SEATTLE — Starting Monday morning, you can reserve a spot to visit Mount Rainier National Park this summer.
According to the National Park Service, timed entry reservations for the Paradise Corridor will be required between 7 a.m. and 3 p.m. starting Memorial Day weekend. Reservations for the Sunrise Corridor will be required after the Fourth of July.
Each corridor requires a separate vehicle reservation. You can make a reservation here, which is good for a single day per vehicle and is required in addition to an entrance fee or park pass.
Mount Rainier National Park said it's trying to control how many people are in the park at once because of an increase in popularity. The park has had a 40% increase in visitation over the last 10 years, leading to overcrowding during the summer and damage to fragile ecosystems.
All areas of Mount Rainier National Park require a park entrance fee or park pass to enter, but timed entry reservations are only required between 7 am and 3 pm to enter the Paradise and Sunrise corridors. Outside of that period, visitors can enter without a timed entry reservation. Some areas of the park do not require a timed entry reservation at any time.
Here are the areas that do not require a reservation at Mount Rainier:
- State Route 410 and state Route 123 on the east side of the park.
- Ohanapecosh, including the Ohanapecosh Visitor Center and Ohanapecosh Campground, in the southeast corner of the park.
- Tipsoo Lake on the eastern border of the park along SR 410.
- Carbon River, including the Carbon River Ranger Station, at the northwest corner of the park.
- Mowich Lake in the northwest corner of the park along state Route 165.
