Laughingwater Creek Trail

Starting from the Ohanapecosh area, the Laughingwater Creek Trail is a six-mile-each-way journey that trades Rainier's famous crowded viewpoints for deep old-growth forest and the constant company of its namesake creek. The trail follows Laughingwater Creek through towering Douglas fir and western red cedar, with the sound of rushing water never far away. The path is mostly shaded and rolls through moderate terrain — nothing technical, but the full twelve-mile round trip will remind your legs they exist. You'll cross footbridges over mossy ravines and pass through cathedral-like groves where the canopy blocks out the sky. This trail connects to the Pacific Crest Trail corridor near the park's southern boundary, giving it a wilderness feel that most of Rainier's day hikes lack. Solitude seekers and forest lovers will be in their element here — this is old-growth therapy at its finest.