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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