Route: Wonderland Trail (WA)

Location
Washington, US
Distance
93 mi
Vertical Gain
24,000 ft
Description

The Wonderland Trail is an amazing, rugged 95-mile loop around Mt. Rainier, the highest peak in Washington State.   

(9/23/2020): Rob Blakemore create this remarkable Wonderland Trail visualization of the 3 most recent Male Supported FKTs.

GPS Track

FKTs

Comments

One quick question, are new comments coming through and saving on the new site some where? I can't find them if they are. Anyhow, I am planning on making a supported Wonderland attempt coming up shortly. Right now the plan is to drive up to Cougar Rock Campground Monday Sep 3rd, and then I'll be doing the run on the day that week when the weather seems best. I'll post once more with spot tracker info and the exact date/time once it gets a bit closer. 

RG

Quick update here on my attempt before we leave cell reception. I am planning on starting my run on Tuesday Sep 4 from the Cougar Rock Campground trail access between 6:00-6:15am. 

Here is the link to my spot tracker page: http://share.findmespot.com/shared/faces/viewspots.jsp?glId=0qC9NAtUxliSgKpLrcY4KUmLbzN64Sa8L

Weather looks good, trail seems to be in good condition, and Candice just broke the women's unsupported record, nice omen as far as I am concerned. 

I am going to be doing a more detailed write up on our Trails and Tarmac blog in the next week. But in the meantime here is a link to the Strava page for the run. https://www.strava.com/activities/1821604598

I botched the initial few hours with the spot tracker, but I got it working maybe around mile 10? I can't remember exactly. Also, one other small note, there was a trail closure on the little horse shoe deal at Box Canyon (mile 78) I looked at it pretty close but it was very closed, gates on both sides. The re route was about 2 minutes shorter. But That's the way on this trail. I know when Gary did his previous record he had to take the road at White River for a few miles because the bridge there was out I am presuming. And that cut off a handful of minutes for him as well. It all comes out in the wash anyhow. 

I think the previous link to my spot tracker page should also suffice for additional proof too? 

thanks to all who followed along!

 

RG

Depending on this last weather cell pushing through, either Tomorrow (9/15) or Monday (9/16) I will attempt the Wonderland Trail unsupported & solo around Mt Rainier, carrying my own gear/food and getting water from natural sources. My plan is to start around 10am PT from Box Canyon and head clockwise around the mountain. To following along, here is the link to the Garmin inReach I will be running with (thanks Steve!): https://share.garmin.com/NickLewis. As soon as I have made a final decision on day to start, I will post an update here. 

Correction: Sunday 9/16 or Monday 9/17. Initial intentions were to start 15/16 but poor weather has lingered.

Not sure how kosher it is, since (not anticipating going as quick as we did) we didn't announce an attempt on the FKT, but Rachel Entrekin and I (Ian Seabury) ran an unsupported 27:23:10 this on 9/15-16/2018. We started and finished out of Mowich Campground at 6 AM and went clockwise. Saturday was a beautiful day with sporadic sprinkles, but rain fell through the night and Sunday morning, with temperatures in the high 30s and low 40s, leading to a somewhat chilly finish. Between weather, unfamiliarity with the trail, and a very relaxed day with plenty of food, water, and photo breaks, there's substantial room for improvement on this! Below is the Strava link (recorded with Rachel's iPhone) as well as SPOT tracking I had active for safety/friends+family to follow along from FB.

https://www.strava.com/activities/1846267394

https://share.findmespot.com/shared/faces/viewspots.jsp?glId=0yLuBazQ1E…

On July 17th I will attempt the Wonderland trail clockwise and unsupported. I will be starting and finishing at Cougar Rock campground. I will post both my Strava and trip report with photos to my blog at www.burntrail.com

Rachel Entrekin and I (Ian Seabury) will be coming back to Wonderland on July 19th, this time staggering our starts by 30 minutes or so. From Longmire, I'll be starting around 5PM and she'll be starting around 5:30PM. We'll both be going for the unsupported FKTs in our respective genders. She'll be carrying my SPOT tracker, and if she happens to pass me (she fast!) she'll pass it off to me for safety reasons. The link to the SPOT page is below:

https://share.findmespot.com/shared/faces/viewspots.jsp?glId=0yLuBazQ1E1JXiHqz9yoDBUN2z9S4pqPY

Obviously, we'll also both be carrying GPSs and cameras for verification if we get times good enough. Looking forward to giving this a solo go now that we know the trail, and hope the snow going down Fryingpan isn't too bad.

