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Bogachiel River

Last modified Nov 06, 2009 09:18 AM
Bridge across the first creek on the Bogachiel Trail. Photo by Bob and Barb.

The Bogachiel River snakes through Washington's forgotten rain forest. No main roads run along this major Olympic river, nor penetrate its wild valley. There are no visitors centers here either. No interpretive trails or developed campgrounds amid the towering spruce and fir. There's nothing fancy here at all-just a quiet backcountry trail through pure rainforest wilderness.

Your first impression of the Bogachiel River Trail may have you wondering, "I thought this was a wilderness trail through old-growth rain forest."It is-just give it a couple of miles. The trail begins in a dark forest of second growth. It was logged during the 1940s in the name of national defense.

Descend on a muddy track to Morganroth Creek. During the rainy season (most of the year) expect to get your feet wet crossing it. A small interpretive path leads left to a marshy area. The Forest Service has plans to extend this trail into a small loop. The main trail continues right, intersecting then utilizing an old road bed for some level and easy strolling.

At 1.5 miles come to the national park boundary. Pooches are not permitted beyond this point. Along rich bottomlands the trail brushes up against the river. At 2.5 miles negotiate a steep bluff (with the help of a rope) to skirt an area claimed by the river. Drop back down to river level and get your feet wet again hopping across Mosquito Creek. Big trees finally appear (I told you it gets better). Despite light use, the trail is in remarkable shape, thanks in large part to the tireless work of the Washington Trails Association. But while only a handful of hikers trek up this valley each year, the elk that pass through are legion. Keep your eyes out for these elegant beasties.

Ancient giants dwarf you as you continue up the trail. Except for the river's soothing churn and sweet serenades from resident wrens, the primeval forest is quiet. Lichens drape overhead. Fern boughs burst open from the forest floor. Dew-dripping moss clings to everything. Only the glaucous sheen of alder bark breaks the deep green of the rain forest.

After 6 miles of peaceful passage, you'll come to a junction with the Rugged Ridge Trail and a most inviting riverside camping area. This is a good spot to turn around, or if inclined, spend the night. During low water flows, venture out onto the gravel banks of the river. During downpours admire the torrents from the elevated embankment.

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Recent Trip Reports

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There are 17 trip reports for this hike. See all trip reports for this hike.
Bogachiel River, Little Divide, Deer Lake, Bogachiel Peak — Jul 19, 2009 — Ladyblade
Multi-night backpack
Features: Wildflowers blooming | Ripe berries
Issues: Blowdowns | Overgrown | Mudholes | Washouts | Water on trail | Bugs
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My husband and I started our 6 day trip at the Bogie TH on Sunday evening. The first 8...
My husband and I started our 6 day trip at the Bogie TH on Sunday evening. The first 8 miles were flat, easy, and smooth with just the one spot where you have to use the rope to scramble up an old washout. Lots of berries and bugs. We camped on the riverbed the first night where there is a go-around a blow down. You just follow the flags along the river bed a short ways and hop back up onto the trail. I can't remember where exactly, but there was a hornets nest just off the trail nestled in among the roots of a tree on the first day. Just be cautious where you place your trekking poles.

Second day, things got a little more mucky and shrubby. Inbetween 15 mile shelter and Hyak, the salmonberries have overtaken the trail. This should be solved in a couple of days per Ranger Stu whom informed us that a crew will be in in a couple of days to clean things up a bit. Also, somewhere between Flapjack and Spawner Creek, there is a hornets nest RIGHT on the edge of the trail! Someone marked it from the west side with lichen and a piece of paper saying "BEES!" with a stick holding it down on the trail (Bless you!) so we were prepared. The washout at Spawner Creek is a mess right now. Once you cross the creek, DON'T follow the trail up. Follow the edge of the river bed and cross the mouth of the washout. There will be a couple of small cairns and an orange tag to show you where to scramble up the hill back up. Once up on flat ground, just head thru the woods towards the trail. There is no such marking if you are going west, or if there is, we couldn't find it. Hopefully, this will be fixed soon.

Flapjack Camp still is a very nice camping spot, 15 mile is small, dingy, and you have to camp practically on the trail, but Hyak is very nice. It has two old fallen & falling down privies that I hope don't end up being huge holes in the ground when they rot away. Be careful of animal holes in the meadow.

