Olympic Peninsula Trip

The Austin Sierra Club has visited the Olympic Penisula several times since 1997, although the trip is not offered every year. The primary camp is vehicle-based and we camp at several National and State Park campgrounds as we circumnavigate the peninsula from northeast to northwest to southwest to southeast, returning to SeaTac airport from the south. A four or five-day backpack to the Blue Glacier in the center of the park is often offered as well. Photos on this page are from several trips.

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1. Dungeness Spit is located near Sequim, Washington. This was the first stop after reaching the Olympic Peninsula. The spit is famous for the crabs that take their name from it. Hikers can walk the beach all the way to the lighthouse five miles away for a long, isolated introduction to Peninsula beaches.

2. The 1.5 mile hike up to Hurricane Hill was breathtaking. We found the summer snow rather ironic in August since the heat in Austin was in the triple digits. Hurricane Hill.

3. Here is a view back along the trail which leads up to Hurricane Hill, looking South into the Olympic Mountains. Hurricane Trail.

4. View of the Olympic peaks from Hurricane Ridge. The clouds remained most of the day, moving in and out of the valleys below the peaks. Mount Olympus and the Blue Glacier can be seen to the right of this photo just above and between the gap in the trees.

5. Another view of the Olympic Peaks. These two photos were taken from the ridge close to the visitor's center. Compare them with previous photos from other trips for an idea of how dramatic the weather changes are on this ridge. The rangers said that they expected the first snowfall of the season within 10 days of our visit. The highs in Austin were over 100 degrees that day.

6. Becky, Diana, Sharon and E. Long on the summit of Hurricane Hill. This fine short hike takes the visitor to an overlook with a view deep into the Olympic peaks on the south side of the hill and a view of Port Angeles, Sequim, the Dungeness Spit, the Strait of Juan De Fuca and Victoria, Canada, to the north. On a clear day, you can see the San Juan Islands and Mt. Baker in the North Cascade range.

7. Hikers on Lillian Ridge take a break and a photo op. The hike, a nine-mile loop from Lillian Ridge to Grand Lake and back out through Badger Valley, is difficult and long, but the scenery is fantastic and well worth the effort.

8. After hiking the trails from Hurricane Ridge for two days, the group broke camp and left the forrest of the Heart O'The Hills campground enroute to Lake Ozette, a smaller campground on the far western coastline. On the way, we hiked to Marymere Falls and then drove to the Sol Duc Valley where we hiked to Sol Duc Falls and then spent a relaxing couple of hours in the commercial Sol Duc Hot Springs.

After establishing our camp at Ozette Lake, the group made the unique nine-mile loop to the coastal beach. There are two three-mile boardwalks through meadows and rainforest and a connecting three-mile walk along the wild and isolated beach.

9. Near the Wedding Rocks area between Sand Point and Cape Alava. This whale petroglyph is just above the tide line. The dates and origins of the petroglyphs are controversial since the glyphs are exposed and vulnerable to vandalism, but some anthropologists feel they are authentic 18th Century works. Whale.

10. These glyphs are close by as well. Several are clearly recent vandalisms, but some are considered authentic Native American glyphs. Petroglyphs.

11. World-famous "sea stacks" like this one are characteristic of the Pacific coast in Washington and Oregon. This one is revealed at low tide close to Sand Point and Cape Alava near Ozette. There is a very large cormorant hidden next to the highest tree close to the peak of the large stack in the foreground and we watched him hunt and dive for fish from his perch high on the rock.

12. Here are the intrepid hikers from the 1997 trip at Cape Alava with Ozette Island in the background. Ozette Island.

13. After packing up and leaving the Ozette Lake campground, we next drove to Forks and then Rialto Beach. Here is the group preparing to enjoy the Pacific sunset. Rialto Beach.

14. And the sunset obligingly showed up to be enjoyed. Rialto Beach Sunset.

15. Final view of the sunset. Rialto Beach Sunset.

16. Austin tree-huggers get up close and personal with a Sitka Spruce. This tree is one of the largest Sitka Spruces in the United States. It is over 270 feet high, over 12.5 feet across at breast hight and is estimated to be between 500 and 550 years old.

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