huckepack

Wonderland Trail

Length

Stated
About 150 km, the stated length (National Park Service)
Map line
139 km, OpenStreetMap along the official track
Used for
The charts on this page, and comparing trails in the search

about150km

Ascent · descent

This trail
8,230 m up, 8,230 m down
Source
The stated totals (National Park Service)

8,230m ↑8,230m ↓

Difficulty

What
How hard the trail is, in three ways: the terrain, the climate in season and the length of the days
Scale
Easy to Hard, with the same thresholds for every trail; each takes its hardest measure
Keep in mind
It describes the trail, not how it will feel to you: that depends on your fitness, experience, pack and the weather you get
  • Terrain: HardClimbing: 55 m per km
  • Climate: Moderate in Jul–AugHeat: 24 °C by day (August)
  • Effort: DemandingAverage day: ≈ 6 h 15 (an average day over 10 days)

All measures

Terrain: Hard; Climate: Moderate in Jul–Aug; Effort: Demanding

Suggested

No stages
No official stages: hikers choose their own camps
Source
National Park Service

10–14days

Per day

How
The length and the ascent over the suggested 10–14 days: from the most days to the fewest
Length
National Park Service
Days
National Park Service

10.7–15km· 590–820 m ↑
Season

Landscape

Source
ESA WorldCover satellite land cover, along the main route
  • Forest: 84%
  • Grassland and shrubs: 10%
  • Bare rock and sand: 4%
  • Moss and lichen: 2%
  • Water, snow and ice: 0%

Landscape along the route

Mostly Forest

Photos

Photos from Wikimedia Commons by Patrick Leahy (Patleahy). Original uploader was Patleahy at , Manuel Velazquez, Buidhe and brewbooks; each photo's licence in the gallery

Location

Country
United States
Regions
Washington
Start
Longmire
Finish
Longmire
Route type
Loop
Permit
Required · fee charged
Travel hubs
  • Seattle–Tacoma International Airport (SEA)128.6 km by road · 134 min
Protected areas
Mount Rainier National Park
Managed by
National Park Service, Mount Rainier National ParkOfficial website
GPX
GPX trackOur tracing from OpenStreetMap
  • Trail
  • Start and finish
  • Contour lines

Difficulty

Terrain

Rates
How hard is the ground to walk: the path, the climbing, the steep bits, the ground underfoot?
How
Rated over the whole main route.
Level
The hardest measure sets it
Path grade
the trail's SAC grade, stated, converted or estimated
  1. EasyT1
  2. ModerateT2
  3. DemandingT3
  4. HardT4 to T6
Climbing
the stated ascent over the stated length (else the terrain model's over the map line)
  1. Easyunder 15 m per km
  2. Moderate15–30 m
  3. Demanding30–50 m
  4. Hard50 m or more
Steep stretches
share of the route steeper than 15 %, up or down (terrain model)
  1. Easyunder 5 %
  2. Moderate5–15 %
  3. Demanding15–30 %
  4. Hard30 % or more
Natural ground
share on footpaths and trails (OpenStreetMap); never Hard on its own
  1. Easyunder a third
  2. Moderatea third to two thirds
  3. Demandingtwo thirds or more

Hard

  • SAC hiking scale

    This trail
    T2 (our estimate)
    Basis
    The National Park Service calls it a strenuous hike over many ridges, with daily climbs and descents of over 1,000 m, through forest and valleys into alpine and subalpine country, on a built trail between designated camps. Mountain hiking on a maintained trail (T2); before mid- to late July snow makes it a winter route that needs navigation, ice-axe skills and the fording of glacial rivers, which the record's season leaves out.
    Scale
    The Swiss Alpine Club's hiking scale, from T1 (easy) to T6 (very hard)
    Why
    Trails rate difficulty in many local scales, or only in words; we translate each into this one so trails compare
    Keep in mind
    An estimate: how hard a trail feels depends on your fitness, experience, pack and the weather
    T1 · Hiking
    Well-made paths, mostly flat or gently sloping. No risk of falling; trainers are enough.
    T2 · Mountain hiking
    A continuous path, steep in places, where a fall can't be ruled out. Be sure-footed; wear hiking boots.
    T3 · Demanding mountain hiking
    The path is not always visible; exposed spots may have chains or ropes, and you may need your hands for balance.
    T4 · Alpine hiking
    Often no path. Hands are needed in places, terrain is exposed, and there can be easy snowfields.
    T5 · Demanding alpine hiking
    Mostly pathless, with easy climbing and exposed, demanding terrain. Needs alpine experience.
    T6 · Difficult alpine hiking
    Pathless, very exposed, with climbing and glaciers. For experienced mountaineers only.

