Directions: From Enumclaw drive 43 miles east on Highway 410 to the Mount Rainier National Park White River Entrance Station. Proceed to Sunrise Road and follow it 17 miles west to the large parking lot and visitor center at the roads end. The trailhead is at the north end of the parking lot, near the picnic area. Note: Sunrise Road usually does not open until early July. Call the park at (360) 569-2211 for road information.
Trail notes: If you are looking for a quick way to get away from the car and into Mount Rainiers alpine splendor, this is your express lane to ecstasy. The Sourdough Ridge Trail, which begins in the thick of the tourist-choked Sunrise Visitor Center, leaves it all fairly quickly, climbing to a ridge top and turning east beneath Antler Peak. The trail follows the ridge top east, with absolutely stunning views of brilliant white and ice-blue Rainier to the south, occasional views of national forest lands to the north, and the almost unnaturally brilliant green parklands of Yakima Park constantly at your feet. At Dege Peak (elevation 7,006 feet) scan the distant view of Mount Adams and the close-up view of the Cowlitz Chimneys and Sarvent Glacier to the south. Bring water. Bring a camera. Bring a friend. Years later, you will look at the cheesy poses against the stunning Rainier backdrop and remember when times were really good. Whenever you are up here in the summer, times truly are.
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