Tag: Olympic National Park

2025 Wildlife Gallery Part 2 – Featherless Friends

Post author By derwoodynck
Post date January 27, 2026
2 Comments on 2025 Wildlife Gallery Part 2 – Featherless Friends

Part two of 2025 wildlife wrap-up is a collection of the non-bird critters that we were able to get a photo of during our 2025 outings. I checked one animal off the list of those that we hadn’t seen while hiking during our Tygh Creek hike in May when I spotted a skunk making its way up the trail ahead. Heather unfortunately missed out on that sighting. We also saw a sea otter during our visit to Olympic National Park in May however it was so far away that we weren’t sure what we were looking at until we were able to look at the couple of photos that I had taken. It was exciting to have seen one, but it would have been more exciting had we realized what we were seeing at the time. The other exciting (and scariest) sighting was just our second rattlesnake in the Criterion Tract along the Deschutes River, also in May. We didn’t see it until we heard the loud hiss and rattle letting us know that we were getting too close.

Bumble bee – Mt. Hood National Forest, 05/24/25.

Bee swarm – William L. Finley National Wildlife Refuge, 04/30/25.

Unknown bee species – Criterion Tract, 05/25/25.

Beetle – Criterion Tract, 05/25/25.

Beetles – Mt. Jefferson Wilderness, 07/14/25.

Beetles – Mt. Hood National Forest, 06/14/25.

Isopod – Olympic National Park, 05/15/25.

Western sea slater (Ligia occidentalis) – Olympic National Park, 05/14/25.

Spider hiding in the camas – Thurston Hills, 04/19/25.

Crab spider – Clearwater River Trail, 06/21/25.

Slug – Thurston Hills, 04/19/25.

Slug – Fern Ridge Wildlife Area, 05/03/25.

Slug – Olympic National Park, 05/13/25.

Slug – Olympic National Park, 05/12/25.

Slug – Olympic National Park, 05/15/25.

Snail – Oswald West State Park, 04/05/25.

Snail – Loon Lake Recreation Area, 05/03/25.

Snail – Fern Ridge Wildlife Area, 05/03/25.

Snail – Umpqua National Forest, 05/31/25.

Dragon flies – Mt. Washington Wilderness, 07/19/25.

Caterpillar – Olympic National Park, 05/13/25.

Caterpillars – Mt. Jefferson Wilderness, 07/17/25.

Cinnabar moth – Mt. Jefferson Wilderness, Linn County Oregon, 07/17/25.

Plume moth – Mt. Jefferson Wilderness, Linn County Oregon, 07/17/25.

Moth – Mt. Jefferson Wilderness, Marion County Oregon, 07/14/25.

Moth – Mt. Washington Wilderness, Linn County Oregon, 07/19/25.

Moth – Mt. Hood National Forest, Wasco County Oregon, 06/14/25.

Brown elfin (and fly) – Mt. Hood National Forest, Wasco County Oregon, 05/24/25.

Ochre ringlet – Criterion Tract, Wasco County Oregon, 05/25/25.

Cabbage White – Tualatin River National Wildlife Refuge, Washington County Oregon, 05/01/25.

Margined white – Oswald West State Park, Tillamook County Oregon, 04/05/25.

Western white? – Mt. Hood National Forest, Hood River County Oregon, 07/12/25.

California tortoiseshell – Mt. Hood National Forest, Hood River County Oregon, 07/12/25.

Sagebrush checkerspot (f) – Criterion Tract, Wasco County Oregon, 05/25/25.

Sagebrush checkerspot? (m) – Criterion Tract, Wasco County Oregon, 05/25/25.

Checkerspot (Hoffman’s?) – Mt. Hood National Forest, Hood River County Oregon, 07/12/25.

Clodius Parnassian – Sourgrass Mountain, Lane County Oregon, 06/28/25.

Propertius duskywing – Mt. Hood National Forest, Wasco County Oregon, 06/14/25.

Possibly a Pacuvius Duskywing (Erynnis pacuvius) – Mt. Hood National Forest, Wasco County Oregon, 05/24/25.

A skipper – Criterion Tract, Wasco County Oregon, 05/25/25.

