Park at Longmire Museum, 6 miles [9.7 kilometers] from the entrance. Pioneer James Longmire discovered mineral springs here in 1883 and built Mt. Rainier’s first hotel; his ads for miraculous water cures helped generate early tourism and a constituency for the creation of the park. Take time for the easy 0.5-mile [0.8-kilometer] Trail of the Shadows that starts on the opposite side of the main road. While in Longmire, also visit the Wilderness Information Center for trail and weather information and backcountry permits.
Back in your car, continue east for about 6.5 miles [10.5 kilometers], then take the spur road to the right to Ricksecker Point. To the south loom the sawtoothed peaks of the Tatoosh Range, dramatic remains of lava flows that predated Mt. Rainier by some 25 to 35 million years. Glaciers that developed and receded during the last million years carved the sharp pinnacles and the steep-sided mountainside hollows called cirques. Below meanders the Nisqually River, which originates at the snout of the Nisqually Glacier that faces you on Mt. Rainier. This glacier is about 4 miles [6 kilometers] long and flows downhill a foot [0.3 meter] every summer’s day.
Rejoin the highway. Another 1.5 miles [2.4 kilometers] brings you to the Narada Falls pullover. The shimmering, 168-foot [51.2-meter] plunge of the Paradise River is well worth the steep but short walk down to the viewing area below the bridge. Climb back up to your car and proceed; in less than 3 miles [5 kilometers] you’ll reach the most popular part of the park.
“It looks just like paradise!” exclaimed Martha Longmire in 1885 on first sighting the rolling hills swathed in wildflowers and framed by Mt. Rainier’s white dome. An average of 140 inches [356 centimeters] of precipitation falls here each year; as many as 40 species of flowers bloom on the thin, volcanic soil during July and August. Park near the Henry M. Jackson Memorial Visitor Center, or the Paradise Inn, built in 1917.
