We plan to fly to Seatac and drive to Mt. Rainier, St.Helen, and Olympic NP. We love hiking and do not want to rush. How many days are sufficient for each park? How many hours from airport to Mt. Rainier (2 hr?), from Mt. Rainier to Mt. St. Helen ? from St. Helen to Olympic? We plan to go late May or early June. Does that mean we can't use the NW entrance to Mt. Rainier because it's closed until late June? How far is it to drive from airport to SW entrance if North entrance is closed? would 10 days be sufficient for 3 parks or more? Can you recommend cabins or rentals (with kitchen) that is reasonable ($150 and under). We have children ages 9 & 11. We'd like to stay near hot springs in Olympic NP.

Thanks,
Cathy

I can't comment? on driving/distance times from each park to the other, but I would recommend spending more time at Mt. Ranier park than the other 2. My wife and I visited/hiked each of those park for 2-3 days each years ago, and found that Mt. Ranier offered the most spectacular views (anywhere) with the greatest variety of scnenery.

Cathy, 2 hours ought to be ample to get to Mt. Rainier NP from SeaTac. Depending on where in the park you stay, I’d allot around 4 hours to get to the Mt. St. Helens Visitor center; you might make it faster but that would be a ballpark guess. From Mt. St. Helens to Olympic NP really depends on where in the park you’re heading. From the Mt. St. Helens exit on I-5 to the beginning of the park’s Pacific coastal strip, for example, I’d place at around 3 hours; to Port Angeles/Hurricane Ridge more like 5. Because Olympic is only accessed from the periphery, you can end up driving great distances to get from one part to another, and all the parts are worth seeing. I’ll respectfully disagree with Scott and say I’d bet your family enjoys Olympic NP more than the others, because of the variety of landscapes and features offered, from Alpine hiking (Hurricane Ridge) equal to that available at Mt. Rainier, to ocean beachcombing amidst pounding surf and giant “sea stack” rock formations, to the wonderful rain forest trails in the Hoh or Quinault valleys. As for accommodation, lodging on the Olympic coast is tight and needs to be booked well in advance; easier to come by on the north coast, around Crescent Lake or Port Angeles. Go to http://www.olympicpeninsula.org for links to accommodation sites. I believe, BTW, that the hotel/cabin accommodations at Sol Duc Hot Springs are closed for the time being, maybe for good, so cabins near hot springs may be hard to find.

Let me put in a plug, though, for the “forgotten” national park hereabouts. While the North Cascades NP doesn’t get anywhere near the publicity of the other parks or Mt. St. Helens, it’s really a very grand place, with a lot of appeal to families or those wanting to get away from the crowds of Mt. Rainier. Start on the west side of the Cascades, stop for a wonderful tour of the City of Seattle’s Ross Dam hydroelectric facility (ancient incline railway, boat trip on Ross Lake, powerhouse tour (bigger than life stuff), then back for a family-style chicken lunch in the old mess hall, see http://www.ci.seattle.wa.us/light/tours/skagit.asp. From Ross Lake, the highway goes up over the summit through what some people have called the best mountain scenery in the lower 48 states. You might give it a thought.

Mt. St. Helen's, which we visited 7 years ago, remains one of the most unforgettable sights I have ever seen. It was like viewing the aftermath of a nuclear blast, although the vegetation was making a comeback in many areas. I imagine there is much more regrowth now. I would urge you to visit it, but can't comment on the hiking as we are not hikers.

Answers to some of your questions: 1.As to driving time from Sea-Tac to Mt. Rainier N.P. entrances you can figure the mileage for the destination you choose and assume that you could cover approx. 50+- miles per hour, except while driving through Seattle/Tacoma suburbs without controlled access highways. Some of this can't be avoided and especially during peak commute times this can add the better part of an hour to your trip. 2.You should be able to use the NW entrance to Mt. Rainier in late May early June. The elevation is relatively low here and the snow should not be a factor at that time (at least for the Carbon River area). However, from time to time there have been bridge washouts so you should check with local officials next May to make sure everything is in place. Snow would prevent you from driving to the higher elevation points at NW entrance, such as Mowich Lake. I highly recommend you get a copy of a guide book called, "50 Hikes in Mount Rainier National Park" published by The Mountaineers. 3. All year long, except for brief closures, you can drive through the SW (Nisqually) entrance to Paradise which is the closest you can drive to the summit. I would have to second the thought that this could be one of the single most impressive mountain views you will ever see. 4. Where you choose to spend your time will probably depend on the weather. If it is cloudy the views of "the mountain" could be obscured and walking in old growth or to lowland waterfalls would be more pleasant. So, I think you might want to be flexible about your schedule. 5. Driving from the Nisqually Entrance of Mt. Rainier N.P. (the Ashford area) to Mt. St. Helens could be two hours or so if you go to the very scenic, less crowded northeast side. (On your map look for Windy Ridge at Mt. St. Helens, south of the town of Randle.) I highly recommend a book by Marge and Ted Mueller, "A Guide to Washington's South Cascades' Volcanic Landscapes" also published by The Mountaineers. This will give you a good idea of drives and hikes in addition to the one drive on the west side of Mt. St. H. that is most popular. Hiking in the Windy Ridge area is beautiful. It has been years since the area had little or no vegetation. I was there about three weeks ago and the wildflowers were spectacular. 6.Is 10 days enough? If it is cold and rainy maybe. If the weather is decent you will want a lot more time if you spend time walking which is a very rewarding way to see these parks. (My understanding is that Sol Duc Hot Springs is open again.)

Thanks to everyone who responded. The advice, websites, and guidebook recommendations are truely informative.

Cathy

I wanted to let you all know that Sol Duc Hot Springs Resort is open from April through October each year. Thankfully Susan contacted me directly to see if we were open, after reading Johns response to Cathy above. Please check out our website for all the pertinent information you need at www.northolympic.com/solduc Thanks, and have a GREAT trip to Olympic National Park - it is spectacular and needs more than a couple of days to explore it with any kind of enjoyment! Pam at Sol Duc Resort

Thanks for the correction re cabin availability, Pam. Sorry if I misled anyone with bum information.