Field crescent – Mt. Washington Wilderness, Linn County Oregon, 07/19/25.

Meadow fritillary – Mt. Rainier National Park, Yakima County Washington, 08/08/25.

A fritillary but not sure which one. – Criterion Tract, Wasco County Oregon, 05/25/25.

Another of the fritillaries. – Mt. Jefferson Wilderness, Linn County Oregon, 07/17/25.

Wester sulphur – Mt. Hood National Forest, Wasco County Oregon, 06/14/25.

Indra swallowtail – Criterion Tract, Wasco County Oregon, 05/25/25.

Pale tiger swallowtail – Mt. Hood National Forest, Wasco County Oregon, 06/14/25.

When it comes to the Lycaenidae Family (Gossamer Wings) I am almost always out of my depth trying to identify them.

Mt. Jefferson Wilderness, Marion County Oregon, 07/14/25.

Mt. Hood National Forest, Wasco County Oregon, 05/24/25.

Mt. Washington Wilderness, Linn County Oregon, 07/19/25.

Criterion Tract, Wasco County Oregon, 05/25/25.

Olympic National Park, Clallam County Washington, 05/13/25.

These might be Echo Azures – Mt. Hood National Forest, Wasco County Oregon, 05/24/25.

Crab – Olympic National Park, Clallam County Wasing 05/14/25.

Hermit Crab – Olympic National Park, 05/14/25.

Velalla velella – Olympic National Park, 05/14/25.

Anemones – Olympic National Park, 05/14/25.

Starfish – Olympic National Park, 05/14/25.

Lions mane jellyfish – Rockaway Beach, 09/06/25.

Sealion – Olympic National Park, 05/14/25.

Seals – Olympic National Park, 05/15/25.

Sea otter, albeit a poor picture – Olympic National Park, 05/14/25.

Tree frog – Mt. Washington Wilderness, 07/19/25.

Frog – Mt. Jefferson Wilderness, 07/14/25.

Bullfrog (invasive) – Ankeny National Wildlife Refuge, 04/28/25.

Painted and western pond turtles – William L. Finley National Wildlife Refuge, 04/30/25.

Dunn’s salamander – Thurston Hills, 04/19/25.

Rough skinned newt – Driftwood Beach, 01/11/25.

Lizard – Mt. Hood National Forest, 05/24/25.

Snake – Ankeny National Wildlife Refuge, 04/28/25.

Snake – McDonald-Dunn Forest, 07/05/25.

Western racer – Mt. Hood National Forest, 05/24/25.

Western rattlesnake – Criterion Tract, 05/25/25.

Olympic chipmunk – Olympic National Park, 05/13/25.

Townsend’s? chipmunk – Silver Falls State Park, 10/13/25.

Yellow pine chipmunk – Mt. Rainier National Park, 08/04/25.

Golden-mantled ground squirrel – Mt. Rainier National Park, 08/04/25.

Douglas’ squirrel – Olympic National Park, 05/13/25.

Western gray squirrel – William L. Finely National Wildlife Refuge, 04/30/25.

California ground squirrel – E. E. Wilson Wildlife Area, 04/27/25.

Nutria (invasive) – Tualatin River National Wildlife Refuge, 05/01/25.

Yellow-bellied marmot – Three Sisters Wilderness, 07/15/25.

Hoary marmot – Mt. Rainier National Park, 08/05/25.

Pika – Mt. Jefferson Wilderness, 07/14/25.

Rabbit – Ankeny National Wildlife Refuge, 04/28/25.

Racoon – Olympic National Park, 05/14/25.

Skunk – Mt. Hood National Forest, 05/26/25.

Coyote – William L. Finley National Wildlife Refuge, 04/30/25.

Black-tailed deer – Mt. Rainier National Park, 08/04/25.

Mule deer – Criterion Tract, 05/25/25.

Elk – Elk Run Trail, 10/11/25.

Mountain goats – Mt. Rainier National Park, 08/05/25.

Being fortunate enough to witness animals in their natural habitat is one of the perks of hiking and we hope to see many more this coming year. We’re still on the lookout for several species that are possibilities. Most notable and likely of these are porcupines, giant pacific salamanders, and cougars. Much less likely but possible are wolves, wolverines, and moose among others. Happy Trails!

