Mount Rainier National Park wants to hear from visitors about this summer’s reserved timed-entry pilot program. Through Sept. 15, parkgoers are invited to share their timed-entry experiences online.
Until Labor Day, visitors to Mount Rainier National Park’s Nisqually, Stevens Canyon and White River entrances are required to reserve two-hour entry windows in advance of visits during peak hours, between 7 a.m. and 3 p.m. The system was designed to spread out the park’s summer crowds, which lead to crowding at two main destinations: Paradise and Sunrise.
Outside peak times and those three park entrances, reservations have not been required this summer, and reservations will not be required after Labor Day.
The initiative was implemented as the park, and outdoor recreation in general, have exploded in popularity in the past decade. Some 1.67 million people visited Mount Rainier National Park in 2022, up from 1.15 million in 2013, according to the park’s annual visitation numbers.
