Parking
Use the roadside Carter Falls Trailhead pullout across from Cougar Rock Campground; it fits about 6 to 8 cars. If full, park at the Cougar Rock Picnic Area 0.1 mile uphill (about 50 spaces). Do not use campground spaces unless camping.
Overview
About Carter and Madcap Falls Trail
Why go
- Two waterfalls and an old-growth forest on the same walk.
- Mount Rainier comes into view above the Nisqually gorge.
Heads up
- A steady climb steepens near Carter Falls.
- The log bridge can wash out in fall and winter.
Carter and Madcap Falls Trail is an out-and-back on the Wonderland Trail, about 3 miles round trip to both falls. Published estimates vary, so plan for the longer route. You cross the Nisqually gorge, then climb beside Paradise River through old-growth forest. Allow two to three hours and about 650 feet of climbing; the trail gets steeper near Carter Falls.
Parkwolf’s verdictIs this the falls walk for you?Map & elevation
The route
Loading the Mount Rainier map
Full mapElevation3,142–3,812 ft
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
Safety
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
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Mount Rainier Tour Guide
Your drive to Carter and Madcap Falls Trail, narrated.
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 trailhead
Cougar Rock: A Picnic or a Waterfall Walk0:00 / 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 this trailhead in the Parkwolf Mount Rainier Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- Ricksecker Point: The Old Road to Paradise
- Trillium's Tiny Seed Carriers
- Comet Falls: A Steep Waterfall Hike
- Fay Fuller’s Mountain Murmurs
- 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
- CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
“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!!!!”
Trail guide
Hiking Carter and Madcap Falls Trail
Cross the NisquallyFrom the pullout, follow the Wonderland Trail east and drop into the gorge to a log footbridge.
From the pullout, follow the Wonderland Trail east and drop into the gorge to a log footbridge. This is the first payoff: Mount Rainier rises above the wide, rocky riverbed. The bridge has a substantial step, and the braided channels beyond it may call for a few rock hops. Fall and winter storms often wash the footbridge out, so check its status before crossing. If it is out, stay on the trailhead side; the riverbed still has the mountain view, but the falls are across the river.
Follow the river uphillPast the crossing, the path climbs through old Douglas-fir, western hemlock, and red cedar.
Past the crossing, the path climbs through old Douglas-fir, western hemlock, and red cedar. It follows the Paradise River, with breaks in the canopy toward Eagle Peak. Around 0.7 mile from the trailhead, look for a large glacial boulder sitting in a stream. Huckleberries, sword ferns, vine maple, and Oregon-grape fill the understory. Trillium and wood violet bloom earlier in the season; pearly everlasting and foamflower show later.
Keep going to MadcapCarter Falls comes first, a roughly 50-foot horsetail cascade.
Carter Falls comes first, a roughly 50-foot horsetail cascade. Continue along the Wonderland Trail to Madcap Falls, a shorter cascade about 34 feet high, then turn back. The trail keeps going toward Narada Falls and Paradise, so don't follow it onward unless you mean to make this a much longer hike. At Carter, keep some of the dark rock and forest around the white water in your photo; a tight crop hides the shape of the drop.
Parking and the pet ruleThe roadside pullout across from Cougar Rock Campground holds about 6 to 8 cars.
The roadside pullout across from Cougar Rock Campground holds about 6 to 8 cars. If it is full, use the Cougar Rock Picnic Area lot about 0.1 mile uphill; there is a privy there. Don't park in campground spaces unless you're camping. Pets aren't allowed on park trails or along the Nisqually River.
Wildlife
Wildlife in Mount Rainier
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.