Tags butterflies, mountain goat, mt. rainier national park, Olympic National Park, Oregon, Pika, racoon, sea otter, Skunk, turtles, Washington

Hiking Year-end wrap up

The Hikes of 2025 – A Look Back

Post author By derwoodynck
Post date January 1, 2026
2 Comments on The Hikes of 2025 – A Look Back

2025 was the first time in several years where we weren’t focused on achieving a specific hiking goal. It also marked the first year in which I had significantly more vacation time than Heather. We also adjusted our off-season modus operandi from “one hike a month” to “at least one hike a month and more if the weather cooperates”. These factors along with some medical restrictions resulted in a very different set of hikes in 2025 than previous years. For the first time since 2014 we didn’t spend any time backpacking, spent minimal time hiking in either Eastern or Southern Oregon, and for only the second time since 2012 failed to hike at an elevation above 8000′. In fact, it was the first year in which the average highest elevation of our outings came in under 3000′ at 2947′.

One thing that did not change was our focus on visiting new trails or, in the case of areas we’d visited before, new sections of trail. Together, Heather and I spent 46 days exploring trails, and I headed out on an additional 20 days. The 66 days for me marked the most days hiking in a calendar year topping the previous high of 64 in 2017. With multiple stops on several of the days the number of trailheads I started off from was 98 (75 for Heather). Fifty-eight of those ninety-eight stops, and twenty-eight of the days were entirely new. The only hike that was 100% on trails previously hiked was to celebrate our friend’s birthday with a hike to Dimple Hill in the McDonald-Dunn Forest. The hikes on our 46 days together came to 402.8 miles with another 245 miles on my 20 solo hikes resulting 647.8 miles for me in 2025. Of those miles 440.6 were new. Our shortest hike was just 0.9-miles when we stopped to check out McCredie Hot Springs on the way home from Bend in October, and my longest was the 17.8-mile Obsidian Loop in the Three Sisters Wilderness in July.

As far as where we spent our time the Central Cascades were at the top followed by the Oregon Coast & Coast Range, NW Oregon, and Washington. The hikes in Washington were one of the reasons for the low number of hikes in Eastern and Southern Oregon. Our two vacations were spent at National Parks in that state, Olympic and Mt. Rainier.

Locations of the trailheads we started from in 2025. (There are 96 THs since we hiked multiple trails on a number of days.)

Our northernmost hike this year, Ozette Triangle in Olympic National Park, was also the furthest north we’d ever hiked. This was also the furthest west we would be all year.

Looking north from the most northerly location we’ve been.

Our southernmost hike was on the Cow Creek Trail SE of Roseburg, OR in the Umpqua National Forest.

Downed trees that marked my turn around point, and southernmost point, on the Cow Creek Trail.

Not surprisingly our easternmost hike was our sole hike in Eastern Oregon in the BLM’s Criterion Tract.

Roughly the furthest point east we reached this year.

The 2025 wildfire season was comparatively tame to the last few years however there were still more than 1,100 fires from early June to mid-October. According to the Office of the State Fire Marshal over 700 of those fires were human caused which is disappointing as these are by and large avoidable.
While none of the fires directly impacted our plans this year, sadly 200 homes and structures were lost this past year and several trails we’d previously hiked were burned.

On a more positive note, we once again were blessed to be able to see and experience so many beautiful places. So many in fact that in addition to our usual wildlife and wildflower galleries we’re adding one for the waterfalls we saw in 2025.

January – Driftwood Beach, OR

February – Clackamas River from Milo McIver State Park, OR

March – Catherine Creek/Coyote Wall, WA (This area burned in July 2025 in the Burdoin Fire.)

