Counting Rings-Hoh Rainforest Trail by Arlo Smith.
The most famous of all the Olympic rain forests, the Hoh is one of the busiest places in Olympic National Park. A visitors center and a couple of well-groomed nature trails attract bus loads of admirers from Seattle to Seoul, Boston to Berlin. And its not just camera-toting tourists that invade this valley; pan-toting backpackers and caribiner-clanking climbers flock here too. The Hoh River Trail also provides access to Mount Olympus and the High Divide. But who can blame all of these people for coming here? The Hoh rain forest truly is one of the world's most spectacular places.
While the Hoh rain forest is a busy place, most hikers visit during the summer months and on autumn weekends. Come in the spring or even winter and experience a valley more sedate. Besides, with fewer people in the off-season, chances are good of witnessing members of the resident elk herd. But even if you end up hitting the trail on a busy day, the crowds thin out dramatically after only a couple of miles.
The hike to Five Mile Island is far enough to experience the old-growth grandeur and pure wildness of this valley, yet close enough that it can be done by most hikers, young and old. The trail is impeccably groomed, and the way virtually level, with minimal elevation change. Five Mile Island, with its wide grassy banks along the mighty rainforest river, was designed for whiling the afternoon away.
Start by following the paved Hall of Mosses Trail for 0.2 mile to a junction. Now on bona fide tread begin your journey through this valley of primeval forest. A cacophony of birdsong from wrens, nuthatches, woodpeckers, chickadees, and thrushes can be heard over the distant hum of the river. Pass by colonnades of spruce and under awnings of moss-cloaked maples. Licorice ferns and club mosses cling to overhanging trees like holiday decorations on New York's Fifth Avenue. And while the surroundings are lush, the understory is fairly open. Browsing elk keep the shrubs and bushes well trimmed.
In 1 mile get your first unobstructed view of the river. Gaze out to the High Divide and snow-capped Mount Tom, a peak on the Olympus massif. Pass the Mount Tom Creek Campsite at 2.3 miles; then climb above the river, catching glimpses of deep emerald pools below. Cross Mineral Creek by a lovely cascade. Five minutes later another cascade delights. At 2.9 miles come to a junction with the Mount Tom Trail. If you'd like, follow this path right 0.25 mile to open gravel bars and spectacular valley views.
Veering away from the river, the main path continues. Traverse impressive stands of Sitka spruce and at 4 miles come to the Cougar Creek cedar grove. Stand in awe beneath these trees, older than the great cathedrals of Europe-and just as inspiring. At 5.3 miles arrive at Five Mile Island. Formed by river channels, the island is an inviting grassy bottomland graced with maple glades. Sit by the churning river and enjoy views up the valley all the way to Bogachiel Peak. If it's raining, the nearby Happy Four Shelter (0.5 mile farther) will provide cover for your lunchtime break.
I read so many TRs from LDW where the weather was bad, I just wanted to share my LDW weather:...
I read so many TRs from LDW where the weather was bad, I just wanted to share my LDW weather: perfect. Where, you say? The coastal strip of Olympic NP and nearby rainforest valleys.
Tanja, Daisy and I drove out on Friday night when I got off work around 7 pm, so we got in to Kalaloch campground pretty durn late. But with a motorhome, who cares? Just go in back and go to sleep, after a short beach walk in the starlight, of course. We had reservations for Friday and Sunday, with zip for Saturday, but I knew it wouldn't be a problem, since there are always no-shows. We lucked out in that a bluff campsite was available for Sat and Sun, so the ranger let us switch for Sun. The rest of the weekend we ""camped"" with the motorhome backed right up to the beach, except for a 25 ft bluff trail and some driftwood.
Saturday was ""do nothing"" day. Just de-stressing, resting, feasting, a little beach walking and a bit of playing with the dog, then break time again.
Sunday was rainforest day, so we drove up to the Hoh river TH and campground, with a stop to see bigfoot at the Rainforest Cafe. Knowing the rules, we knew we could take the dog for a walk in the extensive picnic area and around the three campground loops, all told well over a mile, including a nice river section. It is a pretty good walk, especially when the majority of the campsites are empty, which was strange for the Sunday of LDW.
