Outdoors & River

Trails, river conditions, parks, foothills, weather-adjacent recreation, and getting outside.

Outdoors & River/August 30, 2026

Paradise Is Delivering Five Bears a Week Right Now

A visitor who made three trips to Mount Rainier’s Paradise area in a single week reported seeing five different black bears, two of which walked directly onto the trail.

Outdoors & River/August 30, 2026

Pinnacle Peak Loop Caught in Full Gray-Sky Glory

A recent video from Ryan Gibson captures Pinnacle Peak Loop Trail doing what PNW trails do best on a moody afternoon.

A $5 Waterfall and Ghost Town Combo Sits Just Outside Enumclaw

Outdoors & River/August 5, 2026

A $5 Waterfall and Ghost Town Sit Just Outside Enumclaw

The old Green River Gorge Resort conservation area offers about a mile of trails, a waterfall, and striking rock formations for five dollars a person.

Outdoors & River/August 5, 2026

The Volcano That Made Rainier Feel Real

Mount St. Helens’ 1980 eruption turned Cascade volcano hazards from a distant abstraction into something every Pacific Northwest community takes seriously.

Enumclaw Is Actually the Front Door to Rainier’s Highest Drive

Outdoors & River/June 28, 2026

Enumclaw Is the Front Door to Rainier’s Highest Drive

The Sunrise area on Mount Rainier’s northeast side sits closer to Enumclaw than most visitors realize, making the town a natural and practical base for reaching the park’s highest paved point.

Mount Rainier Ditches the Reservation Requirement Starting Next Summer

Outdoors & River/June 28, 2026

Mount Rainier Drops Its Timed-Entry Reservations in 2026

The timed-entry system that controlled peak-season access to Mount Rainier National Park for the past two years is going away in 2026.

Outdoors & River/June 25, 2026

Why Rainier Turns Pink at Dusk, Explained in One Reel

A short Instagram video from @erin_rose_e puts a name to the vivid pink glow Enumclaw residents see on Mount Rainier at the edges of the day.

Drone footage pulls back the curtain on Crystal Mountain’s backcountry

Outdoors & River/June 25, 2026

Drone footage shows Crystal Mountain’s backcountry

smolinski takes aerial aim at the ski touring terrain sitting just beyond Crystal Mountain’s boundary ropes.

Outdoors & River/June 21, 2026

Sasquatch Shave Ice Is Back and Ready to Cool Down Enumclaw

Sasquatch Shave Ice has opened for the season in Enumclaw, ready to serve through the summer.

Crystal Mountain’s Gondola Hauls Views Fine—Skiers, Not So Much

Outdoors & River/June 20, 2026

Crystal Mountain’s Gondola Hauls Views, Not Skiers

The Mount Rainier Gondola at Crystal Mountain was designed for sightseers, and its painfully low capacity has become one of the resort’s most persistent frustrations for skiers.

Every Cascade Trailhead Near Enumclaw Connects to a Path That Reaches Mexico

Outdoors & River/June 19, 2026

The Pacific Crest Trail Passes Just Outside Enumclaw

The Pacific Crest Trail uses the Cascade Range as its north-south spine, meaning the high country just outside Enumclaw is a small but genuine piece of a 2,650-mile story.

Green River Gorge Resort Is Earning Its Spot on Washington Travel Reels