April – Devil’s Lake Fork, Tillamook State Forest, OR

April – Basket Slough Wildlife Refuge, OR

May – Tualatin River National Wildlife Refuge, OR

May – Hoh Rainforest, Olympic National Park, WA

May – Devil’s Punchbowl, Olympic National Park, WA

May – Rialto Beach, Olympic National Park, WA

May – Little Badger Trail, Mt. Hood National Forest, OR

May – Deschutes River, BLM Criterion Tract, OR

June – Blue Lake, Hampton Family Forests (Private Timberland), OR

June – Fivemile Butte Lookout, Mt. Hood National Forest, OR

June – Champoeg State Park, OR

June – Clearwater River, Umpqua National Forest, OR

Elk Camp Shelter, Willamette National Forest, OR

July – Mt. Hood, OR

July – Bays Lake, Mt. Jefferson Wilderness, OR

July – Three Sisters Wilderness, OR

July – Craig Lake, Mt. Jefferson Wilderness, OR

July – Big Lake, Willamette National Forest, OR

August – Walupt Lake, Goat Rocks Wilderness, OR

August – Mt. Rainier National Park, WA

August – Mt. Freemont Trail, Mt. Rainier National Park, WA

August – Snow Lake, Mt. Rainier National Park, WA

August – Naches Peak Loop, Mt. Rainier National Park, WA

August – Lava Canyon Trail, Mt. St. Helens National Volcanic Monument, WA

September – Zigzag Canyon, Mt. Hood Wilderness, OR

September – Twin Rocks, Rockaway Beach, OR

September – Three Sisters Wilderness, OR

September – Duffy Lake, Mt. Jefferson Wilderness, OR

September – Fuji Mountain, Willamette National Forest, OR

September – Mt. St. Helens National Volcanic Monument, WA

September – Charlton Lake, Deschutes National Forest, OR

October – Head of Jack Creek, Deschutes National Forest, OR

October – Nehalem River, Nehalem, OR

October – Silver Falls State Park, OR

October – Maxwell Butte, Mt. Jefferson Wilderness, OR

October – Willamette Mission State Park, OR

November – Silver Falls State Park, OR

November – Clear Lake, Willamette National Forest, OR

December – Little Rock Creek, Santiam State Forest, OR

Looking ahead to 2026 there are still trails we’ve yet to explore and many that we’d be more than happy to revisit. We’re looking forward to continuing the journey for as long as we are able. Happy Trails and have a wonderful New Year!

Tags adventure, champoeg state park, Goat Rocks Wilderness, hiking, Milo McIver State Park, Mt. Hood Wilderness, Mt. Jefferson Wilderness, mt. rainier national park, nature, Olympic National Park, Oregon, Silver Falls State Park, Three Sisters Wilderness, travel, Washington, Willamette mission State Park

Hiking Olympic Peninsula Trip report Washington

Olympic National Park Day 5 – Bogachiel Rain Forest 5/16/2025

Post author By derwoodynck
Post date May 23, 2025
1 Comment on Olympic National Park Day 5 – Bogachiel Rain Forest 5/16/2025

Our original plan for our last hike in Olympic National Park was going to be a 12ish mile hike along the Bogachiel River Trail. With Heather being sick and rainy conditions forecast for the entire day I scaled back the plan. Unlike our previous hikes during the week the Bogachiel River Trailhead was not located in Olympic National Park. The trailhead and the first 1.5-miles of the hike was located in the Olympic National Forest.
This trail is part of the Pacific Northwest Trail as were the beach hikes we did the previous two days.

Heather opted to stay in the car while I donned my raingear and set off on the Bogachiel Rain Forest Trail.

Damaged footbridge over Morganroth Creek at the 0.2-mile mark.

The Wetland Loop Trail split off just beyond Morganroth Creek. I stayed right and planned on returning via the loop.

This was a muddy trail which isn’t surprising for an area that receives 120″ of rain (3 meters) on average annually.

Youth-on-Age

Approaching the Bogachiel River.

Bogachiel River

The other end of the Wetland Loop was approximately a half mile from the Olympic National Park boundary.

Kahkwa Creek. The log down in the distance was crossable but I opted to ford the creek on my first pass.

Ford at Kahkwa Creek.

Signs at the park boundary. The trail name changes here to the Bogachiel River Trail.

Wilderness permits for back country camping. At this point I was not only in the park but also the Daniel J. Evans Wilderness.

I decided to continue into the park a bit before turning around. I initially set a turnaround time of 6:50am but then decided to turn around at the next creek shown on the map. As it turned out the creek was not exactly where it was shown on the GPS and it wound up being dry when I did reach it at 6:54am.

