Washington welcomed us with cool, rainy weather. Coming from drought plagued California, rain was a refreshing change, at least for the first few hours :). I can see why the vampires from the Twilight series chose Forks, WA, a small town near the park, as a place to live. The sun rarely burns through the thick layer of clouds.
Olympic National Park has 3 eco-systems: alpine mountains, temperate rain forests and coastal beaches.

Mountains, forests and beaches
Mountains, forests and beaches

We didn’t spend too much time in the mountains. We were the second car to go up Hurricane Ridge in 3 days. Foggy, rainy and cold – not everyone’s cup of tea.

6R8C9686

Tunnels on the Hurricane Ridge road
Tunnels on the Hurricane Ridge road

The rainforest was pretty magical, even in the rain. The moss covers everything.

On the way to Sol Duc area
On the way to Sol Duc area
Crescent Lake
Crescent Lake
Mist over Lake Crescent
Mist over Lake Crescent
On the hike to Sol Duc Falls
On the hike to Sol Duc Falls
Gorgeous tree on the hike to Sol Duc Falls
Gorgeous tree on the hike to Sol Duc Falls
Ozette Lake area
Ozette Lake area
Giant tree covered in moss, Spruce Nature trail in the Hoh Rain Forest
Giant tree covered in moss, Spruce Nature trail in the Hoh Rain Forest
This guy was hiking along with us,  Spruce Nature trail in the Hoh Rain Forest
This guy was hiking along with us, Spruce Nature trail in the Hoh Rain Forest
Loved the ground covered in fallen leaves,  Spruce Nature trail in the Hoh Rain Forest
Loved the ground covered in fallen leaves, Spruce Nature trail in the Hoh Rain Forest
A calm pond makes for great reflections,  Hoh Rain Forest
A calm pond makes for great reflections, Hoh Rain Forest
Ozette Lake area
Ozette Lake area

6R8C9885_mix

The beaches were super windy. But I loved the pebble and driftwood covered coast. The rocky islands close to the shore make for a nice backdrop for a sunset picture.

Pebble beach, Ruby Beach
Pebble beach, Ruby Beach
Sunset at Rialto Beach
Sunset at Rialto Beach

# # # # # # # # # # # # # #

November 1, 2014

Leave a Reply