The Olympics!

Northern Washington coastline

I used to go to Vancouver Island all the time. One of the schools I was responsible for when I worked for The School for Field Studies was located on the west coast, and I would travel through Victoria and Nanaimo all the time. Many times I would look across the Juan de Fuca Straight at the beautiful Olympic range and it has been long on my list of places to visit. Departing Portland, I did just that.

There's a tree in there somewhere

Traveling clockwise, I traveled along the beautiful coastline, stopping for lunch in the scenic town of Forks. All you Twilight fans out there know this town well. You can go on Twilight tours and dance in the Twilight Club, neither of which I elected to do. Instead, I continued northward and found a place to camp outside the National Park. The next day I went into the Hoh Forest and spent some time hiking. What an amazing place. Huge old growth trees with mosses and lichens everywhere. Ten minutes down the trail and the bright sunshine had become softly muted and my footfalls cushioned by soft loam. The silence was nearly complete.

The Olympic Range

After spending a couple of days on the west side, I traveled around to the northern edge and visited the Hurricane Ridge area of the park. With so many options in the park, I might have missed this gem. My good friend Ellie recommended it to me and boy was I glad to see this place. The weather had remained clear, although there was a strong haze in the air from wildfires in Central Washington. This incredibly rainy part of the world continued sunny and beautiful. I spent a lot more time above tree line than I expected on this paddling trip. The waters I had come here to see - the Strait of Juan de Fuca was completely shrouded in fog below me although I could see the shorter peaks of Vancouver Island sticking out of the fog. Truly beautiful. I did several hikes over the next couple of days, staying at the campground at the base of Hurricane Ridge - one of the few places I had stayed more than one night in a row. Along with the beautiful sights, I also got a short look at an Olympic Marmot, an endangered species endemic to the area. I wasn't able to take the time to get into the backcountry in any sort of significant way, but I now have something new on my ever-expanding list of things I want to do and see.

After over two weeks of sunshine, the weather finally "broke" and a small cold front moved in giving me a couple of days of cloudy weather. Ironically, this meant that while there was no sunshine, the fog lifted and a got a couple of great paddling days on the north coast. I found a couple of embayments that were well protected although one had a strong tidal current that was fun to play in. After only one short paddle in Oregon, it was nice to get out and play with the boat. The water was clear and cold, giving me great views of kelp and sea stars. I'd love to spend some time diving up here, with the correct cold-water gear of course.

Soon enough it was time to head out to Bainbridge Island for a short visit with my friends Ellie and Dave. I got to meet their two beautiful daughters and take a short walk with Ellie. She and I hadn't seen each other in far too long and it was fun to catch up. The next day was a quick ferry ride across the bay to Seattle, an unnerving drive through the city and off across the state. More to follow...