By Dave Helgeson

RV Life

The highest restaurant in the state of Washington is Summit House, which sits atop Crystal Mountain at an elevation of 6,872 feet. Reaching Summit House in the past involved riding two ski lifts, which were open to the elements, and in ski season you had to rely on your own abilities to get yourself back down the mountain. All that has changed with the addition of the new Mt. Rainier Gondola, which whisks people from the base lodge at 4,300 feet to the Summit House in less than ten minutes, in glass-enclosed cabins with padded bench seats. And the gondola also takes diners back down the mountain!...