Wonderland Permit is a go!

[Ian]

I've never tried to schedule a hike with so much red tape before so this was quite an experience. I can see how this would be extremely difficult if you have a narrow window of opportunity to hike the trail but I fortunately only live a couple hours away from Rainier and offered a couple itineraries with the stipulation that I wanted to hike the Seattle/Spray park route and preferred a clockwise route.

So here's my seven day itinerary:

August 1 Longmire – South Puyallup River Camp
August 2 Golden Lakes Camp
August 3 Cataract Valley Camp
August 4 Granite Creek Camp
August 5 Summerland Camp
August 6 Nickel Creek Camp
August 7 Back to Longmire/Camp Living Room.

I still need to buy a few pieces of gear and most importantly, new trail runners. My daughter is joining me on this hike and we are both really excited to face this adventure together.

So who else is hiking the Wonderland this summer?

[Elijah Ziemann]

I hope to hike it this summer. Sadly, I live far from Washington, so I'd have to fly. But, if not this summer, it's definitely on my 'to hike' list! Hope you have a good trip.

[Jerry Adams]

What is it, 80 miles? That would be 10 miles a day – not too bad.

Are you doing re-supply or carry all your food?

I've heard about the red tape. Same with Olympic National Park. I hate having to commit to a particular campsite for each night. Will each campsite area be full of other people?

I went to the Enchantments a few years ago and was worried about crowds, but maybe because of the the red tape there weren't too many other people

[Daniel Fish]

…

[Link .]

Stick and Barefoot Jake are planning to go.

[Ian]

Elijah,

Thanks for the well wishes! I've been planning this for a while so I'm glad I'm through the first gate. Good luck em with your trip as well.

Daniel,

I'm kicking off a blog next month to follow this trip. I'll definitely update as I go.

Jerry,

It's closer to 93 miles. There are a lot of up and downs so I decided to err on the side of caution. I calculated my distances and elevation changes for each day and I'll upload the data when I get home. I'm definitely going to take advantage of the resupply opportunities.

Anna,

I follow Stick's blog and it lo

Edit dang fat thumbs!

…oks like he didn't get his permit. Bummer!

[Daniel Fish]

…

[Chad “Stick” Poindexter]

Yea, we didn't get our permits…oh well. We will try again another year though. We will be hiking in the Olympics instead, which looks like it will also be pretty exciting! Jake has laid out some plans for us and they look fun.

Anyway, congrats on getting your permits, and have fun on your hike! :)

[Ian]

To answer one of Jerry's questions from earlier, since I'm going in August, I expect that the campsites will be relatively full.

I mentioned it earlier but the Wonderland Trail has a lot of elevation gains and losses to contend with. I've never been on a hike like this so I opted to err on the side of caution. NPS mentions that many people hike this in 10-14 days (presumably with 50+lb rucks) so we'll still be way under their posted average.

Here are the stats for my trip as I calculated them a month or so ago. I'm relatively confident on the distances but less so on my elevation gain/loss calculations. There are a few sources of information out there and I've been warned that the Green Trail maps have some errors in this region; other sources conflict as well. Some sources will claim the Wonderland is 90 miles and others quote 93. There have been a few changes to the trail due to flooding.

They are close enough for my purposes but I just wanted to explain why you will read entries like "Net elevation gain 1200'-1400'"

Food and fuel comments are for two people.

Day one
Longmire (2800’) to South Puyallup River (4000’)
Distance 12 miles
Total ascent – 4200’
Total descent – 2800’
Net gain – 1200-1400’
Meals – 4
Esbit 2

Day two
South Puyallup River (4000’) to Golden Lakes (5130’)
Distance 12.5 miles
Total ascent – 3600’
Total descent – 2600’
Net gain – 1000’- 1130’
Meals – 6
Esbit 4

Day three
Golden Lakes (5130’) to Cataract Valley (4620’)
Resupply at Mowich Lake
Distance 15.7 miles
Total ascent – 4924’
Total descent – 5254’
Net loss – 330-510’
Meals 2 + 2 (Lunch eaten at resupply)
Esbit 2 + 2

Meals first leg 12 (9lbs each)
Esbit first leg 8 (2oz each)

