This was the last of my jaunts on Mt. Rainier’s west side back on October 30, 2023. I took advantage of clear weather following the season’s first snow to loop through Emerald Ridge. Starting at the Kautz Creek trail head, I did the short bike (6 miles) down the road to the West Side Road and secured the bike at the parking area. The remainder of the hike was on foot, hiking up the West Side Road to Round Pass and hopping on the Round Pass Trail to the South Puyallup Trail, intersecting the Wonderland. After checking out the sedate South Puyallup River, the Wonderland was the avenue to access Emerald Ridge. I was on snow for much of the day but it was never deep, and trail runners were more than adequate for the conditions. At Indian Henry’s I took the offshoot Kautz Creek trail back to my waiting van at the trail head. To close it out, a short drive to the West Side Road parking area had me retrieving my bike. A very fine day indeed. Stats: 26 miles (6 via bike) • 5,400’ elevation gain/loss.