The dry creek where I turned around.

I took the Wetland Loop Trail on the way back and was surprised at how much climbing was involved on a wetland trail.

The log crossing over Kahkwa Creek.

The Wetland Loop Trail junction was near the Kahkwa Creek crossing.

The Wetland Loop began along Kahkwa Creek.

Skunk cabbage

The Wetland Loop traversed up and down along a hillside above some wetlands.

Scouler’s corydalis

Wetlands below the loop trail.

Completing the loop.

After completing the loop I climbed back up to the trailhead and rejoined Heather at the car.

Fairy lanterns

Almost immediately after arriving at the car my throat began to hurt and I knew that I was coming down with the same cold that had hit Heather starting Wednesday. I had managed to get a 5-mile hike in on a quiet and scenic trail.

I would definitely go back to experience more of this trail under better circumstances. It may not have been the ideal ending to our trip but we both really enjoyed our hikes and hopefully we will return someday to explore more of the park. Happy Trails!

Flickr: Bogachiel Rain Forest

Tags Bogachiel Rain Forest, Bogachiel Rain Forest Trail, Bogachiel River, Bogachiel River Trail, Bogachiel River Trailhead, Daniel J. Evans Wilderness, hiking, Olympic National Forest, Olympic National Park, Pacific Northwest Trail, Washington, Wetland Loop Trail

Hiking

Olympic National Park Day 4 – Ozette Triangle 5/15/2025

Post author By derwoodynck
Post date May 22, 2025
No Comments on Olympic National Park Day 4 – Ozette Triangle 5/15/2025

For our fourth day in Olympic National Park we headed to Ozette Lake, the largest natural body of water in Washington. This was our longest drive from Forks taking just over an hour to reach the Ozette Trailhead.

We followed pointers for the “Coastal Trail” and crossed the Ozette River on a footbridge.

Notice regarding the petroglyphs on Wedding Rocks. By the time we were on the beach we’d completely forgot to look for these. We did run into another hiker who had seen them on a prior trip, but he couldn’t remember where. He thought they were located at some rocks near where we’d run into him, so we searched those rocks for several minutes with no luck. As it turns out he was mistaken as to where Wedding Rocks was, it is located on the first rocky headland nearest Cape Alava at the northern end of the triangle hike. We were much closer to the southern end.

Ozette River leaving Ozette Lake.

Shortly after crossing the river the trail split to begin the triangle.

We forked right onto the Cape Alava Trail. This 3.1-mile trail led through a coastal forest to the beach near Cape Alava. Much of the trail consisted of boardwalk.

Bunchberry

Slug on a skunk cabbage leaf.

Skunk cabbage

Bog laurel along the trail.

Closer look at the bog laurel blossoms.

Squirrel

First view of the ocean.

Beach bunny

Ozette Island. The signpost is used to identify inland trails that bypass the beach.

At the beach we turned left (south) and began walking along the rocky beach.
Bodelteh Islands

Heading south along the beach.

We had heard sea lions somewhere in the direction of Ozette Island as we were approaching the beach.

There is a seal in the foreground and a couple of sea lions on the rocks beyond.

Seals lounging on the rocks.

This beach hike wasn’t quite as challenging as the previous day on Rialto Beach (post) but there was a lot of slick ocean vegetation that was washed up on the shore.

One of several campsites along the beach.

Approaching Wedding Rocks. There is a bypass sign ahead if you look closely. At higher tides it is not possible to go around the rocks along the beach.

A couple of crabs taking a defensive position as we were passing by.

Wedding Rocks

On the other side of the Wedding Rocks. As I mentioned before this is where the petroglyphs are, but we’d already forgotten to be looking for them. In Heather’s defense she had started to come down with a cold the previous day and was not feeling 100%. I however had no excuse.

Beyond the Wedding Rocks we had to cross a rocky area where there were many pools.

After reaching some sand we took a break on a log before continuing on.
Looking back at the Wedding Rocks.

Robin

Bald eagle

Whimbrel

Hole in a sea stack.

Seals and cormorants

The second rocky headland where there was an inland bypass route. On the far side is where we ran into the hiker who thought these were the Wedding Rocks where he’d seen the petroglyphs before.

