Sight · Mount Rainier National Park
A 500-foot walk to the White River area's oldest cabin.
Overview
Map
Plan your stop
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Mount Rainier Tour Guide
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Mount Rainier National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
See the Mount Rainier audio tourRecorded for this place
White River: The Campground and Patrol Cabin“White River Campground is ahead, a forested base beside the river below Sunrise. For a day visit, there's a separate picnic area, and the historic patrol cabin in Loop D is worth a short look.”
Plays as you drive up to White River Patrol Cabin in the Parkwolf Mount Rainier Tour Guide.
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“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Guide
White River Patrol Cabin is a one-story historic ranger cabin on the edge of White River Campground’s C and D loops, near the Campfire Circle. Built in 1927 along the Wonderland Trail, it’s the oldest structure in the White River area. It’s a quick history stop if you’re already at the campground: the cabin is a 500-foot walk from day-use parking.
White River Campground was constructed in 1923, creating a need for a ranger station. The patrol cabin followed in 1927; it was called a patrol cabin because it stood on the Wonderland Trail. The original building was remodeled in the 1940s.
This cabin belonged to a wider network of patrol cabins along the Wonderland Trail. The patrol-cabin policy began under Superintendent Roger W. Toll and expanded under Major O.A. Tomlinson. These cabins served as fire-control centers, ranger residences, emergency shelters, storehouses, equipment depots and food caches. It’s a summer-only exterior history stop, so expect a quick look at the building.
Wildlife
466 sightingsMountain GoatMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
383 sightingsBlack BearMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
10 sightingsWolverineMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
58 sightingsElkMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
574 sightingsMule DeerMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
1,853 sightingsHoary MarmotMost seen around 6 AMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Mount Rainier. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
Keep exploring
ModerateGlacier Basin Trail7 mi · 5 hr · At the trailheadA former mining road climbs to a glacier-carved basin.
ChallengingGlacier Basin–Burroughs Loop11.5 mi · 8 hr · At the trailheadA hard loop from glacier basin to open, high alpine tundra.
ModerateEmmons Moraine Trail3 mi · 2 hr · 0.1 mi awayA 3-mile out-and-back with a rocky spur to glacier and lake views.
EasyShadow Lake Loop3 mi · 1.5 hr · 0.8 mi awayA short high-country loop reaches Shadow Lake through colorful meadows.
EasySilver Forest Trail1.9 mi · 1.3 hr · 0.8 mi awayTwo overlooks frame Rainier and Emmons Glacier above open meadows.
ModerateBurroughs Mountain Trail6.2 mi · 4.5 hr · 0.9 mi awayA high ridge walk puts Rainier and its glaciers front and center.
ModerateSunrise Rim Trail Loop to First Burroughs4.7 mi · 3 hr · 0.9 mi awayHigh loop to First Burroughs, with Shadow Lake and Emmons Glacier.
ModerateSourdough Ridge Trail West to Frozen Lake3 mi · 2 hr · 0.9 mi awayA short ridge walk with big Rainier views and a lake turnaround.
Picnic area · 0.1 mi awayWhite River Picnic AreaA wooded meal stop with eight grills and nearby trail access.
Campground · 0.1 mi awayWhite River CampgroundSunrise-area hikes start right from this wooded riverside camp.
Sight · 0.7 mi awayEmmons Vista OverlooksA short meadow walk to Rainier’s biggest glacier.
Visitor center · 0.8 mi awaySunrise Visitor CenterA historic alpine trail hub with glacier exhibits and Rainier views.
Food · 0.9 mi awaySunrise Day LodgeA 1931 timber lodge for coffee or ice cream after a hike.
Picnic area · 0.9 mi awaySunrise Picnic AreaPack a lunch for a tree-lined picnic with clear-day Rainier views.
Scenic pullout · 1.3 mi awaySunrise Road White River ViewRainier and Adams rise above the White River Valley on Sunrise Road.
Sight · 2.7 mi awayMount Fremont Fire LookoutA long ridge hike to a 1934 wooden fire lookout.Parkwolf’s Mount Rainier ranking
The audio tour guide for the drive, plus offline maps, trails, and wildlife heatmaps for when the signal drops.