    The scale at the Swiss Alpine Club

    estimated T2
  • Climbing55 m per km
  • Steep stretches30 % of the way
  • Natural ground100 %

Climate

Rates
How hot, cold, wet and windy does it get?
How
From 30 years of daily weather (ERA5), rated per month. Without months picked: the trail's best run of at least two season months, each measure at its hardest month. Pick months in the search to rate it for yours.
Level
The hardest measure sets it
Heat
mean daily high at the lowest point
  1. Easyunder 22 °C
  2. Moderate22–27 °C
  3. Demanding27–32 °C
  4. Hard32 °C or more
Cold
mean nightly low at the highest point
  1. Easy8 °C or more
  2. Moderate3–8 °C
  3. Demanding−2 to 3 °C
  4. Hardbelow −2 °C
Wet days
days a month with 1 mm of rain or more, the wetter of both points
  1. Easyunder 10
  2. Moderate10–14
  3. Demanding14–18
  4. Hard18 or more
Snow
days a month with 1 cm of snow or more at the highest point
  1. Easyunder 1 day
  2. Moderate1–3 days
  3. Demanding3–6 days
  4. Hard6 days or more
Wind
mean of the day's strongest wind (hourly mean, 10 m above ground), the windier of both points; over land: a point whose 25 km weather cell is mostly sea takes the nearest mostly-land cell's
  1. Easyunder 15 km/h
  2. Moderate15–20 km/h
  3. Demanding20–25 km/h
  4. Hard25 km/h or more

Moderate in Jul–Aug

  • Heat · August24 °C by day
  • Cold · July5 °C at night
  • Wet days · August5 days
  • Snow · July0 days
  • Wind · July11 km/h

Effort

Rates
How long are the days?
How
No official stages: rated by an average day at the fewest suggested days, the hardest plan a source suggests.
Level
The hardest measure sets it
Average day
walking time of an average day at the fewest suggested days (length and climbs divided evenly), by DIN 33466
  1. Easyup to 4 h
  2. Moderate4–6 h
  3. Demanding6–8 h
  4. Hardmore than 8 h

Demanding

  • Average day · an average day over 10 daysestimated 6 h 15

Climate

Days in season · lowest point
20–24°C
Nights in season · highest point
2–5°C
Wet days a month
5–8
Daylight
12.5–15.5h
SeasonDay high and night low−20 °C−10 °C0 °C10 °C20 °C30 °CWet days, at the highest point5101520Daylight8.9 h10.2 h11.8 h13.5 h15.0 h15.9 h15.5 h14.2 h12.5 h10.8 h9.3 h8.5 hJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Climate by month, 1995–2024 average
MonthLowest point, day high / night low (°C)Highest point, day high / night low (°C)Wet daysSnow daysFrost nights at the highest pointDaylight (h)
January5.1 / -0.5-3.3 / -8.719.618.6318.9
February5.5 / -1-2.9 / -9.216.415.428.310.2
March7.1 / -0.2-1.3 / -8.219.418.23111.8
April9.6 / 1.31.2 / -6.517.215.329.813.5
May13.8 / 4.85.5 / -2.9159.825.415
June17.8 / 8.49.2 / 0.511.43.814.415.9
July23.2 / 12.215.7 / 4.84.90.21.715.5
August23.5 / 12.316.3 / 55.10.11.314.2
September20.1 / 9.812.7 / 2.38.41.67.312.5
October13.7 / 5.65.7 / -2.314.29.423.310.8
November7.8 / 1.3-0.7 / -7.118.517.329.49.3
December4.4 / -1.1-4 / -9.418.817.8318.5

Climate by month

Source
ERA5 reanalysis via Open-Meteo, averages for 1995–2024
Places
The trail's lowest and highest point, adjusted to their height
Bars
From the mean night low to the mean day high
Wet days
At least 1 mm of rain; snow days at least 1 cm of snow
Daylight
Sunrise to sunset in the middle of the month
Shading
The trail's season

Terrain

Highest · lowest point
2,068m high763m low

Gradient

Steepest climb
27 % (15°), 135 m up over 500 m
Steepest descent
−31 % (17°), 155 m down over 500 m
Gradient
Height per distance: 20 % is 20 m up per 100 m forward; 100 % is 45°, not 90°
Keep in mind
Averages over 500 m from a 30 m terrain model: steps and ladders within them are steeper
GradientAngleFeels like
10 %6°Noticeable on a road
20 %11°A steep path, slow going
30 %17°Very steep, often steps
100 %45°Scrambling

27% ↑−31% ↓

Steep stretches

This trail
20.4 km up, 20 km down: the darkest parts of the profile
Steep
15 % or more (9°, 15 m of height per 100 m), in 200 m stretches
Why it matters
Slow going uphill, hard on the knees downhill

40.4km

Surfaces

  • Natural ground: 100%, 135.4 km. Earth, grass, rock and roots: footpaths and forest trails. Can be muddy after rain.
  • Paved: 1%, 0.7 km. Asphalt, concrete and cobbles: roads and village streets.

