It's National Park Week! All week! And we can't go to our favorite National Parks! All week! All month! <sobs>

Is a lack of outdoors time getting to you? Is missing the spring season in our favorite places bumming you out? It's definitely getting to me. I actually found myself dreading the weekend because it didn't have the structure of a workday to keep me distracted. That's not right.

So even if we can't go to some of our National Parks right now, we can think about them and dream about them and give thanks for them. Maybe even relive some adventures in them? Yeah. I like that.

Given that Mount Rainier National Park is the hands-down best National Park, let's think about the Mountain and the good times we've had there. (Before you go all "Mount Rainier isn't the best park!" on me. Remember: You clicked to come here!)

The first question people ask me when they learn about my fascination with mountains is whether I've climbed Rainier. Yup. Back in 2010 I climbed the Emmons route over three days. It was hard. It was brutal. It was amazing. With the right crew and the right conditions I'd go again in a moment. Click here for the story and pictures from that trip.

The next question is usually, "Where should I go?" My answer is to check out my guide to the east side of the Park by clicking here. Since everybody is looking for something a little different, I've divided the adventures on the east side into outings for casual visitors, hiking families, backpackers, and the hard core. There's also a section for campgrounds and lodging options in and outside the Park.

What will you see in the Park and how could you get a print on your wall? Funny you should ask. I've got more than 30 photos in my Mount Rainier shop with more being added as they meet my standards. Folks that have ordered report great quality in the photos they've received. (Photos are printed by vetted studios and delivered by mail.) Click here to buy early and often. (If there's a photo you want to buy, but don't see in the shop, let me know.)

This is all well and good, but if you still can't leave the house to get to the Park, what suggestions do we have to quench your Mount Rainier thirst? Check out the NPS site for the Mount Rainier Virtual Tour. There are live webcams throughout the park, too. Many of the high-elevation cameras are offline for winter, but many others are open for viewing. Also on the NPS site: Great videos in the Mount Rainier Experiences section. (More videos including some 360 vids are on their YouTube channel.) Going beyond Mount Rainier, though why you would want to, you can Find Your (Virtual) Park with links to these kinds of resources across the system of parks.

Need something more tangible? How about some books? Mount Rainier's Historic Inns and Lodges is a great collection of photos from the early days of the Park and even before it became a National Park. If you want an insider's perspective on the National Park Service, take some time to sit down with National Parks Our Living Treasure: A Time for Concern. The author was a superintendent at a number of National Parks including Glacier and Big Bend. Dr. Lusk discusses serious topics facing the Parks Service as we get deeper into its second century.

And whether you're sitting at home with a book or sitting at home in front of your screen, it's always good to have a hot beverage to sip, right? Take a look at Well Told's topography glasswear. Aside from the fact many of their sample designs feature local favorites like Glacier Peak and Hibox Mountain, it's cool you can get a custom topo printed on a glass. We have coffee mugs with Mount Rainier's topography etched on the outside. They are definitely the most coveted mugs in the house whether for my coffee, the kids' hot cocoa, or ramen like you'd eat on the trail. Bonus: They're sturdy and have survived multiple trips through the dishwasher.

Remember the Mountain will be there when this is all over. Sure, we may miss a few days and it may be stressful cooped up in our safe spaces, but it's for the greater good. It really is. I keep telling myself it really is. And when it's ok for us to head back out, make sure you ease into it. No sense in getting hurt on your first trip when there are so many more days to come.