24:21 for me and 25:06 for Rachel. We'll submit reports and GPS soon! Word on the street is that this is going to see a lot of activity this year so I don't expect mine to hold for long! 

The double unsupported has a resupply and pacers?

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Hi everybody! This Saturday, on August 1st, I am taking an attempt at Jenn Shelton's female supported FKT on the Wonderland Trail. I am heading out of Carter Falls Trailhead at 5AM PST going clockwise around Rainier. I have a group of my buddies and husband out to help me looking forward to it. Say hi if you see me!? I will post a report either way after. Follow me live at share.garmin.com/powerhikkir

Kirsten Casey

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I didn't get it. I came in at 24:28 about 2.5 hours short of Jenn Shelton's incredible time. I still had a great day with my friends and family out there. It was fun to have a goal to go after even if it didn't work out!

 

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Hello all! This coming Saturday, August 8th I’ll be trying the supported FKT on the Wonderland Trail.  I will start at Longmire at 5AM PST and run clockwise around the trail.  I will post a link to the SPOT page in a day or two.

Matt Wotipka

here is the tracking link for the Garmin inReach share.garmin.com/wotipkafkt

I'll be attempting the double Wonderland unsupported this Friday Aug 7th. Plan is start around 8am and follow what Ras did for his double...launch from White River campground going CW and then go CCW for the 2nd loop. Will use 1 hour tracking intervals: https://share.garmin.com/MikeGroenewegen

 

 

Thanks Jason! It is awful...ly exciting to see what will happen out there.

I bailed on the 2nd loop after going into the first on little sleep and would have not had enough calories for the 2nd. I knew going into it that it would be an extraordinary challenge but I had to know whether it was possible. Now it's tangible and after carrying 72 hours worth of nutrition and gear for almost 35 hours during the first loop...I know it is possible. This challenge was immensely humbling and one I hope to one day be made an equal to. Thank you for those that followed and the support!

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On Friday 9/4/20, I plan to do something audacious and run the Wonderland Double, clockwise then counterclockwise. In doing so, I also hope to set the unsupported record for the single loop, although not my primary goal. I will be carrying a SPOT tracker for my progress and safety and will submit my Strava data and any media I take along the way to share post run. If anyone is out there over Labor Day weekend, don't be shy to say hello. This is a trail that's been on my bucket list for years and I can't wait to take it all in.

Hi there, 
 

My name is Pete Riewald, I have been living in Bellingham WA and have been working for the Pacific Crest Trail as a gps trail surveyor this summer. My works ended this week and I am going to start my Unsupported FKT of the wonderland trail in a few hours. I am writing this from the Mountain View lodge in Packwood. I am starting at Longmire sometime around 8:00–9:00PM and will go clockwise. 
 

My parents will be at White River in the morning to verbally check in and will Video record all of our interactions, but I have made it clear to them that I may receive no support, not even a hug or a handshake until I get back to Longmire. They will also verbally check my condition at Box Canyon rd and at Cougar Rock CG, and will video record our verbal interaction. 
 

I will have my friends garmin explorer+ device and will track my progress, and will take photos from my phone along the way. I’m not sure how this is going to go, but I figured I’d announce my intent. 
 

I hope I am not missing anything here, but heck, I’m going for it!

cheers everyone, and happy trails!

-Pete Riewald 

1(513)543-7875

 

 

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I'm going to make a self-supported 279mi Triple Wonderland FKT attempt. As far as I know, no one has ever attempted that. I'll start clockwise from the White River campground on Fri, Sep 18, ~7pm PST. I plan to go counter-clockwise on the 2nd loop and then clockwise again on the 3rd loop.

