This is a great hike, and one that exposes you to a lot of different environments. The road in is easily accessible, and there is a ranger station at the trailhead, so you can learn more about the rainforest before or after your trip. The trail is quite easy and nicely graded for about the first 12-ish miles. There are sections within deep forest, some that just go alongside the river, and some more open sections at various campsites. There are cool shelters and buildings along the way, although the shelters are for emergency use only. There are also plenty of bathrooms at various campsites, and many sites have bear wires. This means that if you plan your itinerary carefully you can complete the hike over several days without the need of a bear can, as long as you bring a sack to hang on the bear lines. The High Hoh bridge is quite impressive, as you walk over a hundred feet above a canyon, and afterwords the trail begins to gain elevation. It is still well-maintained, but you work a bit more for the miles. Beyond elk lake there is the washout, but it is pretty easy if you take your time. We spent a night at glacier meadows, and made sure to visit both the lateral and terminal moraines. Both are awesome little trips, and I would highly recommend that everyone who has come this far do both. They both offer stunning views of the blue glacier, mount Olympus, and the surrounding mountains, and are incredibly beautiful locations. When we came back from our trip, one of our tires had badly deflated, but when the rangers saw us putting on the spare, they got an air compressor and filled our tire up, allowing us to go home much quicker. Overall this is a great hike, and the rangers out there are good people. Would definitely recommend!

Stayed overnight at Willaby campground at Lake Quinault and picked up permit there. The next morning drove to Hoh to start a 2 night backpack. I was a little too ambitious and we hiked all the way to Elk Lake the first day. Even though the first 12 miles don’t gain too much elevation, it’s still a workout and by the time we reached the switchbacks, we were feeling a bit trail weary. The camps at 12.4, 13.1-13.3 mi are great alternatives if you want to pass Lewis Meadow but not climb all the way to Elk Lake- although these don’t have bear wire. We also really liked 5 mi Island (only 5 mi in but good river access). The lake is very marshy on the perimeter and we hiked back a ways past Martin camp to get water from the creek. Otherwise the campsites are pretty good at Elk- there was a group of men that were extremely loud and laughing past nightfall both nights we were there. They were obviously having a good time but it’s not respectful/mindful of others’ experience out in nature so just throwing it out there to remember to be considerate of other visitors.
Next day we day hiked to Blue Glacier. The trail along the ridge line offers great views of Olympus. We ran into quite a queue at the ladder. It was steeper/more exposed than we had anticipated and my partner opted not to do it (fear of heights). I rappelled down using the rope on the side of the ladder (same thing on the way back). It’s definitely an adrenaline rush. I started with the lateral moraine- the meadow on the way up is amazing. It was sunny at the time and I could see 2 climbers coming down from the peak which was cool. The terminal moraine is less elevation so I was glad to do it after the lateral which was a pretty decent climb. Overall the trip was great and we would definitely return.

Our group of 4 adults had a fabulous four day backpacking trip up to Blue Glacier and back. We camped at the Olympus Gaurd station our first and third nights and up at Glacier Meadows. Other than some rain our first evening (including some pouring rain right as we were setting up camp!), we had amazing, sunny weather. Plus there were minimal bugs. We were very lucky with our timing. 

I was surprised that the Olympus Gaurd station wasn’t super busy even on Saturday night. We didn’t get in to camp until 5:15-ish both Thursday and Saturday and found open, river-front campsites. The two new privies are super nice, too. 

Glacier meadows, however, was very busy. Since we got in pretty late (maybe 7:30), we had last pick of campsites, yet amazingly used one at the very (uphill) end that was awesome and private. BUT someone had pooped right by the tent site, leaving it right on the ground!!! It was terrible. My friend was amazing for finding a way to scoop it up and go dump it in the privy. We were all astounded by the lack of respect for nature or other campers this showed. (Ugh!) we didn’t let this incident ruin our trip, however. 

The washout right before Glacier Meadows was way more intense and involved more risk exposure than I anticipated. Per other trip reports, I used the ladder as footholds and the rope for balance with my hands. I did this both up and down, which worked really well (though was quite the workout with a full pack, especially given the stress). 

