daybreak with fog, Skagit Valley, Washington

Dawn in the Skagit Valley

My niece and I drove to the Skagit Valley this weekend to see the tulip fields in bloom.  She is a photographer, like me, and therefore was willing to hit the road in the dark hours of early morning so that we could be in place as the sun rose over the farms of this region.  We had lovely weather, and the beauty of the breaking day was just awesome.  Knowing that these golden minutes were fleeting heightened their beauty.  I think that Jane Hirshfield’s word, “poem-light,” perfectly captures the dawning day.

“A Light exists in Spring
Not present on the Year
At any other period —
When March is scarcely here

A color stands abroad
On Solitary Fields
That Science cannot overtake
But Human Nature feels.

It waits upon the Lawn.
It shows the furthest Tree
Upon the furthest Slope you know
It almost speaks to you.

Then as Horizons step
Or Noons report away
Without the Formula of sound
It passes and we stay —

A quality of loss
Affecting our Content
As Trade had suddenly encroached
Upon a Sacrament.”
— Emily Dickinson

Crane Viewing at Sunrise on the Platte River

Cranes at dawn from the blind at the Rowe Sanctuary

Sandhill cranes on the Platte River at sunrise

“Soon after the sun fires the horizon, the crane armies rise in stupendous celebration, crossing the black winter trees along the river . . . . an exaltation of life . . . when the sandhills rose in thunder, swirling and climbing and parting into wisps and strands in the fiery suffusions of the sunrise.”  — Peter Matthiessen, The Birds of Heaven: Travels with Cranes

Yesterday morning we got up at 4:30 a.m. to drive in the dark to the Rowe Sanctuary, where we had reserved space in one of their blinds on the Platte River.  We waited as quietly as possible for the sunrise, and then saw the cranes come to life.  They left the river in small groups, headed for the corn fields and their day of fattening up.

This was definitely a multi-sensory experience.  The cranes vocalized nonstop from our arrival before dawn.  Thousands of crane voices, rising to the new day.  Wonderful.

 

Eternity Now and Forever

“Now is eternity; now is the immortal life. . . . Time has never existed, and never will; it is a purely artificial arrangement.  It is eternity now, it always was eternity, and always will be.”
— Richard Jeffries, The Story of My Heart

Dawn at Green Lake

 

A Cathedral of Anticipation

Watching the sunrise at Sunrise Point, Mount Rainier

“But a summer morning when the sky first glows is a cathedral of anticipation.”
— Verlyn Klinkenborg, The Rural Life

Cascade Mountains from Sunrise

Cascading Cascade Mountains at dawn near Sunrise, Mount Rainier

Early morning departure.  Driving in the dark.  Arriving at Sunrise Point on Mount Rainier just in time to watch the sun rise over the Cascade Mountains.  Clear skies at dawn.  It’s worth sacrificing sleep to experience this glory even without the drama of illuminated clouds.

The Meaning and Purpose of the Second Half of Life

The dawning day at Green Lake

Another November morning, pink and gray, at Green Lake

“A human being would certainly not grow to be 70 or 80 years old if this longevity had no meaning for the species to which he belongs.  The afternoon of human life must also have a significance of its own and cannot be merely a pitiful appendage of life’s morning.  The significance of the morning undoubtedly lies in the development of the individual, our entrenchment in the outer world, the propagation of our kind and the care of our children.  This is the obvious purpose of nature.  But . . . whoever carries over into the afternoon the law of the morning must pay for so doing with damage to his soul.  Moneymaking, social existence, family and posterity are nothing but plain nature — not culture.  Culture lies beyond the purpose of nature.  Could by any chance culture be the meaning and purpose of the second half of life?”
— Carl Jung

I am preoccupied with thoughts of old age.  I am well past the morning of my life, and I have a strong sense that the afternoon is waning, too.  This year, I am on the threshold of turning 60, and I feel that I am entering the evening of my life.  I may be getting a late start on embarking on a new path for the second half of my life.  I didn’t give birth to my daughter until I was 34, and I want to keep working at the library for another 6 years or so, and that means I’m still given over to moneymaking, etc.

