My 2022 Mt. Rainier Guided Climb Trip Report

Recently, I decided to begin writing some “recap” posts about my mountaineering trips, races, and other outdoor adventures in the hopes that sharing a bit about my experiences (including the nutrition “pearls” I’ve gleaned along the way, since I am a clinical nutritionist) can help my readers! 🙂 In this post, I’m recapping the Mt. Rainier mountaineering trip my husband and I did in 2022. Yes, the trip was a couple of years ago, but the experience is timeless! If you want to read more adventure recaps, check out my Mt. Bear/Alaska trip recap! 

Please note that I am an affiliate for some of the products I’ve linked to in this post. If you click the link here and make a purchase, I may earn a commission at no extra cost to you.

When and Why I Climbed Mt. Rainier

My husband and I climbed Mt. Rainier in 2022, about a week and a half after our wedding! It wasn’t officially our honeymoon (about 2 weeks after Mt. Rainier, we went on our official honeymoon in Iceland), but this trip was a wonderful pre-honeymoon! 

Prior to this trip, I had been dreaming of climbing Mt. Rainier ever since I lived in Seattle for a brief stint in my early twenties. I remember the first time I saw it emerge from the cloud cover, looming large over the Seattle area; I was spellbound and knew that I needed to climb it someday! 

I was already interested in mountaineering many years before I decided to climb Mt. Rainier. I had already climbed Mt. Baker and many mountains in Colorado. However, Mt. Rainier was my first “bigger” glaciated climb!

Days 1 and 2 of the Mt. Rainier Climb

My husband and I chose a three-day trip (the three-day Muir climb) on Mt. Rainier with a popular mountaineering guide company based in Seattle. On our first day, we drove from Seattle to Paradise, the part of the park on the southern slope of Mt. Rainier. From Paradise, we hiked to Camp Muir, a high-altitude refuge for climbers named after the famed naturalist John Muir. We stayed the night at Muir Camp. We climbed up to the high camp the following morning, where we would spend (part) of the night before our summit attempt. 

Overall, the first two days of the climb felt very manageable physically! We had great weather, and the months of training I’d put in paid off.

My Nutrition During my Mt. Rainier Guided Climb

Regarding nutrition, the guide company we were climbing the mountain with took care of feeding us dinner, and we were responsible for our breakfasts and lunches. As always, I prioritize choosing backpacking/climbing/hiking foods that are as nutrient-dense and whole-food-based as possible! Here are a few of the foods I brought to keep myself well-fueled.

• Wild Zora Paleo Meals to Go: I love the balance of protein and carbs in these meals. They also work well for me because they are gluten-free and dairy-free. Many freeze-dried backpacking meals contain gluten, milk products, and other additives that I either can’t digest well or am uncomfortable consuming; Wild Zora meals are the perfect alternative! P.S. Getting fiber from veggies in meals like these while backpacking can help with bowel regularity on the mountain! 🧻
• Wild Zora Grain-Free Hot Cereal: I prefer to eat this brand of grain-free hot cereal instead of oatmeal when climbing because it works better for my blood sugar (oatmeal tends to spike my blood sugar and make me tired about an hour after eating it). 
• Lara Bars: Lara bars are a go-to snack for me on mountaineering trips (and backpacking trips) because they contain simple, whole-food ingredients such as dates, dried apples, dried blueberries, almonds, and cashews. My favorite ones are the blueberry muffin bars! 
• Dried fruit: I also like to bring plain dried fruit as a snack when mountaineering. It’s not something I eat daily, but it is perfect for a quick source of sugar. Dried mango (which I often prepare at home in my dehydrator) and Bare apple chips are some of my favorites. 
• Grass-Fed Beef Jerky: Choosing high-quality animal proteins, such as organic and grass-fed meats, is crucial to me from an ethical, environmental, and health perspective. Chomps is one of my favorite grass-fed jerky brands, and I routinely bring their beef and turkey sticks with me on outdoor adventures. 

