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Olympic Peninsula

This Drive Comes From...

National Geographic Driving Guide: Pacific Northwest

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Cruising the three coasts of the Olympic Peninsula allows travelers to taste many savory sites: a seaworthy replica of a historic sailing ship; a bustling Pacific Rim port; a wildlife-rich sand spit that thrusts 5 miles [8 kilometers] out into the Strait of Juan de Fuca; and a sunny valley of berry patches and small farms. But, like a chocolate-covered cherry, the heart of the matter lies in the center—in this case Olympic National Park. The drive skirts the edges of the peninsula because the park’s jagged mountains, conifer forest, and wealth of rivers and lakes block its middle. Spur roads lead back to alpine meadows frequented by marmots and black bears, hot springs, old-growth forest where elk walk beneath 300-foot [91.4-meter] trees, and mountain summits that yield top-of-the-world panoramas. CONTINUED

- Olympia
- Dungeness National Wildlife Refuge
- Lake Crescent Lodge
- Hoh Rain Forest
- Hoquiam

(Continued From Top)

Olympia
Those who recall their geography know the small city of Olympia (Visitor Center +1 360 753 8447) as the capital of Washington. Its Capitol Campus (Capitol Information Center +1 360 586 3460) is one of the most beautiful in the nation. Set on a bluff overlooking the waters of Puget Sound, the 28-story domed Legislative Building brims with rich detail, such as decorative plaster ceilings alive with eagles and Louis Tiffany’s five-ton [5.1-metric ton] “Angels of Mercy” chandelier. The surrounding campus also contains groves of Japanese cherry trees, a botanical conservatory, a reproduction of a fountain from Denmark’s Tivoli Gardens, an English-style sunken garden, and the governor’s mansion. Olympia’s history, particularly its struggle to become the state capital, is recounted at the State Capital Museum (211 W. 21st Ave. +1 360 753 2580. Closed Mon.; Adm. fee), housed in the 32-room Lord Mansion.

About 30 miles [48.3 kilometers] north, US 101 cozies up to the west bank of Hood Canal, a pretty, natural waterway, its name notwithstanding. For another 30 miles [48.3 kilometers] or so, the drive curves along the water, encountering oyster farms, marshes replete with wildlife, and small towns offering good clam chowder with a view. For a surpassing vista, turn off on Forest Road 2730 and drive 4 miles [6.4 kilometers] to the 2,804-foot [854.7-meter] summit of Mount Walker, from which you can see sights from Mount Baker and Mount Rainier to the Space Needle in Seattle.

Strait of Juan de Fuca, from Dungeness Spit

Photograph © Phil Schofield

Shortly after US 101 makes the bend and starts running west along the Strait of Juan de Fuca comes the pastoral Dungeness Valley, sandwiched between the strait and the snowy peaks of the Olympic Mountains. In addition to providing a scenic backdrop for dairy cows and berry farms, those mountains cast a rain shadow across the sunny valley, which receives only 17 inches [43.2 centimeters] a year.

Dungeness National Wildlife Refuge
Along the valley’s scenic loop is the Dungeness National Wildlife Refuge (+1 360 457 8451. Adm. fee). Its main feature is a 5.5-mile [8.9-kilometer] sand spit that hooks out into the strait to an old lighthouse. During spring and fall thousands of waterfowl and shorebirds descend on the shallow waters protected by the spit, and people hiking along it can see bald eagles, great blue herons, loons, and harbor seals.
About 15 miles [24.1 kilometers] west of the Dungeness Valley, US 101 rolls into Port Angeles (Chamber of Commerce +1 360 452 2363). As the name suggests, the action is down at the port. From atop the observation tower on the City Pier (Foot of Lincoln St.), visitors can see huge ships gorging on logs for export; the paper, pulp, and plywood mills that line the harbor; the tankers and cargo ships plying the shipping lanes in the strait; and, in the background, Vancouver Island to the north and the Olympic Mountains to the south. Also on the pier is the Arthur D. Feiro Marine Lab (+1 360 417 6254. Daily mid-June—mid-Sept., weekends rest of year; Adm. fee). This small but excellent facility teaches about life in the region’s ocean waters. Plenty of friendly docents provide insight into the world of sea cucumbers, sea anemones, giant Pacific octopuses, and sea slugs—there’s even a chance to gently handle some critters.

Wildflowers along Hurricane Hill Trail, Olympic National Park

Photograph © Phil Schofield

Bring those background mountains into the foreground and head south on Hurricane Ridge Road into a few of the 922,626 acres [373,120 hectares] that comprise Olympic National Park (Visitor Center in Port Angeles +1 360 452 0330. Adm. fee for park). The paved road winds up over 5,000 feet [1,524 meters] to Hurricane Ridge, a justifiably popular mountain citadel that puts visitors at the edge of the park’s exceptionally jagged peaks. Several fine trails fan out from here, but don’t miss the 3-mile [4.8-kilometer] round-trip Hurricane Hill Trail (it gets crowded, so start early in the day). The grade is steep, but that’s all right, because you’ll want to stop to admire the brilliant wildflowers that throng the meadows in summer. Watch for wildlife, too; Olympic marmots and black-tailed deer often show up, and black bear are fairly common. From the meadows at the summit visitors get a superb 360-degree view that embraces the surrounding mountains, the strait, the San Juan Islands, a chunk of mainland Washington, and a fair bit of Canada.