100% natural1% paved
1,000 m1,400 m1,800 m2,068 m204060801001200 km136.1 km

Terrain along the route

Heights
Copernicus terrain model, 30 m grid, every 100 m along the main route; in forests it reads the treetops
Colours
Each 200 m by its gradient in walking direction: climbs warm, descents violet, darker when steeper (to ±30 %)
Ground
The strip below, from OpenStreetMap; the 0% without a surface tag is read from the way type (footpaths natural, tracks gravel)

Landscape

Forest84%Grassland and shrubs10%Moss and lichen2%Bare rock and sand4%Water, snow and ice0%204060801001200 km136.1 km

Landscape along the route

Source
ESA WorldCover 2021, a 10 m satellite map
Points
Every 100 m along the main route; each takes the most common class within 30 m, so the path itself doesn't count as bare ground
Groups
Its eleven classes, folded into the six shown
Keep in mind
What the landscape looks like, not which plants grow there

Sleeping

Wild camping is prohibited. Hikers doing the complete Wonderland Trail camp in designated camps only, named on their wilderness permit; the cross-country zones are not open to them. No fires, pets or bicycles in the backcountry.

10.4 km without a bedCamping24Huts0Hostels0Rooms0204060801001200 km136.1 km

Places to sleep along the route

Ticks
One per place to sleep: 24 campsites, 0 huts, 0 hostels, 0 guest houses
Counted
Within 1 km of the trail; no hotels or day shelters
Shaded
The longest stretch without any, km 37.6–48
Source
OpenStreetMap: it may miss places or list closed ones, so book or check locally

Water & Supply

Clean water

This trail
18.5 km without clean water, km 73.2–91.7
Rating
  1. Frequentup to 10 km
  2. Regularup to 20 km
  3. Scarcebeyond
Counted
Within 500 m: 8 taps, fountains and drinking springs, 2 places to sleep with drinking water, 17 refills at huts, hostels, guest houses and campsites
Refills
Guests come first and many close out of season: ask, and carry a little extra. Places marked without drinking water are left out
Source
OpenStreetMap; the counts include the approach and variant, the chart shows the main route

18.5kmRegular

Any water

This trail
18.5 km without any water, km 73.2–91.7
Rating
  1. Frequentup to 10 km
  2. Regularup to 20 km
  3. Scarcebeyond
Counted
Clean water, plus the 1 springs within 500 m
Keep in mind
Spring water's quality is unknown: filter, boil or treat it, and expect some springs to run dry in late summer

18.5kmRegular

Shops

This trail
136.1 km without a shop, km 0–136.1
Counted
1 supermarkets, convenience and general stores and petrol station shops, within 1 km of the trail or 3 km of the start and finish
Keep in mind
Small village shops are often missing in OpenStreetMap, and opening hours vary: check before relying on one

136.1km
Water · 18.5 km withoutPublic drinking water · 87.8 km withoutSprings (treat before drinking) · 135.8 km withoutRefills at places to sleep · 18.5 km withoutShops · 136.1 km without204060801001200 km136.1 km

Water and shops along the route

Ticks
One per place along the main route
Counted
Drinking water and springs within 500 m; refills at huts, hostels, guest houses and campsites within 500 m; shops within 1 km, or 3 km of the start and finish
Shaded
Each lane's longest stretch without. "Water" counts every kind and opens into one lane per kind, each with its own
Source
OpenStreetMap: it may miss places or list ones that have closed or run dry, so check locally

Wildlife

Wildlife

Shows
Animals that can be dangerous to hikers on this trail: large animals, venomous snakes, scorpions and spiders, ticks, and plants that harm on touch
Level
Ours, read from the official source
High
A bite of a species it calls common can be life-threatening within hours
Moderate
It warns of attacks or serious harm, or places the trail in a risk area for tick-borne encephalitis
Low
The harm is mostly minor or treatable, or avoidable by how you behave
What to do
From the official source: National Park Service
Pictures
Silhouettes from PhyloPic, not to scale, each maker named with its advice; the landscape is the trail's own, drawn by us

Black bear ModerateMountain lion Low

Black bear

Moderate danger

Black bears live everywhere in the park, even on the trails; you are not likely to see one, and attacks are rare.

If you meet one

  • Keep at least 300 feet (about 90 m) away and never approach cubs
  • Never feed a bear or leave food unsecured
  • Near a bear: do not run; back away slowly and talk loudly
  • If it charges and stops, back away while talking; if it keeps coming, shout and throw rocks or sticks
  • If it attacks and you have food, move away from the food; if you have none, fight back hard

Advice: National Park Service. Level: ours. Silhouette: Abby Weber (Ursus americanus), PhyloPic, public domain.

Mountain lion (cougar)

Low danger

Mountain lions usually avoid confrontation and are rarely seen.

If you meet one

  • Give it plenty of space to get away and never approach kittens
  • Do not run or turn your back; pick up small children and stand together
  • Make yourself look large, wave your arms, yell and throw things
  • Back away slowly while facing it
  • If attacked, fight back and protect your head and neck

Advice: National Park Service. Level: ours. Silhouette: Margot Michaud (Puma concolor), PhyloPic, public domain.