You may be wondering, why don’t I just eat “regular” backpacking food and snacks? Eating minimally processed whole foods is essential for optimizing my health and performance. I also have a history of Lyme disease and gastrointestinal issues, so “any old foods” simply don’t work well for my body. This is why I’m thoughtful about curating the foods I eat on my outdoor adventures!

Summit Day 

On summit day, we woke up at 11 pm (yes, in the middle of the night). After eating breakfast and preparing our gear and rope teams, we began climbing from high camp to the summit around midnight. 

We ascended via the Disappointment Cleaver, a treacherous rock field and the most popular route for ascending Mt. Rainier. It was tricky navigating all of the loose rock while on rope teams and wearing crampons, and it required significant concentration to avoid tripping or stumbling. We crossed several crevasses, which are quite scary to look down into! It was like staring into the gaping maw of an ice creature and in the dark, to boot! 

Overall, our pace on the way up was manageable, and I felt great throughout! My brain and body are built for endurance activity, and the long hours of repetitive climbing—just thinking about putting one foot in front of the other—are enjoyable to me. 

During our climb, several climbers in our group dropped out and decided to turn back. This was a good reminder that, despite Mt. Rainier’s accessibility, it is still a solid intermediate climb, and proper training is required! 

Around sunrise, we summited Mt. Rainier! Only half of our original group, my husband and myself included, made it to the summit. However, we still had much of the day in front of us: We now needed to descend 9,000 feet in one day, all the way back down to the Paradise parking lot. We moved fast on the descent, and the continuous eccentric movement while carrying a heavy pack was challenging and did my legs in! I definitely experienced delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) after the descent; when we got home, I could barely walk up and down the stairs for several days! 

My Nutrition Takeaways From My Mt. Rainier Guided Climb

Overall, our Mt. Rainier trip was a wonderful experience. We couldn’t have asked for better weather, and everything went exactly as planned. My main nutrition takeaways were the following:

• Eating foods familiar to your body is important when pushing yourself in the mountains. This is not the time to try a bunch of brand-new foods! Your risk of gastrointestinal distress and bonking is increased if you eat a bunch of foods you’re not used to and haven’t planned in advance.
• Eat at regular intervals throughout the climb. Our rope team stopped every couple of hours so we could eat a snack and hydrate, which helped keep our energy levels strong and steady. 
• If your thirst cues decrease at altitude, remind yourself to drink water (and electrolytes). Even if you don’t feel dehydrated, your body is still losing more water at a high altitude, and you need to replenish to maintain your performance. 

Do you need help creating a nutrition plan for your mountaineering trip! I can help! Schedule a complimentary discovery call to learn how I can support you nutritionally with your mountaineering objectives! 

If you prefer a DIY approach, consider my on-demand masterclass, Nutrition Essentials for Mountaineering! This comprehensive masterclass is just $29.00 and provides a wealth of information on how to optimize your nutrition for mountaineering!

The content provided on this nutrition blog is intended for informational and educational purposes only. It is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay seeking it because of something you have read on this blog.

The information and recommendations presented here are based on general nutrition principles and may not be suitable for everyone. Individual dietary needs and health concerns vary, and what works for one person may not be appropriate for another.

I make every effort to provide accurate and up-to-date information, but the field of nutrition is constantly evolving, and new research may impact dietary recommendations. Therefore, I cannot guarantee the accuracy or completeness of the information presented on this blog.

If you have specific dietary or health concerns, please consult a qualified nutritionist or another healthcare professional for personalized guidance.

Lindsay Christensen, MS, CNS, LDN

I empower others through nutrition to conquer their mountain adventures, drawing from my own experiences.

With a background in Biomedical Science and an M.S. in Human Nutrition, I’m a Certified Nutrition Specialist and Licensed Dietitian Nutritionist. My journey in functional medicine has equipped me to work alongside athletes and tackle complex health cases. As a passionate trail runner, backcountry skier, and backpacker, I strive to support others on their paths to peak performance and well-being.

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