Best Hikes in Olympic National Park
Olympic National Park is where the waves meet the wilderness, glaciated peaks soar high above ancient trees, and snow-fed rivers flow directly to the pacific ocean. Coast, Forest, and Mountain Ecosystems team up to create an amazing outdoor playground that we now call Olympic National Park. While there are tons of trails to explore in this park, it is a bustling park since it’s located near Seattle. The Washingtonians don't mess around with their time off, and they almost have all the overnight backpacking adventures fully booked. So if you want to get out on the trails, we are here to show you the path less traveled.
Upon arrival, You’ll want to get to the (WIC) Wilderness Information Center ASAP! When you get there, grab a Wilderness Trip Planner map. Speak with the Rangers. If everything seems booked-out sometimes, they can book you sites that aren't on the webpage. If you have booked ahead, congratulations, you aren't an honorary kook! If you plan on hiking popular trails in the area, like the High Divide Trail and The Enchanted Valley, you’ll want to book well in advance. We really wanted to get out on an overnight trail, so we searched for a while, discussed with rangers, and finally decided on the Blue Glacier 40 Miles expedition. We also made a few other trails we would like to share with you here.
Obstruction Point to Deer Park (13.9 Miles Out and Back - Hard)
Obstruction Point is a secret spot. At least it seemed like that when we arrived at 8 pm to an empty parking lot. Most days, you’ll find the Hurricane Ridge parking lot full to the max, but if you are keen like a kook, you'll know the secret road to Obstruction Point. It’s a dirt road that climbs quite a bit to the trailhead, but it’s a really amazing spot up on the alpine slopes. We camped at the trailhead and hiked Obstruction Point first thing in the morning. We were the only humans on the trail. We saw a few marmots and other creatures out and about. You don't have to do the full 13 miles. You will reach a high point about halfway. That’s a good place to summit Elk Mountain and turn around. From the summit, you will be able to see the Straight of Juan De Fuca and the Puget Sound, as well as Mt. Baker and Mt. Olympus! If you start early, you’ll notice that you’ll encounter more people on your way back, and the parking lot will probably be full. We saw more cars in line at this park's entrance gate than any other park in the country.
Hoh River Trail to Blue Glacier (40 Miles - Hard)
We could book out an overnight 3 night 4-day backpacking trip up the Hoh River to the Blue Glacier. If you are up for over 40 miles of backpacking, this trip is so amazing we couldn't recommend it enough! We loved this trip. It may have been the highlight of our summer.
Our camping Itinerary for this expedition was as follows.
Night #1 - Lewis Meadows
Night #2 - Glacier Meadows
Night #3 - Olympic Gaurd Station
We had plenty of time, and we broke up the expedition into three nights, four days. We met people who did this in two days, and they could barely walk when we saw them. I thought one of them had a disability, but he was that sore. The hike's first 12 miles are through the Hoh Rainforest along the Hoh River and pretty Mellow. At mile marker 12.4, you’ll begin the climb up to glacier meadows, which is about 4000 feet of elevation, and this is where the training kicked in. We didn’t have too many problems getting up. The best part of this climb is that it is through the ancient forest and is nice and shaded, so you stay cool. When we were there in September, it was pretty hot, and we really sweated it out on the lower section in the sun.
Before you make it to Glacier Meadows, you will be warned of a washout section on the trail. The NPS service will warn you to be ready for this trail washout. They make it seem like it’s just a small ladder down a washout. The ladder descends about 100 feet down to the rubble and is family safe, but if you fell, you would be pretty injured, so don't fall! We will note it’s easier to go up this ladder than down. It’s also very exposed here, and we were burning up in the sun in the late afternoon for this section of the hike. There are also a few more trailside creeks and streams to filter water on your way to Glacier Meadows.
Eventually, you will make it to Glacier Meadows, and you will be happy to see the campsites. We will note a small stream at Glacier Meadows to filter water to drink and prepare food with. From here, there is still about 1000 ft of vertical climb and about a mile of hiking up to the terminal arm. This is where you realize that every step was worth the effort. When you top out, you’ll see the Blue Glacier running down Mount Olympus carving a massive moraine. This is one of the most beautiful things I've ever seen on a backpacking trip. We got up there around sunset and stayed until it was dark. We hiked down without headlamps back to Glacier Meadows and slept like babies.
We headed back down in the morning to the Hoh River Ranger Station for our last night. There are some really awesome campsites here at the Ranger Station. We will also note that the Ranger came and asked us for permits, so if you are thinking of poaching this hike, you've been warned we saw a ranger here and at Mt. Rainier NP. We wrapped up the hike the next day out through the Rain Forest. We saw a few Elk and we were stoked to get back to the car to eat some real food.
We ate and then we headed out. There are some decent free camping options outside the park along the Hoh River on the park's entrance road. They are surprisingly quiet at night as no one is entering the park after about 5 pm.
This was an amazing experience and we will never forget it. If you are heading to the Olympic National Park and up for a tough and rewarding adventure and are having trouble booking other expeditions check with the WIC to see if you can plan a Blue Glacier expedition, you won’t regret it!