Lake Crescent Lodge

Traditional dance performance, Neah Bay Center

Photograph © Richard A. Cooke III

Back in Port Angeles, continue west on US 101 for some 15 miles [24.1 kilometers] to Lake Crescent, where you once again enter Olympic National Park. For the next several miles US 101 adheres to the south shore of this long, deep, glacial lake. Many pullouts invite picnics or prolonged gazing at the lake and the encircling forest and mountains. About halfway along the shoreline, you can turn off and ease through the towering firs and hemlocks to historic Lake Crescent Lodge (+1 360 928 3211. Late April—late Oct.), a nice place to lunch while looking out upon the lake. Not far away travelers can hike a mile [1.6 kilometers] up to 90-foot [27.4-meter] Marymere Falls.
A few miles west of Lake Crescent, just inside the park’s boundary, take a scenic 12-mile [19.3-kilometer] trip south along the beautifully forested Sol Duc River to Sol Duc Hot Springs Resort (+1 360 327 3583. Mid-May—mid-Sept.; Adm. fee). The main attraction is the 130-degree mineral water; don’t worry, it’s cooled through a heat exchanger to keep temperatures in the three hot pools tolerable. Several trails branch out from here, notably the path following the Sol Duc River for a mile [1.6 kilometers] out through towering old-growth forest to Sol Duc Falls, a triple cascade that tumbles some 60 feet [18.3 meters] into a dizzyingly narrow chasm.
From the Sol Duc, take US 101 west and then south to the definitive timber town of Forks (Visitor Center +1 360 374 2531 or 800 44FORKS) and the Forks Timber Museum (South edge of town on US 101. +1 360 374 9663. Mid-April—Oct. and by appt.). Its displays on the peninsula’s timber industry give travelers a historical perspective of the region.

Hoh Rain Forest

Rialto Beach, near La Push, Olympic National Park

Photograph © Phil Schofield

About 12 miles [19.3 kilometers] from Forks, turn east on Upper Hoh Road and drive back into Olympic National Park and the Hoh Rain Forest. Rain forests are rare in temperate zones. To see what 140 inches [355.6 centimeters] of annual rainfall creates, walk the 0.75-mile [1.2-kilometer] Hall of Mosses Trail. Overhead spreads a canopy of spruce, hemlock, and fir, some nearly 300 feet [91.4 meters] tall. The understory is a green riot of vine maple, red alder, and sorrel. Moss, lichens, and ferns seem to sprout everywhere, virtually encasing some trees. The light even turns a bit green as it filters through this abundant realm. The Spruce Nature Trail, a 1.25-mile [2-kilometer] loop, leads through similarly verdant forest down to the Hoh River, where Roosevelt elk are sometimes seen. To learn more, stop by the Hoh Rain Forest Visitor Center (+1 360 452 0330. Call for hours).

Ruby Beach, Olympic National Park

Photograph © Phil Schofield

Return to US 101 and follow it along the Hoh River down to the southernmost section of Olympic National Park’s coastal unit. The highway joins the shore at Ruby Beach and paces the sea for about 10 miles [16.1 kilometers], providing access to numerous sandy beaches, rocky coves, forested bluffs, and cliff-top viewpoints. About 7 miles [11.3 kilometers] south, you can stop for lunch at the venerable Kalaloch Lodge (+1 360 962 2271), and enjoy the view overlooking the ocean.
Several miles south, US 101 turns inland and heads back into the forest, or what’s left of it in this heavily logged area. About 25 miles [40.2 kilometers] out of Kalaloch, the highway comes to Quinault Lake and the southern part of the national park. Take the road along the north shore of the lake up to the ranger station and you once again can stroll amid the big trees on the 0.5-mile [0.8-kilometer] Maple Glade Rain Forest Trail. If that only whets your appetite for old-growth forest, continue east up the Quinault River Valley to the trails out of North Fork or Graves Creek.

Hoquiam

Seagull, Rialto Beach

Photograph © Phil Schofield

From Quinault Lake drive south on US 101 about 40 miles [64.4 kilometers] to Grays Harbor. Just west on Washington 109 from Hoquiam lies the Grays Harbor National Wildlife Refuge (+1 360 532 6237 or +1 360 753 9467). The refuge shelters a variety of wildlife, but the stars are the shorebirds. You are likely to see thousands, and in spring up to half a million, of shorebirds of two dozen species that frequent the productive mudflats to feed and rest before flying to their northern breeding grounds.
In Hoquiam, check out the extravagant Hoquiam’s Castle (515 Chenault Ave. +1 360 533 2005. Daily June-Aug., weekends Sept.-Nov. and Jan.-May; Adm. fee), built by a timber tycoon in 1897. Don’t miss the incongruously tacky saloon on the third floor. Also in town is the Arnold Polson Museum (1611 Riverside Ave. +1 360 533 5862. June-Labor Day, Wed.-Sun.; Sept.-May, Sat.-Sun.; Adm. fee), another mansion paid for by timber money. This 26-room house now holds extensive displays on the history of the area.
Take US 101 4 miles [6.4 kilometers] east to Aberdeen (Chamber of Commerce +1 360 532 1924) and wander through Grays Harbor Historical Seaport (+1 360 532 8611. Tour fee). The seaport’s highlight is the meticulously crafted replica of the Lady Washington, the tall ship that Capt. Robert Gray sailed into these waters in 1788 and the first American vessel to land in the Pacific Northwest. This seaworthy ship sometimes ventures out to sea, so check to see if it’s in port when you are. From Aberdeen, take US 12 and Washington 8 back to Olympia.