Olympic National Park - A week at Sol Duc

We will spend a week exploring the unique features of Olympic National Park.  There will be two days of vigorous hikes in the alpine country, including one of my favorites, the High Divide Trail.  One day will be spent at the wild Washington coast starting at Rialto Beach. Another day will be spent at the famed Hurricane Ridge and the Dungeness Spit.  Finally, we'll spend a day exploring the rain forest in the Hoh River Valley.

So you know what to expect, this event is rated a D6 because of the High Divide Trail.  There will also be a D5 hike to Appleton Pass.  The rest of the hikes will be much easier as we explore the unique ecosystems of the park.

This is a car camping trip.  I have reserved four campsites for six nights at the Sol Duc Campground.  Two people will be assigned to each campsite.  There is a private hot springs resort nearby that you can enjoy and use the shower for $18.  You will need to bring a tent and sleeping bag/pad. I will have a two burner stove and plenty of propane.  I'll also have spices and condiments to share with everyone.  We'll do some grocery shopping on our way to the park and we can pick up extra food mid-week.  Because I will only have one cooler, we will need to pick up two more coolers (one for each car) and share the expense.

You will be responsible for your flight to Seattle.  You will also be responsible for booking a hotel room near Sea-Tac Airport.  I will create a group through Whatsapp and we can try to select a hotel that is agreeable to everyone.  You should plan on sharing a room with one other person.  You will also need to book a hotel room when we return to Seattle so you can clean up before returning to Atlanta.

You will also need to arrange for transportation for the week we are on the Olympic Peninsula.  I will have my own car and can accomodate one additional person.  It will probably be easiest for the rest of the group to rent two cars shared among three memebers.  Again, I will create a group on Whatsapp and we can coordinate who will be riding in each car and sharing those costs.

Please read the following itinerary carefully so that you know what to expect:

Saturday (July 27) Arrive in Seattle.  Check into hotel.  Go to dinner at a restaurant as a group.

Sunday (July 28) - Leave from hotel at around 9:00 am.  Stop for groceries and coolers.  Arrive in Port Angeles around noon, eat lunch and explore the town.  Arrive at Sol Duc campground around 4:00 pm.  Set up camp and eat dinner.

Monday - Friday (July 29 - August 2)  I have five hikes planned for the week. I will prioritize the three sub-alpine hikes when the best weather is forecast.  July is the least rainy month for Olympic, averaging less than 2 inches of rain for the month.  But we will likely see some fog or it may be overcast for parts of our trip.

High Divide Trail - This is considered one of the great backpacking loops anywhere in the country and we will be doing it all in a day.  19 miles and 4,000 feet of elevation gain.  The trailhead is about two miles from our campground.  We will hike about a mile to Sol Duc Falls, which is a destination waterfall unto itself.  Then we will begin climbing among the old growth forest for about 4 miles to Deer Lake.  As we climb above Deer Lake, the views gradually become more open.  Eventually, we will reach the trail to the Seven Lakes Basin, on which we shall descend as we pass Round Lake and stop for lunch at Lunch Lake.  Then we will proceed out of the Seven Lakes Basin and rejoin the High Divide Trail.  Here we will enjoy magnificent views of the glaciated Mount Olympus, which is just under 8,000 feet, and on the opposite side of the trail, views of additional lakes below us.  You'll also see the Hoh River and its namesake valley about 4,000 feet beneath us.  We will begin our descent to the beautiful and swimmable Heart Lake.  We'll stop here for 20-30 minutes for a dip and to refill our water bottles.  The rest of the hike is all downhill.  We will proceed through the meadows of Sol Duc Park when the alpine flowers should be at their peak.  The trail will continue to a bridge across the Sol Duc River and then we will proceed back into the old growth forest going parallel to but mostly out of sight of the River until we get back to the Falls.

Rialto Beach - We will drive about 1.5 hours through the town of Forks, made famous by the Twilight trilogy, to the Pacific Coast.  We'll want to get to the trailhead early because parking can become scarce.  Here we will wander along the rocky beach known as Rialto.  You will see giant fallen Douglas Fir trees littered along the beach.  About 1.5 miles from the trailhead we will reach a rock opening known as Hole-in-the-Wall.  At low tide we will lots of sea creatures such as sea anemones, sea stars, and sea urchins.  Rocks covered with seaweed and kelp can sometimes make it difficult to keep your footing.  The tides will dictate how far we can explore down the coast.  If we have time, we'll explore additional beach hikes in the area. 

Appleton Pass - Same trailhead as High Divide.  15 miles and 4,000 feet of elevation gain.  We will hike to Sol Duc Falls and then make a left.  We will hike through old growth forest for 4-5 miles until we reach the junction to Appleton Pass. 

Hurricane Ridge and Dungeness Spit - At about 5,500 feet, Hurricane Ridge provides dramatic views north toward the Strait of Juan de Fuca and Vancouver Island and south toward the snow-capped mountains that make up the Olympics.  There are two trails to hike in the area.  We'll need to arrive early because parking is limited.  First, we will hike the Hurricane Hill trail - 3.2 miles and about 600 feet of elevation gain.  Then we will hike the Klahanie Ridge trail, which is around 3.8 miles and 500 feet of elevation gain.  We'll enjoy lunch in the picnic area before heading to our next destination.  At five miles in length, the Dungeness Spit is the longest natural sand spit in the United States.  Basically, it's a relatively thin beach with water on both sides of the spit and lots of driftwood in the center.  We'll have to watch the tides to determine how far out we wish to walk.  We'll end our hike near the town of Port Angeles, which has some decent restaurants if the group is tired of cooking at our campsite.

Hoh Rainforest - We'll drive about two hours from our campsite to the heart of the Hoh Rainforest, which has its own visitor's center.  This rainforest has around 125 inches of rainfall per year.  But it only averages about two inches in July.  We'll explore the visitor's center to learn more about this unique ecosystem.  Known for old growth trees and giant ferns, an intense green permeates this forest.  There are some easy loop trails that we can do after we initially arrive that are 1 - 1.5 miles in length.  Then we'll tackle the Hoh River trail for  five miles and about 400 feet in elevation gain.  We'll have lunch at Five Mile Island and enjoy stunning views of Bogachiel Peak.

Saturday (August 3) - We will return back to Seattle.  If we have time, we can check out some local tourist spots in this great city.  You'll need to book a room for Saturday night before heading back to Atlanta on Sunday.  Optional: Dinner at a local restaurant.

I expect we will eat out at restuarants for 3-4 meals.  Budget accordingly.

$25 covers the AOC service fee.  Payment of the fee is due on or before March 31, 2024

The trip leader has booked four campsites for six nights at $766.46.  We will divide the cost of the campsites evenly.  You will need to pay the trip leader directly your prorated portion of the camping fee on or before April 30, 2024.

No refunds will be issued unless someone else takes your spot on the trip.  Also, AOC will deduct the three percent paypal fee from any refund.