Flew in Tuesday and left Sunday morning, Hurricane ridge was shut down due to a snow storm but I made the best of it exploring the rainforests, waterfalls, crescent lake and all the beaches. Met someone at the hall of mosses that recomenneded I go to cape flattery and I’m so glad I went. 10/10 would recommend checking out Shi Shi beach if you have the time!
We’re attempting to plan family trip to Olympic this July and I’m now realizing that we’re way late for finding affordable lodging. What is your experience with finding availability due to cancellations at places like the log cabin resort on lake crescent or other camping cabin type places? Budget is low so camper cabins are ideal. I know there are lots of cancellations at places like Yellowstone and other national parks but it seems like there are less options for in park lodging at olympic. Should I just check in daily to see if something comes up or is it a long shot and I should accept that we’ll have to be further out of the park? We were also considering renting a camper van/staying at campsites but with all the added fees, that does not seem like a budget option. I appreciate any insight!
Hi all! Planning to backpack the Upper Big Quilcene in May, and the last ~5 miles of road leading up to the trailhead is marked as unpaved on the official NPS map. Would this require any particular caution or vehicle capabilities?
I've been looking through old posts and most of the comments indicate that the majority of accessible park area should be totally fine in an ordinary vehicle. Just wasn't sure if an unpaved road fits in this category. Are there any parts of the region that really do justify a larger car/higher clearance/AWD? Thanks!
Hello! My husband and I (both late 20s) are planning to visit Olympic National Park in late June and would love any and all help with planning an itinerary or general tips for the park as it’s our first time.
We’ll be staying with family in Portland and will be driving up from there on a Wednesday. We’d ideally like to stay in one place (from what I’ve seen, either Port Angeles or Sequim seem like the best options) and then do day trips from there. We’ll have three full days and will then leave on the fourth day to drive to Seattle.
We’re both fairly fit and so would be open to any trail recommendations anywhere between 3-10 miles. I’d love to see waterfalls, mountains and lakes.
Thank you for your help!
Hi! Planning to visit ONP in August (yikes i know) and I want to camp in the park. Does anyone have any experience as to how reliable this? Like, if I wait until the 11th, are there good chances I will be able to catch a camp site?
Hello everyone, apologies if these questions have been asked before but I’m looking for some insight.
I will be spending 6 nights in the park with 3 friends from 5/23-5/29. I planned most of the itinerary with the framework being: 5/23-5/25 North Fork Quinault/Elip Creek/Skyline Trail loop. 5/25 overnight at Kalaloch campground for an easy day before heading to the Hoh. 5/26-5/29 Hoh rainforest to Blue Glacier out and back.
We will be traveling from Vancouver, WA, planning to get to the north fork trailhead by 10 AM on Saturday. I planned this hike as collateral for the Enchanted Valley hike since grave creek road is currently closed and is probably unlikely to be open by our trip. The plan is to spend one night at Elip Creek campground, and the other at Three Lakes, the order is undecided.
For the Blue glacier hike starting 5/26, we will try to get there by 8:30 from Kalaloch, should be under two hours away. Depending on whether we hike to Bogachiel Peak on the way back, I would like to camp at Martin Creek (or Elk Lake), then Lewis Meadow, then Happy Four or 5 Mile Island for the last night. If we do Bogachiel I would want to stay at the Ranger station on the last night (5/28).
My main questions pertain to permitting and reserving the higher elevation campsites (Three Lakes, Martin Creek, Elk Lake). To ensure we have permits for the duration of the trip, I reserved Lewis Meadows for two nights, then Five Mile Island to cover all days. For the Quinault hike, I only reserved one night at Elip Creek for us, since Three Lakes cannot be reserved yet.
How does changing itinerary/reserving blocked campsites work? This is my first trip to ONP so any other advice is greatly appreciated!
**Rialto Bach will be closed for our trip** :(
OR (This basically removes a day Mt Rainier and adds Whale Watching + Shi Shi Beach)
I’m planning a trip for late July/early August, and wondering if we’ll regret skipping over the Kalaloch and Lake Quinalt areas. So far we have:
Fly to SEA, overnight in Forks.
3 nights backpacking the Seven Lakes Basin/High Divide loop
One night in Port Angeles, then visit Hurricane Ridge and Lake Crescent areas
3 nights in Forks, with visits to Hoh Rain Forest and La Push beaches
Visit Ruby Beach, and then stay overnight in Olympia before heading back to Seattle.
