As Far West, and as Far North as You Can Drive - Olympic National Park, WA

August 14th - 18th, 2021

We had a late check out of noon from Old Mill RV, so we took advantage. We’d walk the harbor shore and collect a piece of driftwood to decorate with back home. Then do a provisioning run to the Fred Meyers. Stop at a local peach and cherry stand. Shop for a sticker for our collection. And finally, get on the road. Five hours and change later, almost entirely on US Route 101, we arrived at 101 Forks RV Park, in Forks, WA. We had chosen this spot for two nights so we could access the Hoh Rainforest section of Olympic National Park, and leave ourselves the option of visiting some of the park’s Pacific Coast.

The following day, Kristin woke feeling a little under the weather. Not a good feeling in this day in age. We took a slow morning, purchased some cold relief items from the super market across the street, packed lunch, and headed toward the Hoh Ranger Station. Unbeknownst to us, this is a very popular parking area from which to base overnight treks into the park. We were arriving on a Sunday afternoon, so along with the usual weekend traffic, the parking area was clogged with cars left for 1 or 2 nights prior, while their owners hiked and camped. They were allowing one car in for each car leaving. This would cause us an hour delay. Fortunately, we had lunch, snacks, and were not fighting daylight, so we relaxed and waited in Phoenix Tigre, surrounded by abundant natural beauty.

We were, eventually, allowed in, parked, and embarked on a trip up the Hoh River Trail. This trail follows its namesake river for the better part of its 18 mile length. It ends where trails no longer make sense: somewhere on the upper slopes of Mount Olympus, among endless scree and imposing glaciers. Trailhead signs note that at its terminus, one must use ice axes, helmets, ropes, and other manor of gear we don’t own, or desire to employ. We would walk in a little over 3.5 miles, then turn and walk back.

The temperate rainforest did not disappoint. Old growth Western Red Cedar, Sitka Spruce, Western Hemlock and Douglas Fir account for the majority of the trees. By the end of the afternoon, I’ve become adept at identifying them. Big Leaf and Vine Maples make sure the deciduous are represented, and they are equally as fantastic. While no where near as tall, nor as thick in the trunk as their coniferous neighbors, the maples seem to attract more, and more impressive, lichens, mosses and ferns. They are equally as tall, and cast as broad a canopy as the finest examples back home. However, this mossy covering, draped and hanging like a soft, green throw blanket from each limb, caused me to stop and stare in awe.

Near the end of our outward hike, we crossed under the narrow, cascading, Mineral Creek Falls. Soon after, we diverted from the Hoh River Trail, and dropped into Mount Tom Creek primitive campground, and the associated “beaches” along the Hoh River. From our sandy rest stop, we could look down the steep valley of the river, and appreciate how thick the forest is. The river ran strongly, and is a milky blue as a result of all the silt carried down from the glacial melt above. One would not have wanted to ford at this point, but a cautious wade into the chilly runoff has a nice effect on weary soles. We enjoyed sun through cumulous clouds, and a passing sun shower felt only appropriate in the rainforest. We’d walk out during the golden hour, with rays of sun cutting under the thick forest canopy, drawing attention to new layers of this incredibly diverse and beautiful ecosystem. It took a while for me to appreciate “out and back” trails versus loops, but the changes in light, direction of your gaze, and of course, your very own attitude, often amount to two entirely different trail experiences.  

Like so many places we’ve visited, one half of a day in the Hoh is hardly enough, but our schedule dictated that we need move further north, to Shadow Mountain RV Park, up near Port Angeles, WA, the following day. With only 50 minutes of diving, this was our easiest “moving day” yet. The short drive left us time to visit a harbor-side fish monger in Port Angeles for fresh caught salmon, then visit the Crescent Lake Lodge. Crescent Lake is a very nice, glacially carved lake on the western side of Olympic, and the lodge dates back to the early 1900’s. We came to visit Marymere Falls, and walk a short informational nature trail by the water’s edge. A beautiful waterfall is always that, and I appreciated learning about the history of the area. The original railroad was built to provide access to the regions timber in order to support aircraft manufacturing during Word War One! Back to Destiny we drove, we had an amazing cut of salmon to grill!

The following day would mark the low point for Kristin’s head cold. A bummer, because she really wasn’t feeling up to much, but positive in that her health would only improve rapidly from here. There are always things to do around the camper, and we take precious few “lay days”, so I kept busy while Kristin rested. By mid-afternoon, she was feeling more energetic, and tired of laying about, so we headed over to the Spruce Railroad Trail. With no further need for WWI era warplanes, and now that the land is protected from logging, the old railroad is a wonderfully well-maintained bike path along the lake. I had my eye on the Devil’s Punchbowl. The internet led me to believe that there would be cliff jumping at this point of interest, roughly one mile into the ride.

I packed a suit and towel, and was very pleased to find a significant leap into the lake upon arrival. One must scramble up the side of the cliff to reach the jumping point. From the top, the jumper looks down some forty feet into a clear, deep, blue pool. Spectators watch from a wooden footbridge that draws the hypotenuse to the two cliffs which make up the legs of the pool’s triangular boundary.  Goodness knows I like a gallery. I didn’t hesitate to jump, but I did let out a small “Yeeeew!” in surprise at the air time. I’d underestimated the height, slightly. My jump emboldened a handful of other fellows, and a half hour was spent trading turns jumping from the ledge. I dried off, changed, and my photographer and I continued on our bike ride.