Day four
Cataract Valley (4620’) to Granite Creek (5765’)
Distance 11 miles
Total ascent – 3865’
Total descent – 2720’
Net gain – 1145’
Meals 6
Esbit 4

Day five
Granite Creek (5765’) to Summerland (5940’)
Resupply at White River or Sunrise
Distance 14.6 miles
Total ascent- 3275’
Total descent – 3100’
Net gain – 175’
Meals 2 + 2 (Lunch at White River or Sunrise Resupply point)
Esbit 2 + 2

Meals second leg 10 (7.5 lbs each)
Esbit 8 (2 oz each)

Day six
Summerland (5940’) to Nickel Creek (3385’)
Distance 11.1 miles
Total ascent – 1680’
Total descent – 3835’
Net (needs de confliction)
Meals 6
Esbit 4

Day seven
Nickel Creek (3385’) to Longmire (2800’)
Distance 13.3 miles
Total ascent – 2085’
Total descent – 2670’
Net loss – 585’
Meals 2 + one in truck
Esbit 2

Meals third leg 10 (7.5lbs each)
Esbit 8 (2 oz each)

[Michael Gillenwater]

I hate having to get a permit to hike, generally preferring wilderness areas over NPs. But in the spirit of getting to know our new PNW home, I also went for the lottery.

Just received my letter from NPS saying that my Rainer NP Wonderland permit has been approved. I must be lucky.

It is for the full 93 mile circuit in 6 days (5 nights).
Dates 14 Sept – 19 Sept.

I put in for 4 people on behalf of a few of local outdoor buddies. But they can be flaky (for reason, jobs, kids, etc.) and are not really sure they can break free. One is a heavy hauler that is afraid of the mileage, but I am working on him. The point is, I would not be surprised if there are a couple of spots open.

PM me if interested in joining.

[Ian]

"May 1, 2013: Attempting to reserve camps to hike the entire Wonderland Trail, or a large part of it, is no longer possible for trips starting between July 15 and September 23. See the FULL CAMPS list below. If your Wonderland Trail reservation request was sent after March 31, the prognosis is grim for a positive outcome. The number of applications for the Wonderland Trail are unprecedented this season. We have processed nearly 1,500 requests as of May 1 and have already sent out hundreds of rejection notices."

http://www.nps.gov/mora/planyourvisit/wilderness-camping-and-hiking.htm

[Ian]

Breakfast Drink
Pop Tarts
Mangos
Mike and Ikes
Rice Crackers w/ Sea Salt
Perpetuem
2x Justin's PB
2x Tortillas
Lara Bar
Korean Style Pork Jerky from Costco (my new favorite)
Pay Day
M&Ms
Cookies
Apricots
Mountain House
Brownie
Hot Chocolate
Salt
Olive Oil

[Jason G]

""May 1, 2013: Attempting to reserve camps to hike the entire Wonderland Trail, or a large part of it, is no longer possible for trips starting between July 15 and September 23. See the FULL CAMPS list below. If your Wonderland Trail reservation request was sent after March 31, the prognosis is grim for a positive outcome. The number of applications for the Wonderland Trail are unprecedented this season. We have processed nearly 1,500 requests as of May 1 and have already sent out hundreds of rejection notices."

I was visiting a friend in portland for a few weeks this month and he had a weekend wedding to go to so i started looking around for a trip and came across the wonderland trail. I decided on it tues the 16th, called the ranger on the 17th morning to ask about permits and he said that getting a walk up permit would be no problem it all and drove up and started that same day at 1pm. He said that 30% of the campsites are reserved for walkups so most actually go unused.. food for thought if you are considering the trail..

[Jeffs Eleven]

4000 calories/ day?!?!

That's the post that should be titled 'Wow"

Sounds like a lot to me, but whatever- everybody's different. I just remember we couldn't give enough food away when we did the WT. We left a ton of food in the 'free boxes' at the ranger stations.

well on second look its very snacky and probably not the best calories, so you'd probably need more:
Brownie
Cookie
M&M
Mike and ikes
Pop Tarts

I mean…. we're supposed to be hiking Aaron Sorenson's hike, and he doesn't take ANY of that stuff. ;P

I remember we had soooo many Sour Patch Kids… I never want to see another one- and that was like four years ago.
Nightmares of Sour Patch Kids as The Children of the Corn.

"Stick in his teeth, Malachi!"

[Author]

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