Day 1 - Hoh River trailhead to Olympus Guard Station (9.1 miles)
Day 2 - Camp at Martin Creek (~mile 14.7) (~5.6 miles) (we planned to day hike to Glacier Meadows this day but were too tired)
Day 3 - Day hike to Blue Glacier (but we stopped at the rope ladder) (~4.6 round trip), then hike down to Happy Four (mile 5.7) (9 miles, 13.6 total)
Day 4 - Hike out from Happy Four (5.7 miles)
This was a last-minute trip for us so we did the planning quickly and were really grateful we were able to get permits with like 24 hours' notice. Huge thanks to WTA for being such a good resource! I hiked this with my partner; we're both in our 30s, in decent shape but not hiking regularly.
I had read that Lewis Meadow - Blue Glacier day hike was really challenging so (in addition to be limited by which permits were available) we decided to backpack up to Martin Creek and then day hike to Blue Glacier. However, I wouldn't necessarily recommend this itinerary; if we do it again, I'd probably try out camping at Lewis Meadow and doing the long day hike rather than packing up the steep slope.
Day 1 - The path was pretty flat, smooth, and this part was easier than expected. There was a 1.5 hour line to get into the park and so we didn't get on the trail until 1pm or so. (Take seriously the suggestion on the website to arrive before 10am!) It took us about 5 hours to hike the 9 miles to Olympus Guard station. We camped on the gravel bar and it was super gorgeous.
Day 2 - After Lewis Meadow, the trail started going up steeply! Although the mileage wasn't super long, we found packing up to Martin Creek quite challenging and weren't up for the additional day hike, which made Day 3 an epic day. Martin Creek has some nice camps up along the creek and only one permit per night, which meant it was sweet and quiet. Nice swimming holes to dip in. Someone had left toilet paper around which we picked up.
Day 3 - We woke up at 5:30am and day hiked with small packs 2 miles up to the rope ladder, but found it a little scary and so we turned around there. Nonetheless there were great views of Mount Olympus. We then backpacked down from Martin Creek to Happy Four which made it a very long day - we got to camp around 8pm.
Day 4 - The hike out was pretty flat and easy, took us about 4 hours at a leisurely pace. There are nice swimming spots/river access along the way.
The thimbleberries, huckleberries, and blueberries were amazing; dipping in the river and creeks was awesome. I hadn't hiked in the Olympic National Park for years and I appreciated the permit system: that there were last-minute permits available and that it limited the number of folks in the wilderness while creating lots of access. It still felt like lots of people compared to more remote places I've backpacked, but I really appreciate the ways the park is balancing access and maintaining wilderness. People were very friendly and helpful on the trail (although I wish someone had told us about the rope ladder, as we were surprised.) We had a great trip and I'd highly recommend this for experienced backpackers!
For reference - here's some of the mileages (listed on the sign at the start of the trail):
Tom Creek 2.9
Happy Four Shelter 5.7
Olympus Guard 9.1
Elk Lake 15.1
Glacier Meadows 17.3
Comments