I only hiked to the terminal moraine because I was stressed about going up the washout and wanted to get going (though some of my friends did both but said the terminal is better than the lateral moraine). It was a really spectacular, if not a primordial experience as my friends guide book said it would be. 

All in all I highly recommend this trip, if you’re comfortable with the risk exposure of the washout. We left very happy, fulfilled, and sore. 

I backpacked this trail starting Monday afternoon, July 8th, with the following campsite stops: Happy Four, Olympus Guard Station camp, Elk Lake, camp 13.3 on the way back Thursday night. I was able to get up to the Blue Glacier Moraine viewpoint on Thursday. Finally, got the pictures to attach!

Per the Quillayute weather reports (I looked at afterward), it rained 1.5 inches Tuesday evening through Wednesday, and a little on Thursday. But I was rained or drizzled on every day (heavy at times) much of the trip from Tuesday to Friday. I think I had more frequent rain than the Quillayute totals because I was closer to Mt. Olympus (which gets over 200" average/year) than Quillayute (98"/year). I read lots of ebooks on my phone Tuesday evening thru Thursday waiting for the rain to slacken, which it did off and on.

I found the origin of the "Happy Four" shelter name on a plaque (see picture) inside the shelter, which read in part:

"In the mid-1930's, four U.S. Forest Service employees built this shelter. As the story goes, they became disenchanted with each other's company, to the point where "They did not even speak." To commemorate this partnership, District Ranger Sandy Floe dubbed this site "Happy Four Camp", a name that has stuck with this shelter to this day." (The plaque has a NPS emblem, etc.)

The difficult trail areas were partly washed out side stream crossings and their approaches (including the famous "steel ropes and wood ladder" before the Martin Creek camp.) One climber coming down Tuesday said that one crossing (not the ladder; some? side stream above the Hoh River bridge at 13.1+ miles?) was very difficult due to high water. However, I did not encounter any that high. Most heavy rain seemed to be Tuesday night, and I noticed the Hoh River itself dropped at least 18" at one point I observed, from Wednesday until Friday. Another side stream approach (above the Hoh River bridge?) required one to go down a very steep muddy bank; choose your route carefully! Several tree trunks to cross but none too difficult.

Even with the weather, the view at the top was fantastic, with all but the last 500' or so of Mt. Olympus visible at times Thursday. The flowers are out above Glacier Meadows. I hiked the 13+ miles out in one day - did not want to unpack and pack wet gear again. In these weather conditions, a fire would be useful. Unless you find an open sunny spot (during the brief sunny periods) to spread things out, what is wet stays wet, the whole trip. For example, I hung my (just-washed and wrung-out) polyester socks on the outside of my pack on Friday morning (Remember, "No rain" on Friday, per Quillayute!) yet they actually turned even wetter and moldy smelling again before I got to the car! Most climbers appeared to be successful despite the weather. One climber hiking out related to a campsite (Glacier Meadows?) where his tent site turned into a mini-lake early Wednesday morning! Overall, a beautiful hike through giant trees, flowered meadows, and great views, despite the rain and moderate bugs!

NorWester

Blog version (disclaimers)

Quick-and-dirty version

Access: Hoh River Trailhead
Round Trip: 43.5 miles
Elevation Range: 600′-7969′
Gear: helmet, ice axe, snow, rock

Approach

1. Hike the Hoh River Trail for 17.5 miles to Glacier Meadows Camp.
2. Continue on trail past camp to arrive at the moraine by Blue Glacier.
3. Travel Blue Glacier through Snow Dome and Crystal Pass to arrive at the false summit.
4. Descend to saddle and climb up to the summit block.
5. Ascend north ridge to arrive at Mount Olympus summit.

Highlights

• Glorious weather on day two
• Blue Glacier and Snow Dome
• Views to nearby high points including Mount Olympus sub-peaks and Mount Tom

Lowlights

• Cloudy and rainy approach
• Long hike to camp
• Increasing clouds on the summit