We did a 3-night trip up and down the river valley all the way to the glacier, with stays at Lewis Meadows, Martin Creek and Happy Four. Arrived at the trailhead around 8AM on a Friday (after camping at nearby Bogachiel State Park, which I highly recommend if you want to drive over to that side of the peninsula the night before you start your trip), no wait to get in and plenty of parking in the backpacking/overflow lot.
The first day was a straightforward 10ish miles from the trailhead to Lewis Meadows. The trail is well maintained and relatively flat, and you'll surely have company on and off until at least the 2 river crossings. The 1st crossing is around 8ish miles in, after Happy Four camp but before the Olympus Ranger Station (see my AllTrails link for exact waypoints). At this time the water was maybe calf-deep, never above knees depending on your route. It was very easy with poles and water shoes. I've read reports and saw evidence of people making new trails a bit further up and crossing on a downed log, but I could see this being very sketchy if the log is wet. My advice: just bring some sandals and enjoy the brisk stream, it'll be over in 2 minutes. The 2nd crossing is at a log jam that can be easily navigated over without getting wet. Other than that the hike is a beautiful but uneventful day through the woods.
Lewis Meadows campground is nice though I could see it being very crowded in busier times. Make sure to continue past the meadow you start at until you get to the river where there are many nice campsites. At this time the only water source was the silty Hoh River itself. The pit toilet was useable.
The 2nd day we backpacked from Lewis Meadows to Martin Creek, and this is when the real uphill began. You'll still be entirely in the woods for this portion. I would highly recommend camping at Martin Creek rather than Elk Lake. Right next to an easy water source, wide open spaces, and less distance/elevationt o carry your heavy pack. Only downside is no pit toilet.
After setting up camp we day hiked up to the glacier itself. Be prepared for the distance and elevation you'll be doing, we were not and it was an absolutely slog by the end (didn't help that it was a 90+ day). You'll still be mostly in forest until beyond Glacier Meadows (which did not look like a very nice place to stay honestly). The slide-area ladder was not too big of a deal with daypacks, though I'm sure it'd be much more harrowing with a full pack. The final mile up to the glacier was the only truly exposed part of the entire trail. There were so many berries just above Glacier Meadows that I was shocked we didn't run into a bear.
You'll eventually reach a fork with options to go to the lateral or terminal moraines. While we did not go to the terminal, many people told us the lateral was the choice to make if you had to make one. It's a tough final mile up but the view from the ridge is absolutely worth the entire effort, an absolutely stunning view of the glacier and Mt. Olympus.
When we got back to Martin Creek we met some people that said they had just seen a bear at the creek, and then not 5 minutes later we saw the bear maybe 50-100 yards above our camp. We yelled but he did not seem particularly interested in us. He tore up a stump for a while and then headed deeper into the woods.
Our final day was spent retracing our steps back to Happy Four camp. There's no pit toilet here either but I really liked this campsite. There were many campsites that were shaded but right next to the wide open gravel bar and river.
Overall is a really great 3 night trip, personally I would not want to do it in any more or less days. The forest is gorgeous, though by the last day you'll probably be ready to just put your head down and march out. The glacier view is a tough dayhike from the campgrounds along the river but absolutely worth it.
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