Olympic National Park - Seven Lakes Basin

We spent three glorious days and two nights backpacking in Olympic National Park with some friends (at this point, we’re getting pretty good at social distancing in a group setting). My film scans from this trip just came back so I can finally post some pictures. They don’t do this area justice. It was a transcendental hike, easily in my top three PNW hikes I’ve ever done.

We drove up on Friday morning and hit the trail at Sol Duc Falls at around lunchtime, hiking through some head-high ferns and old growth forests until we got to the Sol Duc Group Campsite. Joanna and I set up our tent quickly and headed another mile or two up the trail for a sneak peak. The campground was literally a quarter mile below an incredible subalpine scene. Even in the fading light and misty conditions, we could see that this was an incredibly beautiful area. We spotted three bears, and an elk herd.

The following day was sunny and beautiful. We hiked up through the same area, past Heart Lake, and then along the wildflower-covered High Divide trail with wonderful view of Mt Olympus (my first time seeing it). A few miles in, we diverted down to Hoh Lake, where we were the only people. We ate lunch and a few of us went for a cold dip while two black bears foraged on the opposite bank. We would ultimately spot seven bears on this trip.

Climbing back up to the High Divide, we split into two groups with some preferring to head back to camp and the rest of us taking a more roundabout route that took us down into Seven Lakes Basin. We hiked by Lunch Lake, Mirror Lake, and then a handful of smaller lakes on our way back to the High Divide — all ideal camping areas if only we’d had extra time (and permits). I found this landscape was reminiscent of the Core Zone of the Enchantments. I could have easily spent a week up there. There was so much to explore.

The SevenMile group site (the only permit available for us on Saturday night) took us a few miles back down the trail past our original campsite, but we made it there only a few minutes after the first group. We scarfed down dinner and enjoyed a nice fire, and then hiked out the following morning so that we could make the long drive back to Portland (worth every mile!).

Olympic National Park - Enchanted Valley

Our first backpacking trip of the year took us to the Enchanted Valley in Olympic National Park. We powered through 27 miles in two days and took in some grand views along the way: massive trees from the time of Lord Baltimore, seasonal multi-tiered waterfalls, an elk herd, the legendary chalet, and exactly zero black bears. Then we did a victory lap around the entire Olympic Peninsula (by car), and treated ourselves to veggie burgers and another night of stealth camping in a Wal-Mart parking lot. We must have looked pretty rough when we emerged from the car this morning because a nice gentleman from Jehovah’s Witness approached us and offered to help us get our lives back on track!

Olympic Mountains: Marmot Pass

Pulling into the trailhead parking lot a little after midnight after our five hour drive up from Portland, putting down the backseat and sleeping in my Honda Fit seemed like a good way to save us from the hassle of setting up the tent. But in the time it took to rearrange everything in the car, we could have pitched the tent two or three times. And I wish we had, because I was not prepared for the level of discomfort that resulted from not being able to straighten my legs. My knees locked up, my calves cramped, and I was barely able to sleep through the muscle spasms. It was a long night.

My mood improved the following day when we broke out of the trees and find ourselves surrounded by blue skies, puffy white clouds, and wildflowers. We were lucky to snag the last campsite at Camp Mystery, and after a little wandering and a lavish (for us) dinner of curried lentils and rice, we turned in early. I never thought I would feel so much gratitude for something as simple as being able to sleep with my legs straight.

We woke up early, grabbed some bars (and no coffee, much to Joanna's disappointment), and hiked the remaining mile or so to Marmot Pass. It was an incredible sight. A cloud inversion had formed over Dabob Bay to the East, and then sun was just peeking over the mass of white. We wandered up the ridge, taking pictures and marveling at the view. On one side, we had the cloud inversion and on the other, jagged peaks as far as the eye could see. There is clearly so much more to explore in this area.

Views like these are definitely worth a sleepless night or two.