Third day we stayed put until noon, giving my feet a break. More salmonberries to fight, marshy muck to plod thru, and route finding. This trail is proving its worth as a slight challenge, nevermind that we have seen no one since we hit the Park boundary two miles in. We get to see a bear that we startle out of the berry bushes, it heading up a hill to our right, only pausing in its flight to take a quick glance back at us. Very, very cool! It took us over three hours to go three miles, but we got to 21 Mile shelter still with energy, but we didn't have our reservation for Deer Lake until the following night and didn't know about any other camp spots or water after 21 Mile. There are a couple different spots to pitch a tent at 21 Mile. One right next to where the shelter has fallen down, and a decent spot a few yards up to the left. There is a spot there in front of a nurse log and a smaller, more private spot behind that.

The fourth day we headed up early, hoping to make the elevation before the temps rose. There is a cairn at a water source which we took to mean that this is the last good water source before Deer Lake. We had heard of the lack of water at this part of the trail, so we had filled up our bottles and carried extra from a creek just down from that. It is good to know that it is marked, though. We also found a camp just a ways up from the last water source and a little off the trail. Looks to be a camp frequented by work crews as there was split wood and an old rotting pair of work gloves. There is a creek bed behind that where a seasonal creek may run, but it was dry today.

We kept heading up and popped out at the Little Divide. Wow! Just...wow! Major flower show going on and the views were awesome. The snow is all gone and the trail is in great condition. The trip to Deer Lake was uneventful, but all the flowers out made it a slow trip for all my photo taking and just enjoying the sights. Getting into Deer Lake, Ranger Kevin recommended Camp Site#6, which was one we were hoping to get. It was still empty and we set up camp in one of the most private spots. There was a huge meadow behind us and no noise from other groups could reach us. Ranger Kevin aslo mentioned that we has just missed a huge herd of goats that had come thru. Probably a good thing...Fish looked to be plentiful and hungry. Maybe good fishing here?

Fifth day, we left the tent and just took our essential gear to day hike to Bogie Peak. Plenty of views and flowers!! Lot of exposure here and I was glad to have brought extra sunscreen. We carried extra water, though there was a few spots from snow melt we could have gotten water. Better safe than sorry. There was only a itty bit of snow on the trail and it is probably gone by today. The trail is perfect and swift. We did chose to climb Bogie Peak via a trail that was not marked and was a bit hand over hand scrambling to get up. Nothing major, but we came down the actual marked path which we would have found if we had gone around the Peak and came in from the other side. Much, much easier. The views here were worth the work, though. I had never seen the 7 Lake Basin before and to be able to turn around and see the Hoh Valley and the top of all the mountains was extremely breathtaking.

On the last day, we headed out to Sol Duc TH. Down hill all the way, Canyon Creek has 3 marked camp sites along the trail. Not sure if they are in the quota area or not, but a nice option if you come in late and can't make it to Deer Lake before dark. We opted for a nice after hike soak in the pools and a snack at the diner. They have beer and good onion rings!!

Notes: Black flies were almost worse than the skeeters. I recommend deet. Lots and lots of bees. We had no problems, but bring an Epipen if you are at all allergic. Most our issues with the trail should be solved when crews go in to bushwhack and tidy up, but this is an ongoing problem with the trail. I really hope it doesn't fade away, the trail itself is a wonderful way to access the High Divide and offers true solitude. Please hike this trail and don't let it disappear! Berries are plentiful right now, including the most awesome blackcaps. Yum!

 
Link to photo slideshow:

http://outdoors.webshots.com/slideshow/573733552DHZXeD
  

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Bogachiel River — May 24, 2009 — Bob and Barb
Day hike
Features: Wildflowers blooming
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We hiked 4 miles on this pleasant trail. Mother Nature and volunteers have provided a nice bridge across the first...
We hiked 4 miles on this pleasant trail. Mother Nature and volunteers have provided a nice bridge across the first creek crossing. A large spruce (?) fell across the creek and this was made into a dandy bridge! At 2.5 miles there is a rope to help you climb the steep bluff above a washout of the trail. There were many flowers blooming--yellow monkey-flowers, spring beauty, trillium,bunchberry, fringecup to name a few. On our way out we saw some winter wren fledglings which were fun to watch and listen to!
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Bogachiel River #20 — Jul 22, 2008 — shane
Day hike
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This is a trail for solitude seekers. And rainforest enthusiasts. So much attention is placed (and rightly so) on the...

