Top 5 National Parks for Backcountry Skiing Are you looking to earn some turns and check some National Parks off your bucket list this year? As tourist season at many National Parks has ended, it’s the perfect time to visit. There’s no better way to explore the West’s National Parks than skiing them. Here are five National Parks with some of the best backcountry skiing. Related: How […] Backcountry Aunika Skogen | November 23, 2024 0 Comments
Washington State Historic Snowfall Comparison: Mount Rainier vs Mount Baker When you think of legendary snowfall in the Pacific Northwest, I suspect a few spots that come to mind within the Evergreen State. That said, I want to jump right in and give you context on the precise coordinates of these two locations and their proximity to the Pacific Ocean. I begin with Mount Baker, or Koma Kulshan as it […] Brains Matthew Oliphant | May 12, 2024 1 Comment
Why Didn’t a Ski Lift/Tram Ever Get Built on Mt. Rainier, WA? Imagine taking a ski lift from Mt. Rainier’s Paradise station at 5,400 ft to the 10,000 ft Camp Muir level where you would have endless terrain to snowboard or ski. One could certainly see why this precise location would be so enticing and attractive to set up a permanent ski lift. You could easily argue that the south part of […] Brains Matthew Oliphant | March 21, 2023 0 Comments
The 2 Places Where The Most-Ever Snow Fell in 1 Season We know the Pacific Northwest is world-renowned for its exceptional snowfall amounts during the winter months. But, what If I told you there are two spectacular spots that reside in the same state and are within a five-hour drive of each other that have claimed this coveted title before or currently hold it to this day? These sites are Mt. […] Brains Matthew Oliphant | February 24, 2023 2 Comments
Which Volcano Holds the Most Glacial Ice in the Pacific Northwest? Before we get into the core (pun intended) of this topic, let’s quickly dive into a little science 101 on what exactly a glacier is and how it forms. What is a glacier and how does it form? A glacier is a large body of densely compacted snow, ice, and ground deposits that accumulate over time under ideal conditions (consistent […] Brains Matthew Oliphant | December 21, 2022 12 Comments
Climbing Mt. Rainier, WA, to Help Sherpa Families in Nepal Three years ago, I attended a presentation on Leadership in the Mountains, led by Melissa Arnot. Melissa didn’t look much different from the rest of us dressed in business casual attire with a small athletic frame and a warm demeanor. It is strange when you meet your heroes, and you realize that they are just people too. Still, Melissa is one […] Katy McClintic | July 9, 2021 0 Comments
Ranked According to Instagram – 9 of the Most Photographed Mountains in the US An article by Reader’s Digest listed the 9 most photographed mountains in the United States, but how was this measured? There are countless amazing mountains in the US alone! We decided to organize the same list according to the number of posts each mountain has linked to its name on Instagram. #glaciernationalpark – 531,738 posts Glacier National Park is a vast […] Jenah MacGrain | July 3, 2019 6 Comments
All The Best Ways to Get to Crystal Mountain, Washington This Season [Sponsored by: Crystal Mountain Resort] If you haven’t skied at Crystal Mountain Resort, Washington, it’s a place you need to visit. It’s the biggest ski area in the state, boasting 2,600 acres of glades, steeps, chutes, and bowls, along with plenty of beginner and intermediate terrain. On top of that, there are tons of great backcountry lines just outside the resort […] Featured Article Mike Lavery | March 4, 2019 0 Comments
How Much Snow Does Mt. Rainier, WA Actually Get? Mt. Rainier is Washington’s highest peak, and at 14,411-feet, is the only 14er in the state. Located just over 100 miles from the Pacific Ocean and roughly 60 miles southeast of Seattle, Mt. Rainier doesn’t just appear to stand alone, it really does so more than most mountains. In fact, it is ranked 3rd out of 128 ultra-prominent mountains in the […] Jon Roubik | November 16, 2018 4 Comments
14,411′ Mt. Rainier, WA Kautz Route Trip Report Brandon Arrastia, 24 was born and raised in Miami and a love of the outdoors born from fishing and hiking in his local area led to his current passion. Coming from Florida, a life dedicated to mountaineering is probably as far from his childhood as he could imagine. A few years ago I took an interest in mountaineering being that […] Trip Report Guest Author | August 25, 2018 0 Comments
