The trail rises 1400 feet
in 3.3 miles and except for a short downhill portion near the beginning it
is all uphill to the lakes basin. That equates to a very gentle slope
in any guidebook, less than 500 feet per mile. That seems pretty easy
to me. I was even thinking on the way up that it would be a great “first
backpack trip” for my grandkids.
Compared to nearby trails, the Owyhigh Lakes receive
few visits, so it is a good place to go in a very busy park to escape the
crowds. The trail is wide enough most of the way to walk side-by-side,
a nice touch for sweethearts, and is smooth and gently graded. There
is no view of Mount Rainier from anywhere on the trail but the beautiful
forest, lakes, and Governor’s Ridge are more than adequate compensation.
As the trail enters the basin there are meadows filled with wildflowers and
a pretty good chance of sighting a bear. In fact, on our last trip
we saw a tree that had been totally thrashed by a bear. The damage
done by the bear was remarkable. This was not a small tree either, about
16 inches in diameter, but from the roots upward to five feet, the bark had
been stripped all the way around, effectively girdling the tree. Heavy
claw marks on the trunk and in the bark indicated a bear attack. When
I reported the tree to the very interested ranger at Sunrise, he quipped,
“I am glad the bear got a tree and not a hiker.” Yeah, me too.
The damage to the tree was fresh, probably within
the hour, and at the very least, that morning. There was no drying
or discoloration of the cambium layer. Another group of hikers ahead
of us reported the bear sighting but I didn’t hear anything about the bear’s
size. They saw it above the lakes in the upper meadow a couple hundred yards
from the trail. From the damaged tree one could deduce that regardless
of its size the bear was a powerful critter that would be best observed from
a distance.
From the basin, the trail climbs over a low gap
and continues down Kotsuck Creek to a rendezvous with the Eastside Trail
in another four miles or so. Just beyond the trail junction a short
spur climbs steeply to SR 123. A great one-way hike can be thus made
if transportation can be arranged.
Just a word about the name: Owyhigh. To pronounce
it think long vowel sounds and accent the “wy” syllable, O-wy’-high.
Personally I prefer the more fun sounding: ow’-wee-high, but even though
this is my story I can’t buck the cartographers.
Owyhigh Lakes is a very worthwhile hike and I heartily
endorse it. ENJOY!
The trail begins in the White River Valley about
three miles inside the White River entrance station in Mount Rainier National
Park. There is a small parking lot on the right. The trail begins
across the road.
