Mount Rainier wilderness reservation requests move online

Backpackers and climbers who want to camp in wilderness areas of Mount Rainier National Park, including along the popular Wonderland Trail, will now be able to submit reservation requests online.

Park officials have been working on a new online reservation system and will begin taking requests online only starting 9 a.m. March 15. People will also be able to pay for reservations online, once requests are approved.

The park will no longer take requests by mail, fax, phone or other delivery methods.

After a storm damaged the park’s reservation software system last spring, the park was not able to accept reservations for its backcountry campsites last year.

Each year, typically about 70 percent of backcountry campsites can be reserved in advance.