Rainy Lake Trail Multi-Cache

Along the North Cascade Scenic Highway (SR 20), is a trail that made KIRO 7’s list of The Great Trails of Washington. It doesn’t conquer any peaks or lead to 360° views. It doesn’t wind for miles and miles. Yet it manages to thrill the visitor with a forested experience culminating at a beautiful glacial fed lake. Perhaps what sets the Rainy Lake Trail apart is its accessibility. A relativity level 1 mile paved path opens this trail to wheelchairs and strollers, accommodating every member of the family.

The cache is a well concealed smaller sized De-Con canister with a few odds and ends. Only small item will fit in the cache. A wheelchair can approach to within a few feet of the actual cache. The location requires a Northwest Forest Pass for parking. Check with the WSDOT for road conditions before heading out. The cache should still be attainable after the first bit of snow fall for those who may enjoy the challenge, but once the road is closed it definitely becomes a level 5 cache.

This is a multi-cache requiring the searcher to obtain a piece of information at the listed coordinates to figure the coordinates of the cache container. At the listed coordinates you will enjoy a view of Rainy Lake and find an informative sign. Count the number of letters in the sign’s two word heading. Then add that number to the last two digits of both the following latitude and longitude to obtain the cache location:

N 48° 30.920 W 120° 44.154

Note: GPS reception was very poor at the waypoint near the lake. Coordinates may be off due to steep terrain surrounding the lake. It should not matter since the waypoint is located at the end of the Rainy Lake Trail and is easily found. Reception at the cache site was much better.