This is a trail for solitude seekers. And rainforest enthusiasts. So much attention is placed (and rightly so) on the Hoh and Quinault rainforests that often folks pass up the Bogachiel not realizing what a gem it is as well. The trail starts out in Olympic National Forest and then enters Olympic National Park in about 1.5 miles. We hiked this, plus another 1.5 miles into the park.

We found the road (Undi Road) to the trail to be in excellent shape, as was the portion of trail we hiked. We met a small, local trail crew from Clallam County doing some nice work on the National Forest end. All in all, no problems to report, not even bugs. One surprise was learning about a connector trail that has recently been created on the National Forest side. This allows you to hike the River Trail (heading east) and just before the park boundary, turning back west (left), and making a 3-mile loop trip back to the trailhead via a beautiful grove of old growth and a large wetland. (We did this on our way back out.) Beware, though; there are no signs marking this new trail yet.

I have to admit that I had anticipated this hike for some time and imagined the trees to be giants standing amid a world of emerald green. Well, it wasn't quite that, but it still was beautiful. There are some large Sitka spruce, western redcedar and western hemlocks in this area (especially along the new National Forest trail) and I had to remind myself that hiking in the rainforest in July is not the same as hiking there in March or April when everything is dripping with moisture.

We saw lots of signs left behind by the resident Roosevelt elk, but no elk sightings. We saw a kingfisher. Several flowers were blooming along the trail, including pinesap, buttercup, heal-all, yellow monkeyflower, and others. Our turning point was at a beautiful cobbly beach along the Bogachiel about 1.5 miles into the park. We ate lunch here and enjoyed the clearing to get a different perspective on this wild valley. (To reach this nice spot, just look for a spur trail leading off to the south that is flagged with neon pink ribbon.)

I hope to return to this quiet valley and experience it's wild character again and, perhaps, hike up to the high country along the High Divide. I highly recommend heading to the Bogachiel for a taste of the wild!

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Bogachiel River #20 — Jan 07, 2006 — NILLIN
Day hike
Issues: Water on trail
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Warm and wet. Stream crossings are many and a few require getting wet up to the thigh (there are two...

Warm and wet. Stream crossings are many and a few require getting wet up to the thigh (there are two almost immediately after the trail begins, still outside the park). Bring sandals. I wore mine the whole way out as changing back and forth between boots and sandals slowed me down too much. Spooked a group of 6-8 elk crossing the trail just after entering the park. A nice wet trip, but slow going with the creeks so swollen right now.

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Bogachiel River #20,Sol Duc River #40,High Divide #41 #38,Seven Lakes Basin #39 — Aug 31, 2005 — Bob and Barb
Day hike
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We camped our first night at Deer Lake,leaving the next AM for Round Lake where we stayed 3 nights,...

We camped our first night at Deer Lake,leaving the next AM for Round Lake where we stayed 3 nights, doing day hikes from there. After setting up camp we hiked to Bogachiel Peak and then back to Round Lake through Y Lake Basin. Fall colors had started and were very beautiful. The second day we hiked to Hoh Lake and had clear skies and views of Mt Olympus. The third day we hiked from Round Lake to Sol Duc Lake, then to Clear Lake and Long Lake. Sunday we headed for Sol Duc Park to spend our last night. The High Divide was foggy with off and on light drizzle, so we will have to return again for the views! This was our first time to this area and we are eager to return to explore the ares we didn't see this trip!

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Location
Bogachiel River (#20)
Olympics -- West
Olympic National Park
2.60 out of 5
Based on 5 votes
Featured In...

Day Hiking: Olympic Peninsula
by Craig Romano

To buy the full book, including maps, elevation profiles, photos, and more, visit:

A portion of all book sales from the links above benefits WTA and helps protect and maintain our trails.

Information about this hike provided in partnership with Mountaineers Books. Copyright © Craig Romano/The Mountaineers Books

Roundtrip 12.0 miles
Elevation Gain 400 ft
Highest Point 500 ft
Features
Rivers
Old growth
Established campsites
Guidebooks & Maps
Day Hiking: Olympic Peninsula (Romano - Mountaineers Books)
Green Trails Spruce Mountain No. 132
Custom Correct Bogachiel Valley

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Driving Directions
(47.8822, -124.2750) Open in new window
Red Marker Bogachiel River
47.8822166667 -124.27505

From Forks travel south for 5 miles on US 101. Turn left (east) onto Undie Road, located directly across from the entrance to Bogachiel State Park. Follow this road for 5.6 miles to a gate and the trailhead (the last 2 miles are unpaved and during heavy periods of rain are prone to flooding and developing giant mud holes).

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