Then we put the dog in the motorhome with a bowl of water and the ceiling fan on, and we headed up the Hoh river trail. Our destination: the nice waterfall about 2 1/2 miles in, across from Tom's creek. The Hoh trail is a natural wonder, a true delight to walk, rain or shine. We had shine. Giant trees draped in moss and carpeted in ferns, lush vegetation covering every square inch of every surface, the absolute quiet of every sound muffled before it can move an inch, sweet!
The waterfall is small but very intimate. There is a trail that goes up to it, take the short detour if you are up there. Sitting by that waterfall, I could well imagine I was in some fantasy land or fairy tale. Magical. It was also very nice to hike with Tanja, a rare treat. The flatness of the trail allowed her to do the almost 6 miles R/T without trouble. It felt weird to hike with her but without the dog. I kept looking around for her. In any case it was cool to be off the tourist loops near the TH, which were uber-crowded.
Monday was another restful day of beach lounging, until it was time to drive home in the late afternoon. We disdained the ferry system and drove through Olympia and Aberdeen both ways, since our motorhome is more than 7'6"" tall so we would have to pay double. At 17 mpg, I'm better off by far driving around. It was 210 miles each way, instead of 160 by ferry, so I saved $30 in ferry fares each way but spent $11 e/w in extra gas. That's $38 saved R/T!
Pictures are posted at www.flickr.com/photos/slugman
Started out for a five night backpacking trip to Glacier Meadows on a beautiful Sunday with the threat of storms....
Started out for a five night backpacking trip to Glacier Meadows on a beautiful Sunday with the threat of storms. Night one at Happy Four (5.7 miles in) we saw some lightning which was followed by a spectacular pink, lavender and gold sunset. It was a dry night. Day Two was an uneventful hike to campsite 13.3 just past the High Hoh Bridge. There were a few sprinkles during the night, but we stayed dry.
Day three was the final uphill push to Glacier Meadows. Stunning view of Mt Olympus and White Glacier atop it. Incredible sounds across the valley of the thundering waterfalls created by glacier and snow runoff. About 3/10 of a mile from Glacier Meadows, an avalanche chute has wiped out 200 yds of the trail, and you must cross the chute to get to Glacier Meadows. It is treacherous, but doable. Look for the orange-flagged route and follow that.
At Glacier Meadows, a fall-like storm blew in with heavy rain, wind, and dropping temperatures. So on the morning of Day Four, we were motivated to get out. Hiked the full 17.5 miles out in 11 hours, under rain on and off the whole way. Beautiful trail though!
Hiking the Hoh is one of our favorites as a day hike or a backpack. This time it would be...
Hiking the Hoh is one of our favorites as a day hike or a backpack. This time it would be a day hike to 5 Mile Island.
The Park Service reported 2 washouts, at 1 mile and 3 mile. The first one has been flagged and cleared ready for the WTA trail crew for finishing work. We thought this would mean an easy hike. Wrong! The 2nd washout was at 2 miles and unmarked. We wandered off for a short way on an elk trail. Backtracking we tried again staying close to the river and found the trail again along the river. After another mile there was a 3rd washout. This time we stayed close to the river and easily picked up the trail. Further along is a bridge with a large sinkhole on your first step off the bridge. There is increasing snow on the trail and numerous blowdowns. Once the snow is melted the blowdowns should not be a major problem.
Just before reaching our lunch spot at 5 Mile Island we passed our favorite tree. It's a large western red cedar about 10' in diameter. It had a large side branch that had a 90 degree bend in it growing straight up as big as most trees. Alas, the branch has broken off. It fell without blocking the trail. You can easily walk between the fallen branch and the trail. Hopefully the Park Service and the WTA trail crew will leave it. It might become a nurse log. Let future hikers marvel at once was and what will be.
I hiked about 4+ miles up the Hoh River trail. At about 1 mile the trail is gone and there's...
I hiked about 4+ miles up the Hoh River trail. At about 1 mile the trail is gone and there's a cleared/flagged way around the wash out. Just after 2 miles, there's another wash out and no flagged/cleared way...you just kind of find your own way through the bushes, keep as close to the river as possible, and watch out for the phone/internet/tv cable laying in wait for you..I tripped on it...sure hope the bears enjoy their new HDTV .. wherever it goes! The next 2 miles are up/down and nothing major to crawl over/under. Only a few patches of snow on the trail, largest about 100' long and stomped down. I turned around when I encountered some rather large black/hairy scat on the trail. Weather held up and didn't rain in the rainforest and I actually had some sun! Only saw 2 other people near the start of the trail and the walk was a really enjoyable winter hike.