More info: https://www.christofteuscher.com/aagaa/news-279mi-triple-wonderland-fkt-attempt

Style: self-supported

Dotwatching: https://maps.findmespot.com/s/91XM

I will try to post updates on https://www.instagram.com/christof.teuscher and https://twitter.com/ChrisTeuscher

Cheers,
.: Christof

I will be attempting the Wonderland Unsupported FKT on Saturday (10/3). It will be running it solo around Mt Rainier, carrying my own gear/food and getting water from natural sources. My plan is to start around 3:00am PST from Cougar Rock Campground and head clockwise around the mountain. I do not have a live tracker; however, I will upload my GPS file, Strava link, photos, and videos after my attempt for verification.

Note: I will have a photographer (Ryan Thrower) taking shots of me throughout the day in 3-4 locations for content for my sponsor.  He will not be running with me by any means in order to stay within the unsupported FKT guidelines. 

I will provide additional comments if plans change before Saturday! 

Hi, I'm also running on Saturday and will have a crew of folks at a few locations around the mountain.  It looks like you're shooting for going unsupported, but if anything changes and you want / need snacks or transportation at any point, they'll be pretty unmistakable and happy to help.

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Hi all, I'm planning to run the Wonderland supported on Saturday 10/3.  I will start at Longmire at 6am PST and run clockwise.  I will post a link to my Garmin inReach as well as any updates to the plan if they occur. Thanks!

My friend Emily Hamlin and I will be attempting to break the women’s supported wonderland FKT on August 21st 2021.

We will be leaving Longmire around 4am day of. Let me know if anyone would like to participate/ pace via Instagram (_anna_maxwell_). The more the merrier! Ran Sunrise to Longmire this past weekend and probably will be checking out longmire to mowich this weekend. Also if the supported Fkt fails I will probably go after the unsupported fkt in the following weeks because that’s 5/6 hours slower and easier pickings. 

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On August 28th I will be attempting to break the women's unsupported FKT. I will be starting at Cougar Rock around 4ish am. 

 

Here is the link to my garmin in-reach spot tracker I will be using during the attempt : https://share.garmin.com/Leasha

Well I went for it but it just wasn’t my day.  Had to quit at White River. Wasn’t in the right mental Space to continue forward.  It was a beautiful day out there though!!!!!!!   

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Is there a mixed gender supported category for this route? My fiancé and I are planning an attempt on the 12th of August. 

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I will be starting the Wonderland Trail from Cougar Rock TH on Friday 12-August-2022 at 2am. I'm attempting the Unsupported FKT. I'll have a GPS watch tracking for verification and Garmin InReach Mini as back-up and for link tracking: http://share.garmin.com/GoBroncoBilly

-Bronco

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What an amazing loop! Unsupported attempt of 22:00:07. Start/Finish was clockwise from Cougar Rock. Fell off pace on Ryan's FKT splits, knew it wasn't the day and cruised the last 50K. First time on the loop. Few route finding issues in drainages, and in sections in the snow on the high east side. Stoked to finally run this. Has been on my bucket list for a long time. Giddyup.

Strava data and a few photos: https://www.strava.com/activities/7630225313

Going for my 3rd double unsupported attempt tomorrow 9/2 starting at White River CG at 7:00am going clockwise and then CCW. Will have my Garmin watch for verification and tracking 4 hour intervals on the Inreach Mini: https://share.garmin.com/MikeGroenewegen

My name is Tim Cooke and heading out from Longmire at 3 AM tomorrow (Friday am) morning hoping to finish in the 30 hour range supported with food at Mowich and White River.  My gps tracking is an InReach mini, link: 

https://share.garmin.com/tlcooke

can you please track on your website as I have friends and family who would like to follow along. 
 

hope to see some of you out there!

 

tim

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My name is Alicia Jenkins and I will be going for the unsupported female FKT this Friday 8/25. Starting from Cougar Rock in the morning. (Not sure exactly what time I will start yet. Most likely between 8-10 am start time. 

You can follow along here:

https://share.garmin.com/Leasha24

My training hasn't been the best but I'm excited for a trip around the mountain and to see what I can do. Wish me Luck!

 

-Alicia

Did not attempt. I got down to Rainier the night before I was going to do it but then I had a family issue where I had to go back home and could not attemp. :(. 

Going for my 4th double Wonderland unsupported attempt tomorrow starting at White River CG at 7am going CW and then CCW. InReach Messenger will be tracking 10 min intervals and will have my watch for additional verification. https://share.garmin.com/MikeGroenewegen