But I agree with Jung that staying engaged and growing means changing my attitude and the mechanics of my life.  I feel lucky to feel passion for photography, watercolor painting, and blogging/writing, all of which absorb me and delight me.  I also admire people who immerse themselves in other people — helping and enjoying family and neighbors and strangers.  They, too, seem to lead purposeful lives as they age.  There are many possible paths for navigating the afternoon and evening years.  What is yours?

Seattle Day Trip to Mount Rainier National Park

Watching the sunrise at Sunrise Point, Mount Rainier National Park

My niece, who is visiting from Israel, wanted to see some of our country’s national parks, so that was all the excuse I needed to made a day trip from Seattle to Mount Rainier National Park.  We were on the road at 3:00 a.m. so that we could be at Sunrise Point in time for sunrise at 5:22 a.m.  It was worth the early start.  Sunrise, at 6400 feet, is the highest point reachable by car in the park.  Mount Rainier with elevation 14,409 feet, looms majestically and dominates all views at this point.

The cascading Cascade Mountains

I simply loved the cascading shades of blue vanishing to white on the most distant peaks of the Cascade Mountains.  It was easy to see why the Cascade Range got its name, but when I read more about it, I was surprised that neither the explorer Vancouver nor Lewis and Clark called these peaks “Cascades.”  The first reference to Cascade Range came in the writings of botanist David Douglas.

Landscape at Sunrise on Mount Rainier

Wildfowers in the alpine meadows at Sunrise on Mount Rainier

We didn’t do much exploring on the trails at Sunrise because they were still covered with snow, but the meadows were full of wildflowers.  I will share more photos of the wildflowers in tomorrow’s post.

Melting snow bank

The trails along the Naches Peak loop were also blocked by patches of snow, so my plans to take my niece on this hike were thwarted.  We salvaged the day by indulging instead in a touristy trip up a gondola at Crystal Mountain Resort.  I had never taken the time to do this before, and it was fun.  The views from the summit were stunning.  We could see Mount Adams, Mount Saint Helens, and, of course, Mount Rainier.  Altogether a wonderful day trip.

The gondola at Crystal Mountain Resort

First vistas as you exit the gondola at the summit

The gondola rode higher than the tree tops!

View with Mount Adams

Wildlife sighting! A chipmunk.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Six Views of Mount Rainier

View of Mount Rainier from the terrace of the Summit House Restaurant at Crystal Mountain Resort

This post calls to mind Katsushika Hokusai’s Thirty-Six Views of Mount Fuji, his series of woodblock prints.  Mount Rainier has a similar pull on artists.  For example, Tacoma woodblock artist, Chandler O’Leary, created her own limited edition fine art book with views of Mount Rainier — it’s called Local Conditions.

On a recent clear summer day, I took my niece on a drive to Mount Rainier.  The air was calm and clear, so our views of Mount Rainier were spectacular.  We enjoyed the golden glow of the peak at sunrise at Sunrise, distant views from the road, reflected views in Tipsoo Lake, and a high view from the Summit House Restaurant at Crystal Mountain Resort (accessible by gondola ride).  I had also just seen a high altitude view from my airplane window when I was returning from Minnesota.  Let me share these views of Mount Rainier here:

Floating in the clouds, Mount Rainier from an airplane window

Gold-tinted mountain at sunrise from Sunrise Point, Mount Rainier National Park

Mount Rainier with alpine flowers, Sunrise

View of Mount Rainier with White River from Crystal Mountain Resort

Mount Rainier reflected in Tipsoo Lake

“The mountains are playing at standing on their heads, and their reflections are even lovelier than the reality.  The water’s depth and mystery impart vibrancy to the images, and the trembling of the surface conjures visions at the edge of a dream.”
— Sylvain Tesson, The Consolations of the Forest: Alone in a Cabin on the Siberian Taiga, translated from the French by Linda Coverdale