National Parks – Past, Present and Future | 5 Oldest Parks and a New One Coming? For over 100 years, the National Parks Service has been striving to protect and manage our national parks, monuments and reservations. From Yellowstone to Yosemite, the NPS preserves our natural wonders for the future generations. Some of the first parks established remain the most iconic. “[the Service] purpose is to conserve the scenery and the natural and historic objects and […] Featured Article Katy Shipley | July 10, 2018 1 Comment
NOAA: Winter Storm Warning for Washington Today | Up to 71″ of Snow Forecast on Mt. Rainier This Week NOAA has issued a Winter Storm Warning for the Mt. Rainier area of Washington State for today including Crystal Mountain ski resort. The Winter Storm Warning is calling for 6-10″ of snow by 5pm today. * SNOW ACCUMULATIONS…6 to 10 inches total. – NOAA Seattle, WA today Snow levels will be around 5,000′ with this storm. * SNOW LEVEL…Generally in […] Weather WeatherBrains | September 19, 2017 1 Comment
Skier Killed in 150′ Crevasse Fall on Mt. Rainier, WA on Sunday | 2nd Skier To Die on Rainier in 2 Weeks A male skier died while skiing on 14,411′ Mt. Rainier on Sunday. This was the 2nd skier to die on Mt. Rainier in 2 weeks after a Heavenly, CA ski patroller died skiing Rainier on July 3rd, 2017. 42-year-old Michael Naiman, of Seattle, fell 150-feet into crevasse on the Emmons Glacier at about 12,800′ on the north side of the […] Industry News Miles Clark | July 20, 2017 0 Comments
UPDATE: Skier Still Missing on Mt. Rainier, WA After Falling Through Crevasse Into Creek on July 3rd, 2017 BACKGROUND INFO: “Our beloved friend, son, brother, ski patrol Dmitri Pajitnov disappeared on Mt Rainier on July 3, 2017 at 16:15 in Washington state. He fell into a creek under a layer of ice. Search works by the National Park Service were terminated the next day, July 4th. We are looking for any help in order to resume the […] Industry News SnowBrains | July 7, 2017 0 Comments
Skier Missing After Falling Through Snow Bridge on Mt. Rainier, WA on 3rd of July A 30-year-old male skier is missing after falling through a snow bridge over Pebble Creek on the Muir Snowfield on the south side of 14,411′ Mt. Rainier, WA on July 3rd, 2017, according to the AP. The Washington man was reportedly skiing from Camp Muir (10,000′) to Paradise (5,600′) when he disappeared into the snow melt swollen Pebble Creek. His ski partner […] Industry News CragBrains | July 5, 2017 1 Comment
NOAA: 12-24″ of Snow Forecast on Mt. Rainier, WA This Weekend! NOAA is forecasting 12-24″ of snow this weekend for upper elevations of Mt. Rainier and the Cascade Mountains of Washington. Seems like a pretty decent amount of snow for mid-June! NOAA is calling for snow levels down to 5,000′ in Washington state beginning last night and continuing through Monday. Several inches of new snow is expected above 5,000′ all over WA […] Weather WeatherBrains | June 9, 2017 0 Comments
162-Inches of Snow Forecast for Mount Rainier, WA Next 3 Days Up to 162″ of snow (13.5-feet) is currently forecast to fall on 14,411-foot Mt. Rainer in Washington state in the next 3 days. That huge snowfall total is due to an atmospheric river that will be “slamming” into Washington this weekend. THE PRECIPITATION BULLSEYE OVER MOUNT RAINIER IS MORE THAN 20 INCHES IN 48 HOURS IN THE WETTEST MESOSCALE MODELS. […] Weather WeatherBrains | October 30, 2015 24 Comments
VIDEO: They’re Already Skiing on Mt. Rainier, WA Yep, they’re already skiing up on 14,411-foot Mt. Rainier in Washington state. This video shows a guy skiing down from Camp Muir (10,000-feet) to Paradise (5,400-feet) and the snow up top looks great.Oregon and Washington got hit hard with snow with some places getting […] SnowBrains | September 7, 2015 1 Comment
What It’s Like to Climb the Kautz Route on Mt. Rainier, WA The Kautz isn’t your standard mountaineering route. Especially on a low snow year like this. Early season the Kautz can be a walk up with snow covering the steepest part of the route. Sooner or later, this snow melts out and reveals the toughest part of the climb, the Ice Chute. When the chute is fully melted out, multiple pitches of alpine ice climbing are exposed and the Kautz becomes more difficult and more exciting to climb. Conditions Report Zeb Blais | August 5, 2015 0 Comments
Aerial Photos of 14,411-Foot Mount Rainier on June 6th, 2014 | by Matt Bansak Professional photographer and SnowBrains contributor Matt Bansak had a good flight on June 6th. His pilot decided to give 14,411-foot Mt. Rainier a fly by. The guy got close. Real close. Luckily, Matt had his camera on hand and was able to grab these great images. Rainier is a beast. A special beast. It’s tough to get a good look at her. You’re either too close or too far away. Matt was able to get in the sweet spot where you could see her just right. As you can tell from these photos, there’s certainly some good skiing left to be had up there. […] SnowBrains | June 17, 2014 0 Comments
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