Rock Soup, Narada Falls, Mt. Rainier National Park, Washington
Perhaps the most popular waterfall in Mount Rainier National Park, Narada Falls has an ever-present following of visitors. Veiling over a wall of basalt, the falls drop 168 feet in a lacy display that can stretch to 75 feet wide at peak flow. When the river is running high, be prepared to get soaked at the viewpoint – the spray is always funneled straight at the trail. While the commonly enjoyed viewpoint provides the best views of the falls, a second, less developed viewpoint further downstream yields a side view of the falls from below, which has been used for some of the more famous pictures of this waterfall. The falls can also be partially viewed from the side of SR 706 near a large pullout about ½ a mile east of the bridge over the Paradise River. During the winter, the falls freeze and become 150 feet of Icicles, which attract ice climbers from afar.
Narada Falls was named by Arthur F. Knight in 1893 after the Narada branch of the Theosophical Society of Tacoma. Narada is a Hindu word meaning 'uncontaminated' or 'pure'. Located near Paradise in Mt. Rainier National Park. The falls are signed and marked on the free park maps. The parking lot is easily found by driving 1 mile west of the turn-off for Paradise, or 6 miles east of Cougar Rock Campground, along SR 706, to the marked Narada Falls viewpoint. The parking area is located at the brink of the falls, but to see the falls, one must follow a short trail which offer full views of the falls veiling into the canyon. Though the trail is paved to the viewpoint, it's too steep for wheelchairs.
Mount Rainier National Park is a United States National Park located in southeast Pierce County and northwest Lewis County in Washington state. It was established on March 2, 1899, the fifth national park in the United States. The park contains 368 square miles (953 km²) including all of Mount Rainier, a 14,410-foot (4,392 m) stratovolcano. The mountain rises abruptly from the surrounding land with elevations in the park ranging from 1,600 feet (490 m) to over 14,000 feet (4,300 m). The highest point in the Cascade Range, around it are valleys, waterfalls, subalpine wildflower meadows, old growth forest and more than 26 glaciers. The volcano is often shrouded in clouds that dump enormous amounts of rain and snow on the peak every year and hide it from the crowds that head to the park on weekends.
Mount Rainier is circled by the Wonderland Trail and is covered by several glaciers and snowfields totaling some 35 square miles (91 km²). Carbon Glacier is the largest glacier by volume in the continental United States, while Emmons Glacier is the largest glacier by area. About 1.3 million people visit Mount Rainier National Park each year. Mount Rainier is a popular peak for mountain climbing with some 10,000 attempts per year with approximately 25% making it to the summit. The park contains outstanding examples of old growth forests and subalpine meadows. Wikipedia