Path through the rocks. It made sense to us that this would be where the petroglyphs were given there were several passages between the rocks here.

Coming out the other side.

Looking back at the rocks that weren’t the Wedding Rocks.

After hiking back to the rocks with the hiker to look for the petroglyphs, which he did have photos of on his phone, we continued south to Sand Point. Along this stretch we passed a couple of large groups of backpackers heading north.
Sandpoint ahead.

Semipalmated plover

There was a use trail up the headland at Sand Point which I felt obliged to go up.

View south

One of the groups of backpackers heading north from Sand Point.

Chickweed on the headland.

We picked up a trail in the trees near some empty campsites and followed it inland along Sand Point.

There was a bit of a maze of use trails in the trees but we eventually found some trail signs and picked up the Sand Point Trail that would lead us back to Ozette Lake.

Similar to the Cape Alava Trail this trail had lot of boardwalk sections over the muddy forest floor.

Evergreen huckleberry blossoms.

Bench along the trail.

Groundcone. Heather had a sharp eye to pick this up on the forest floor.

There were a couple of missing sections of boardwalk along this side of the triangle.

Ozette Lake

This hike came in at an even 10-miles. Wandering around looking for the petroglyphs and going to the end of Sand Point instead of cutting up off the beach at the signed bypass added a little distance to the typical 9.4-mile distance.

Heather was a trooper for getting through this hike with what had now become a pretty intense cold. The cold would however keep her from our final hike and as I am writing this trip report I am dealing with the same illness. It had sprinkled off and on near the end of this hike and more rain was on the way Friday. For now we headed back to Forks and after changing clothes headed to Sully’s Drive-In for some burgers and tater tots before turning in for the night. Happy Trails!

Flickr: Ozette Triangle

Tags Cape Alava, Cape Alava Trail, hiking, Olympic National Park, ozette lake, Ozette Triangle, Sand Point, seal, Sully's Drive-In, Washington

Hiking Olympic Peninsula Washington

Olympic National Park Day 2 – Sol Duc Falls and Lake Crescent 5/13/2025

Post author By derwoodynck
Post date May 20, 2025
No Comments on Olympic National Park Day 2 – Sol Duc Falls and Lake Crescent 5/13/2025

For our second day at Olympic National Park we originally had planned a long hike on the Sol Duc River, but we both had people recommend visiting Lake Crescent we decided to shorten our hike to Sol Duc Falls and then do a few trails in the Lake Crescent Area.

We began by driving to the Sol Duc Trailhead which was nearly deserted at 6am on a Tuesday morning.

Map of the area trails at the trailhead.

We set off down a set of stairs on the trail.
Anyone know why the spelling on the sign is different?

Violets

Bridge over an unnamed creek.

Trillium

Coltsfoot

Fairy bells

Near the three quarters of a mile mark we came to the Sol Duc Shelter.

Just beyond the shelter was a footbridge over the Sol Duc River at Sol Duc Falls.

Depending on the volume of water there are up to four channels which was the situation on this day.

Heather on the bridge above the falls.

We spent some time admiring the falls then headed back passing a handful of hikers on their way in. Our hike here was just under two miles with approximately 200′ of elevation gain.

From the Sol Duc Trailhead it was a little over half an hour to another waterfall trailhead, Marymere Falls.

It was still just a quarter to eight when we parked here so this lot was fairly empty as well. We set off on the well signed trail past the Storm King Rangers Station.

Storm King Ranger Station

The trail passed under Highway 101 and was relatively level to its crossing of Barns Creek.
Forget-me-nots (non-native) along the trail.

Lake Crescent

Storm King Trail to the left.

Marymere Falls Trail junction with the Barnes Creek Trail.

Footbridge over Barnes Creek.

Barnes Creek

Trillium

Footbridge over Falls Creek almost immediately after crossing Barnes Creek.

Falls Creek

On the far side of Falls Creek a loop began and the trail started to climb to a viewpoint of Marymere Falls.
Start of the clockwise loop.

Marymere Falls

The trail climbing up from the first viewpoint.

Marymere Falls from the second viewpoint.

Final viewpoint before the loop curved away from the falls and descended back to its start.