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Sun as Eucharist Host

Sunrise, Moremi Game Reserve, Botswana (photo September 2007)

“And the trees held the cold moon like an eucharist at the tips of their branches.”
— The Journal of Jules Renard, edited by Louise Bogan and Elizabeth Roget

I’ve been re-reading some of my commonplace books, hoping to mine some gems for future blog posts, when I came across this passage about the moon.  I think it is wonderfully descriptive, and it conjured up an image I had seen before.  When I went back in my photo archives to retrieve the remembered photo, I realized that my photograph was of the sun — not the moon.  That didn’t diminish the effectiveness of the simile thankfully.

I have to admit that I couldn’t remember a thing about The Journal of Jules Renard.  Obviously I had read it — the quotes I had written down delighted me then, and still delight me upon re-reading.  But I had quite forgotten the rest of the journal.  I checked it out of the library again, and I can see why it did not become a favorite book in spite of its many rich passages.  The editing is too choppy, I think, and delivers a piecemeal narrative of Renard’s life.

I think Renard would have understood my forgetfulness.  Here are two more quotes from his journal:

“It’s enough to throw you into despair:  to read everything, and remember nothing!  Because you do remember nothing.  You may strain as much as you like:  everything escapes.  Here and there a few tatters remain, fragile as those puffs of smoke left over after a train has passed.”

“I have a remarkable memory:  I forget everything!  It is wonderfully convenient.  It is as though the world were constantly renewing itself for me.”

 

Celebrating National Public Lands Day by Watching the Sun Rise at Mount Rainier

” . . . the public land endowment of the United States is one of the greatest perks of this democracy.  Rich or poor, every citizen of the United States of America has title to an area almost the size of Italy.”
— Timothy Egan, “The Geography of Nope,” The New York Times online Opinionator blog, September 27, 2012

Cascade peaks blanketed in clouds as the sun rises on Saturday morning

Every year in late September the country celebrates National Public Lands Day by offering free entrance to the national parks.  When possible, I try to take advantage of the free admission because I am frugal, and the regular cost of entry makes visiting a rare treat for me.  You may recall that two years ago, my husband and I took a road trip to Glacier National Park in Montana on National Public Lands Day.  (You can revisit those blog posts here and here and here.)

Timothy Egan, a writer whose blog I follow regularly, reminds us that our national lands are under threat by politicians, generally Republicans, who want to mine this shared inheritance for its resources and material riches.  The full article can be found at this link.  I support keeping our national parks and national lands for the general public to enjoy.  They are a rare and awesome treasure and shouldn’t be plundered.  I think a worthy goal would be to visit every national park before I die.

This past Saturday I got up very early and drove in the dark so that I could be at Sunrise on Mount Rainier in time to watch the actual sunrise at 7:07 a.m.  I had to use my windshield wipers to clear a misting rain on my way there, and I was worried that the clouds might hide the rising sun.  I arrived at Sunrise shortly after 6:00 a.m. and waited.  As dawn approached, I could see Cascade peaks blanketed in clouds all around me.  Mount Rainier itself played peek-a-boo with the clouds, revealing its snow-capped peaks and glaciers in fits and starts.  It was quite a show.  Here are some photos:

Driving to Sunrise on Mount Rainier in the dark. I saw the moon set and then waited for the sunrise.

The lightening horizon illuminates the cloudy Cascade range.

The clouds were generally thick and gray, but there were a few moments of glowing color.

Mount Rainier peeks through clouds, viewed from the parking lot at Sunrise Point.

A handful of spectators watching the sun rise at Sunrise Point.

Tree line on a distant peak, with clouds

Snowfields on Mount Rainier

View from the final approach to Sunrise on Mount Rainier

Paintbrush along the road

Mount Rainier in the early morning light as I was about to depart

Elk at the edge of the road down from Sunrise on Mount Rainier