Earlier, I’d prepared a veggie chili in the slow cooker (who doesn’t “camp” with a slow cooker?!??), so Kristin and I packed up a delicious picnic dinner and headed down to East Beach on Crescent Lake for Sunset. A few families visited while their children played. We ate, and enjoyed the stunning views. Quite a busy half day, after all.

Tuesday was our last full day in the park. Fortunately, Kristin woke feeling far better than the previous few days. With this prerequisite met, we headed for the interior of Olympic Park. This national park is very interesting. It encompasses the wild and woolly Pacific Northwest Coastline. There are 3 or 4 rainforest sections. And then, in the interior, are the glacially peaked, high Cascade mountains. We were itching to explore the alpine meadows, and shale ridges. As previously noted, we did not have intentions of using any ice axes to reach the summits!

We chose a trail out of the Obstruction Point Trailhead, making a 10 mile loop of Grand Pass to Moose Lake, then returning up through Badger Valley. It was a long drive in, through Port Angeles, a stop at the info center for a sticker, then another number of miles up to Hurricane Ridge. This was our first time really seeing the beauty of Mount Olympus, covered in her Blue Glacier, and surrounded by truly impressive neighboring peaks. My work wasn’t done however, we had another half hour of narrow, winding, dirt road to navigate in our 22’ pick up truck before we’d reach the trailhead.

Once parked, with sunscreen applied, gear-in-packs, and boots on the trail, I was able to really enjoy the mountain vistas. This was a novel hike for us, as we started at 6,400’, and would descend down to 4,000’, then need to climb back up to finish. That’s the opposite of mountain climbing! We started along a ridge with expansive views of the high Cascade peaks to our west. To the east, seasonal aqua blue pools, cascading streams, forests for miles, and vague views of Puget Sound. On a perfectly clear day, one might be able to see Seattle’s fames Space Needle.

This is a moderately trafficked trail, providing few interactions with other hikers during our opening 4.5 miles to Moose Lake. Moose Lake is slender, but longer than I expected. Over 2000’ above sit the ridges and peaks that funnel water into this beaver-dammed aquifer. We stopped for lunch, and skipped a few rocks. A pair of couples, and their children, packed up camp from the night before a hundred yards down the shore. As it worked out, we’d spend a few miles walking among, and chatting with, some of this crew. Much to our chagrin, these couple miles were also spent descending. We were keenly aware that every step down meant another step up later, and we weren’t growing more rested. Among the small talk, I noted that we were driving to Idaho tomorrow. One of the young boys, born and raised in this area, stopped and asked, “all in one day?!”. Yep.

But that would be tomorrow, and today being as perfect as it was, took all our attention. Soon we hit the low point in the trail, reached by following the waters that do slip past Moose Lake’s beavers, then fill and flow out of Grand Lake. Here the trees are very old, and the forest is open and beautiful. Shortly, we climbed out of the forest, and into open alpine fields. Most of the wildflowers had just passed, but near sources of water, pink, yellow, and red pedals still painted the landscape. Marmot boroughs kept our gazes fixed on the trail, for fear of twisting an ankle, or worse. We paused to filter more water after finishing our initial supplies. And soon, the final switchbacks which would take us out of gopher valley to Phoenix, were in sight in the distance.

The sun was slowly setting over the ridge above us. Once again, we were bathed in golden, late afternoon light. A large bird of prey circled above. Watching him, it becomes obvious why humans are fixated on flight. The marmot population seemed to all hear the same dinner bell, and soon the empty boroughs were alive with the furry animals out for their evening forage. A few sat sentinel, and chirped/screeched endlessly. I imagined they were alerting the others to our presence. The birds of prey, however large, were no match for the gravity commanded by these chunckers. Soon enough, we crested the final ridge, and Phoenix Tigre sat waiting for us. It was a pleasant drive back to Destiny, completed before the sun fully set. Thereby closing this chapter for us in Olympic National Park.

Our young hiking companion from the previous day was right to be surprised that someone would drive to Idaho, all in one day. It is a chore! We would get on the road at 7AM, after a quick and tidy closing up of Destiny. Then we would do something that we haven’t done yet on this road trip. Drive east. We have 4 parks left, and almost 5 weeks between them and travel, but without question, today it feels like we’re “headed home”.

We would drive out past Seattle, pick up I-90 East (now it really feels like heading home), and climb, seemingly endlessly, up and over the Cascades. Once over the pass, the environment changed drastically; from overcast, wet, and green, back to the high plains and desert. The curvy mountain roads gave way to long straight stretches. By late afternoon, we were in Spokane, WA, at a Trader Joes. An hour later, a dead battery scare for Phoenix, a quick jump from a helpful Trader Joe’s associate, and we were back on the road to Lake Pend Orielle, ID. Western Washington, and Idaho, have a distinctly “Western” feel that we haven’t experienced since the farm lands of California’s central valley. We’d get in late to Trestle Creek RV Park, set up just before dark, and settle in. We’d planned two nights so that we could relax and explore Lake Pend Orielle for a day before driving another full day to St. Mary, MT, and Glacier National Park.

We opted for a relaxing day paddleboarding at a nearby lakeside park. The train that traversed the RV Park’s namesake trestle would pass frequently. Smoke from nearby fires reduced our visibility. But it was a nice, and relaxing day. We’d venture into Sandpoint for a sticker, and visit Utara, an Indian cuisine themed brewery. The food was delicious! So were their beers, and brewed-in-house huckleberry hard seltzer. We have another full day of driving ahead of us tomorrow, but we’re very excited to get to Glacier National Park!

For more photos of our time in Olympic National Park, click here.