Just back from a 5 day, 36 mile trip from Hoh River Visitor Center Trailhead along Hoh River Trail, up...
Just back from a 5 day, 36 mile trip from Hoh River Visitor Center Trailhead along Hoh River Trail, up to the High Divide, down to Sol Duc, back up to Appleton Pass, then out through Olympic Hot Springs Trailhead. We saw a band of elk and a deer at the Hoh River Visitor Center camp.
The walk on Monday from the Visitor Center along the Hoh River to the Olympic Ranger Station was beautiful and an easy 9 miles, even with the heavy packs. My mother walked the first 4 miles with us, carrying lunch, and then headed back after we passed the second campsites. We spent the night on the sand bar (ranger's suggestion: more wind; fewer bugs!). I'm an idiot and lost a pair of women's Chacos on the sandbar (forgot to make sure they were attached to my pack before heading off)!
Before heading off, everyone warned us that the climb from Hoh River to Hoh Lake would be killer, but boy, were they right. Tuesday evening my brother was ill with impending bronchitis, so we wimped out at C.B. Flats and camped for the night, finishing the climb to Heart Lake the next day. Luckily this was provisioned for in the trip plan, since we had hoped to walk the Cat Basin Primitive Trail on Wednesday. It was so foggy that day, though, that it's really just as well we did not attempt it. We chased a few grouse up the trail for a switchback or two.
C.B. Flats was just going into bloom and was beautiful, and very, very wet. We found a site under some trees across the trail from the group site, and were thankful for our bear cans!
The climb to the High Divide was still tough in the morning. Hoh Lake was damp but not raining, very cold. We saw several marmots along the top of the trail near the High Divide. No snow left on the trail along the High Divide (ok, one tiny 5ft wide patch). No berries ripe yet, everything was just blooming, we wished we were coming back in two weeks!!
Heart Lake was freezing cold (literally: there was frost when I woke up on Thursday morning). We saw a herd of elk, two bears, and a family of mountain goats from our camp at Heart Lake. The elk and bears were across the valley on the other hillside. A family of grouse walked straight through camp as we were setting up.
On Thursday, the descent from Heart Lake to Appleton Pass junction was fast, but watch your step, those rocks don't stay put! Had to get creative to cross the creek at Deer Park Campground, and oh my lord the mosquitos there are enough to drive an elephant away.
Our Thursday afternoon climb up to Appleton Pass was easy, but the trail was starting to disappear under the plant life... this doesn't seem to be nearly as popular a trail as the 7 Lakes Basin trails. We arrived at the Pass viewpoint and picked a campsite, gathered water and chatted with the group who scored the awesome (unsigned) campsite next to Oyster Lake. I found it amusing that the Appleton Pass signpost indicates bearwires, but makes no mention of the only source of water for miles... we stumbled on it on a hunch! Lots of deer in camp this night.
Friday morning was our first really sunny day, and we woke at 6:30 and hiked back to the pass viewpoint to get a good look at Mt. Olympus before heading down. Just about 500 ft down the switchbacks we spotted two more bears on the slide near Oyster Lake.
From the switchbacks down to the bridge at Boulder Creek, the trail got really bad. We nearly lost it a few times in the high meadow, had a fun time climbing across a few full streams, and clambered over at least 10 large downed trees completely across the trail in several places. Looks like the trail crew hasn't made it up there at all yet this year, and the damage was pretty bad. We never had to take packs off, but beware you may need extra time to negotiate a few of these obstacles.
Made it to Olympic Hot Springs at about 2pm, where we sat and soaked in a great pool before packing it all up and walking out to the trailhead to meet our ride. All in all a great trip!!
From Forks travel south on US 101 for 12 miles to the Upper Hoh Road. (From Kalaloch head north on US 101 for 20 miles.) Head left (east) on the Upper Hoh Road for 18 miles to its end at a large parking lot, visitors center, and trailhead. Water and restrooms available.
Information about this hike provided in partnership with
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