We completed the loop and headed back to the car.
The footbridges over the two creeks.

Unnamed fall on Falls Creek from the footbridge.

This hike also came in just under two miles, but with 500′ of elevation gain.

From the Marymere Falls Trailhead we drove east on Highway 101 toward Port Angeles to the end of Lake Crescent then turned left onto East Beach Road for three miles and left again on Boundary Creek Road to its end at the trailhead.
It was now almost 9am so there were a few cars parked here already.

This paved trail follows a former railroad along Lake Crescent.

Our plan was to hike to the second of two tunnels and visit the Devil’s Punchbowl along the way. After a short initial climb the trail descended to the old railroad and leveled out as it followed the lakeshore.

Various poems were located along the first mile of the trail.

This trail is open to a variety of users.

Haiku

A second haiku.

Common whipplea

Starflower

Valerian

A dirt trail signed for the Devil’s Punchbowl split off to the left at the first tunnel.

Clear water in Lake Crescent.

Paintbrush

Something in the pea family.

Nearing Devil’s Punchbowl.

Devil’s Punchbowl

There was a fair amount of poison oak along the trail to Devil’s Punchbowl.

Madrones

Honeysuckle

Common cryptantha

Rejoining the railroad trail on the far side of the tunnel.

Butterfly

Another type of trail user.

View west.

View east.

Big deervetch

Fairy slippers

Chipmunk

Woodpecker

Lake Crescent Lodge on the far side of the lake.

Squirrel

Wallflower

The second tunnel.

Thimbleberry

White crowned sparrow

Going through the tunnel.

I went a little further around this bend while Heather took a seat on a log after exiting the tunnel.

Paintbrush

View across the lake toward the Barnes Creek Valley.

I believe the snowiest peak is Lizard Head Peak.

Saxifrage

Chickweed

After a short break we headed back.
Swallow

Oregon sunshine

Lupine

Stonecrop

Variable-leaf collomia

On the way back we opted to hike through the first tunnel instead of the trail by Devil’s Punchbowl.

This was a longer tunnel and had little light near the middle.

Descending to the trailhead.

This wound up being a 6.2-mile hike with about 250′ of total elevation gain.

It was still before Noon so we decided to check out the area around Lake Crescent Lodge, which was close to the Marymere Falls Trailhead, so we drove back to where we’d turned off HWY 101 for that hike and followed pointers for Bovee’s Meadow Day Use Area.

We spent some time at one of the two picnic tables near the lake shore before attempting to follow a trail east to the lodge.
The lake from the picnic table.

Common loon

These mallards came flying in then waddled up to see if they could scrounge something from us, but we explained that we do not feed the wildlife (LNT principle six). They seemed to understand and promptly flew off.

Stellar’s jay

Trying to find the route to the lodge.

Mushroom

A maze of user trails crisscrossed through the trees and there were some student groups working on projects which we were attempting not to disrupt. We wound up at Barnes Creek but with no way to cross.
The lodge is just on the other side.

After looking a little more for a path that would lead to a bridge without going through the students we gave up and returned to our car and drove across Barnes Creek. We wound up parking at the Moments in Time Trailhead and hiking that two thirds of a mile interpretive loop before walking over to the Lake Crescent Lodge.

Interpretive signs explaining the creation of Lake Crescent by glaciers.

This trail had good signage unlike the area near Bovee’s Meadow.

Chair near the lodge.

Lake Crescent Lodge.

We poked around in the lodge and picked up a shot glass which is our go to souvenir for our trips. With the half mile of wandering near Bovee’s Meadow and a little over a mile between the Moments in Time Trail and walking to the lodge our day totaled 11.6-miles over the five stops.

Our hikes at Lake Crescent.

This was a fun day with a nice variety of scenery and trail types. While I’m sure a longer hike along the Sol Duc River would have been beautiful, we were glad we chose to check out the Lake Crescent area instead. We drove back to our cabin outside of Forks and cleaned up then went into town for dinner at Blakelees Bar & Grill which we both enjoyed. Our next two days would be a change of pace as we would be headed for the coast. Happy Trails!

