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Cougar Rock Picnic Area in Mount Rainier National Park

Picnic area · Mount Rainier National Park

Cougar Rock Picnic Area

A handy forest picnic stop, with grills and more than 30 tables.

Photo: National Park Service
Type
Picnic area
Nearest trail
0.2 mi
Audio stories
9 nearby
  • Parking
  • Picnic tables
  • Restrooms
DirectionsMap

Hear the audio tour

Cougar Rock: A Picnic or a Waterfall Walk

Overview

About Cougar Rock Picnic Area

Why stop

  • More than 30 tables, including quieter spots reached by short paths through the trees.

Map

Where it is

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Picnic areaCougar Rock Picnic Area46.76988, -121.79039
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Plan your stop

Before you go

Tables, grills and access

There are more than 30 tables, with at least one grill for every two. Many are within about 20 feet of the parking lot; others are reached by short maintained paths through the trees. Individual tables seat about six, and clusters can handle larger groups. The accessible area has two tables, with accessible parking and a flush restroom nearby; each restroom has drinking water. Bring your meal and use the grills rather than starting a fire outside one. Pets can join you at the tables, on roads and on paved sidewalks on a leash no longer than six feet, but pets aren’t allowed on park trails.

7 active Mount Rainier alerts

  • ClosureWildfire closures in the northern parkGrand Park 2 and Wonderland Complex fire closures affect trails, backcountry camps, and Sunrise access; stay out of closed areas.Official details
  • ClosureSR 165 bridge closed: no public access to Carbon River or Mowich LakeThe SR 165 Carbon River/Fairfax Bridge is closed to vehicles, bicycles, and pedestrians; there is no public access or alternate route to Carbon River or Mowich Lake.Official details
See all 7 alerts
A park ranger sits on a dash-mounted phone, talking, as Parkwolf’s Tour Guide plays “Army Cutworm Moths: A Grizzly Bear Buffet” on Grand Loop Road below Dunraven Pass in Yellowstone
Parkwolf Tour GuideThe highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.

Mount Rainier Tour Guide

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Recorded for this place

Cougar Rock: A Picnic or a Waterfall Walk
0:00 / 0:33
“You're coming up on the Cougar Rock area, with a campground and a separate day-use picnic area beside the Nisqually River.”

Plays as you drive up to Cougar Rock Picnic Area in the Parkwolf Mount Rainier Tour Guide.

More stories near here in the app

  • Trillium's Tiny Seed Carriers
  • Ricksecker Point: The Old Road to Paradise
  • Comet Falls: A Steep Waterfall Hike
  • Christine Falls and Its Stone-Faced Bridge
  • 77 audio storiesacross Mount Rainier’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
  • Wildlife heatmapsfor Mountain Goat, Black Bear, Wolverine, and 13 more
  • Works offlinemaps, 99 trails, 87 places, and audio download before you lose signal
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Guide

More about Cougar Rock Picnic Area

A handy meal stopCougar Rock Picnic Area is a day-use picnic site 8.

Cougar Rock Picnic Area is a day-use picnic site 8.5 miles up Paradise Road from the Nisqually Entrance, between the road and the Nisqually River. It’s a practical place to pause for a meal on the drive toward Paradise; if you don’t need a picnic, keep rolling. The tables are the reason to stop, not a separate attraction.

A 1961 park projectThe picnic area and its campground counterpart were completed in 1961 as part of Mission 66,…

The picnic area and its campground counterpart were completed in 1961 as part of Mission 66, the national parks’ postwar development program. Mount Rainier was the first park with a Mission 66 development plan, which called for more places for day use while moving overnight camping away from sensitive meadows. Planners considered Klickitat Creek on the park’s east side before choosing Cougar Rock. The picnic area typically operates from late May through late September, depending on weather and road conditions.

picnicriversideaccessiblemission

Wildlife

Wildlife in Mount Rainier

All Mount Rainier wildlife maps
Mountain Goat466 sightingsMountain GoatMost seen around 6 AMSighting mapBlack Bear383 sightingsBlack BearMost seen around 7 PMSighting mapWolverine10 sightingsWolverineMost seen around 6 AMSighting mapElk58 sightingsElkMost seen around 6 AMSighting mapMule Deer574 sightingsMule DeerMost seen around 6 AMSighting mapHoary Marmot1,853 sightingsHoary MarmotMost seen around 6 AMSighting map

Sighting maps show where each species has been reported across Mount Rainier. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.

Keep exploring

Near Cougar Rock Picnic Area

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Trails nearby

ModerateCarter and Madcap Falls Trail3 mi · 2.5 hr · 0.2 mi awayTwo waterfalls and old-growth forest beyond the Nisqually log bridge.ChallengingComet Falls and Van Trump Park Trail5.8 mi · 4.5 hr · 0.7 mi awayWaterfall spray gives way to open meadows and big Rainier views.ChallengingComet Falls Trail3.8 mi · 3.5 hr · 0.7 mi awayA steep creekside climb to one of Rainier’s tallest waterfalls.ChallengingMildred Point Trail6.6 mi · 5.5 hr · 0.7 mi awayTwo waterfalls first, then a steep climb to the Kautz valley.ChallengingWonderland Trail93 mi · 3.3 days · 1.7 mi awayA strenuous 93-mile circuit around Mount Rainier.ChallengingIndian Henry's Hunting Ground via Longmire13 mi · 8 hr · 1.7 mi awayA long climb to historic meadows and Mount Rainier views.ChallengingEagle Peak Trail7.2 mi · 5 hr · 1.7 mi awayA steep forest climb earns a flowered saddle and Rainier views.EasyTrail of the Shadows0.7 mi · 30 min · 1.7 mi awayA short loop through Longmire’s springs and resort history

More stops nearby

Campground · 0.2 mi awayCougar Rock CampgroundA forested base with the Wonderland Trail across the road.Sight · 0.4 mi awayRicksecker PointA one-third-mile loop pairs Rainier views with glacial geology.Sight · 0.9 mi awayChristine FallsThe stone arch frames the lower falls from a short downhill path.Sight · 1 mi awayCarter FallsCross a log bridge for Rainier views before the forest waterfallSight · 1.3 mi awayMadcap FallsA 34-foot cascade on a short spur beyond Carter Falls.Sight · 1.6 mi awayGlacier BridgeA quick pause above the Nisqually River and its glacier-carved valley.Sight · 1.6 mi awayElcaine Longmire CabinA small 1888 cabin from Longmire’s early settlement.Sight · 1.7 mi awayNisqually Suspension BridgeA historic timber bridge over the Nisqually, with Rainier in view.

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