[ragman and rodman]

While rodman took the day off from hiking, two friends joined me for this hike in Mount Rainier National Park that starts from the Mowich Lake (4929 feet) parking lot... from the Ranger's cabin on the lake, look for a sign that says "Unmaintained Trail"... step over the log behind the sign and you are on the unmaintained trail leading to Knapsack Pass. In less than a half-mile you gain 400 feet of elevation... watch for a well-worn boot path heading uphill on the other side of a small stream... this will take you to the the west ridge leading to Fay's summit... follow the ridge to the headwall... at the headwall turn right (don't be tempted to go left) and within 30 yards find the well-worn route leading to the summit at 6492 feet... some very minor Class 3 work is involved in the last 300 feet of elevation gain and it might take some patience to find the easiest route... at the summit enjoy the close-up view of Mt. Rainier across the ridge connecting Mt. Pleasant and Hessong Rock. After an hour on the summit we continued on the ridge leading to Knapsack Pass... your route finding skills will be useful for this stretch of the hike... from Knapsack Pass we followed the unmaintained trail back to Mowich Lake. On the way back to the lake we met 3 rangers who were going to be making recommendations on what to do with this unmaintained trail... fix it up, do nothing to it, or close it... one of the rangers was packing a holstered pistol... we inquired about the weapon and he said that it assists in reducing confrontations when they have to issue citations to people. Fay Peak is named for Fay Fuller, the first woman to reach the summit of Mt. Rainier. The round trip was approximately 4 miles... gaining 1800 feet of elevation that included some ups and downs. Pictures of the Fay Peak hike. ..

[TeeJay]

Nice Pics

[johnahl]

Great pics R&R. I have been to Knapsack pass many times. I usually make a round trip by going down into Spray Park and intersecting the trail coming from the Carbon Glacier to Mowich Lake. Did you see the strange rock formation at Knapsack Pass? For anyone else that goes to KP if you start down the trail towards Mist Park, you only have to go about 100 feet down the trail and then turn around and look back toward the pass. If you look to the right of the pass at the rock wall on the side of the Mother Mountain ridge, it looks like a 50 foot diameter boulder was thrown at the wall. It looks sort of like what safety glass does when hit with a rock. Did the Park Rangers give you any static for being on an unmaintained trail? I hope they don't close this trail and make it a ticketing offense for traveling on it. The Ranger with a pistol is I think a full blown Park Ranger. The summer temporary help won't be carrying a firearm. Thanks for the report. I'll probably try and make the trip sometime next week.

[ragman and rodman]

johnahl... I know what you are referring to when you talk about the side of First Mother where it looks as though a very large object crashed into it... my picture of First Mother doesn't show it very well, but when seen from the correct angle, it stands out like a sore thumb. The Rangers didn't say anything to us about being on the trail to Knapsack Pass... while it is marked as an "Unmaintained Trail", it is still open to the public.