Flickr: Sol Duc Falls and the Lake Crescent Area

Tags Blakelees Bar and Grill, Bovee's Meadow, Devil's Punchbowl, Forks, hiking, Lake Crecent Lodge, Lake Crescent, Marymere Falls Trailhead. Spruce Railroad Trail, Moments in Time Trail, Olympic National Park, Olympic Peninsula, Sol Duc Falls, Sol Duc River, Sol Duc Trailhead. Marymere Falls, Washington

Hiking Olympic Peninsula Trip report Washington

Olympic National Park Day 1 – Hoh Rain Forest 5/12/2025

Post author By derwoodynck
Post date May 19, 2025
1 Comment on Olympic National Park Day 1 – Hoh Rain Forest 5/12/2025

The hike that we chose for our first in Olympic National Park was the Hoh Rain Forest. Up until the Thursday before our visit access to the area had been cut off by a washout along the access road in December 2024. Fortunately, the State of Washington was able to fund repairs, and the road reopened on 5/8/2025. The forecast was for a slight chance of showers which seemed fitting for a rain forest hike.

We parked at the Hoh River Trailhead near the Hoh Visitors Center.

Starting just before 6am meant we had the trails to ourselves to start the morning so we began with two popular short loops, the Hall of Mosses and Spruce Trails.

The first loop we came to was the Hall of Mosses Trail.
Hall of Mosses pointer.

The Hall of Mosses Trail is a 0.8-mile interpretive loop with some nice green scenery.
Spring fed Taft Creek.

Start of the one-way loop.

Interpretive sign along the loop.

Looking up from the interpretive sign.

Maple Grove

Nursery log

After completing the loop and returning to the Hoh River Trail we crossed Taft Creek and arrived at a junction with the Spruce Nature Trail.

Fallen sign for the Spruce Nature Trail.

We turned right onto the 1.2-mile Spruce Nature Trail and hiked this loop clockwise.

This was another interpretive loop.

Hoh River from the trail.

This huge root ball was hosting its own mini forest.

Taft Creek

After completing the second loop we turned right onto the Hoh River Trail. Our plan was to hike to 5 Mile Island and then turn around.
The trail extends all the way up to Glacier Meadows below Mt. Olympus.

The section of trail to 5 Mile Island was fairly level with just a handful of short up and downs. The scenery was great as was the weather with some blue sky and just a brief misty shower on our way back to the car.

Violet

Fungi

Another type of violet.

Hoh River

Bunchberry and strawberry bramble

Slug

Trillium

Squirrel

One of the “ups”.

Star flower

Hoh River

Mineral Creek

Scouler’s corydalis along Mineral Creek.

Mineral Creek Falls

Unnamed creek a short distance beyond Mineral Creek.

Waterfall on the unnamed creek.

Sign for the spur trail to Mount Tom Creek Camp.

Wren

Vanilla leaf

Water droplet on a vanilla leaf.

More violets

Salmonberry along the trail.

Big leaf maple canopy.

There were a few obstacles such as this closer to 5 Mile Island.

Cougar Creek crossing.

Marker at the spur trail for 5 Mile Island Camp.

Hoh River at 5 Mile Island Camp.

View upriver from the same spot.

Privy at 5 Mile Island Camp.

Crow

Cat Peak, Mount Carrie, and Ruth Peak partly under clouds.

Cat Peak

After a nice long break at 5 Mile Island Camp we headed back to the trailhead. We’d had the trails pretty much to ourselves until the return trip when we started encountering an increasing number of folks on the trail.

We saw a lot of robins, on this hike and the over the next four days.

Slug

Candy flower

Almost back to the trailhead.

This was the longest hike of our week coming in at 13 miles and 400′ of elevation gain.

It was a beautiful hike, and we can only imagine what the remaining miles of trail might be like. It was obvious why this is such a popular area in the park, and we were glad we’d arrived early enough to enjoy some solitude. It was a great introduction to Olympic National Park. Happy Trails!

Flickr: Hoh Rain Forest

Tags 5 Mile Island, Hall of Mosses, hiking, Hoh Rain Forest, Hoh River, Hoh River Trail, Mineral Creek, Mineral Falls, Olympic National Park, Olympic Peninsula, Spruce Nature Trail, Washington