I feel like we’ll see plenty of beaches and lakes without adding in Kalaloch and Lake Quinalt, but maybe they’re worth visiting anyway? Any other must-sees I’ve missed? I’m also open to recommendations for places to eat or buy food along the way.
And lastly, I’ve read lots of reviews of the Seven Lakes Basin loop, and the bug situation seems to vary a lot from year to year. Is there a point in time where we’ll have a better idea of what to expect in late July, or is it just a toss up until we get there, or is it always bad at the end of July? We’re a family of four, unsure of whether to bring 2 2-person tents, or 1 4-person tent. In my mind, the only reason to bring a 4-person tent would be in case it’s so buggy or rainy that we want to hang out in the tent. We’re camping at Deer Lake, Heart Lake, and Rocky Creek, in case that affects anything.
Thank you for any advice!
I'm traveling there at that time and trying to think of a good way to grab a spot before everyone else. It's fully booked when reservations open mid June but I don't know what the crowds look like before that. Thinking maybe I could show up when people check out in the morning?
Okay, I asked about my planned itinerary for the last week in June a few months ago. Comments were helpful for refining an itinerary BUT now I'm wondering... should we stick with Olympic or try to do both Mt. Rainier and Olympic NP?
Myself, my husband, 6 year old, and 3 year old will be flying from Detroit to Seattle the last week of June. We will have 6 solid days for exploring. Do we take a full day or two to explore Mt. Rainier? Or do we just stick with the plan of ONP with a day or more at each of these spots - Hike Hurricane Ridge/Lake Crescent/Sol Duc/Hoh Rainforest/Coastal Beaches? Thoughts!? Thanks!
Hi guys! Thank yall for the help on my previous post it means sooo much!
Me and my friend were fortunate enough to rent a car at Turo.
-We decide to spend 2-3 days at port to see hurricane ridge, lake crescent, Madison falls etc.
which hotel/ lodge should we stay at that’s closest to all of them or the main ones??
- for day 3-5 we’re heading to the west to see the rainforest and the beaches. For the hotel in west we’re looking at the sol duc hot springs resort we just don’t know how far is it yet.
And on the 25th we have a plane to catch at 3 and that’s abt it.
Hi, new to WA state and need a reality check if we can do a weekend trip to Olympic national park, and if yes what all spots can we cover? Ideally we would prefer back and forth to Seattle but would need some guidance in planning so.
We are a group of friends and interested in easy/medium trails.
I am having a hard time on deciding which lake to stay at. My family (myself, spouse, 4y/o, and 7y/o) will be visiting the park at the end of June. I hope to take the kids on a couple of kid-friendly lush rainforest hikes and had originally booked a room at Lake Quinault Lodge, but my MIL said she prefers Lake Crescent and its access to Hoh. We will not be there on dates that the Hoh Visitor Center will be open, so it would just be for hiking. What is better for kids?
Hi! Me and 2 friends (all college runners) are visiting for 5 days in mid-may. Here's the itinerary I've whipped up so far, wondering if there's anything I've missed (road / trail closures, too much snow) or too much in any given day that may call for some changes.
Also, are there any longer hikes I should swap out for my current options? Made a post a bit earlier today, was recommended Mount Townsend Loop. Should I slot that in somewhere?
Last but not least, should I try to fit in Quinault. Looks amazing, but heard road closures may make the hikes there a little less worth doing? Thanks!
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Oh how I love this stretch of the Pacific Ocean. One of the most beautiful coastline hikes on the West Coast.
Might be a bit of a longshot, but I'm wondering if anybody that's been through there can provide some insight.
I have plans to climb Mt Olympus and got our reservation yesterday. I later was looking NPS trail descriptions where it list the details of the camp sites, and was surprised how much different the numbers that recreation.gov allows for in terms of reservations is compared with what the NPS descriptions of campgrounds along the trail says there is actually space for.
We booked out first night at Lewis meadow, which has no quota limits, but per recreation.gov, it looks like there's already over 40 people booked there, probably will just go up. The trail description from the NPS says there's 2 individual sites, there a group site, and a stock site.
I'm concerned about showing up and not being able to find a place to camp. Just wondering if there is actually more spaces than what the NPS describes?