5/5/2023 0 Comments Comet falls![]() Admire numerous small waterfalls and cascades and two significant ones, all in less than two miles. All hikers we met along the trail had turned around in early stages of snow, with a mixture of elderly and adults with children. Hiking Comet Falls Follow a tumbling, churning, whitewater creek upstream as it thunders through a narrow gorge of glacier-polished rock on your way to a waterfall that drops 301 feet in a single plunge. This hike was a great time, and we had a lot of fun, but I can’t say that I would recommend this until the snow melts when there are no precarious or questionable conditions/obstacles. ![]() My guess is the trail will reveal itself in the coming weeks, but currently there are still several feet of snow covering the typical dried-out trail. We did press on to the base of the falls, where the snow-bridge was still intact but seemed to be rapidly thinning. Essentially, a weak surface in some areas where it’s not entirely obvious or foreseeable. Mount Rainier National Park is looking to Washington Trails Association and volunteers to help fix the Comet Falls trail and get it reopened for the. The wash-out, about a mile in, has taken out a chunk of trail 10 feet across and 30 feet deep. There are a few spots where large trees lie directly in your path, and also bits along the snow where the upper shelves are thinning and hollow drops are caved out to several feet over small boulders beneath. Over the winter, the Comet Falls trail at Mount Rainier National Park suffered a wash-out that has closed the popular trail to hikers indefinitely. ![]() Having experience with snow, my hiking partner and I proceeded cautiously beyond these obstacles with a combination of sturdy hiking boots and micro-spikes for extra grip/traction. There are still significant amounts of snow covering the entire 2nd mile of the ascent, and major portions of this are on steep hillsides with the river below. Comet Falls is currently not advised for most casual day-hikers.
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