Olympic National Park Guide: Hoh Rain Forest, Beaches and a 3-Day Loop

See Olympic National Park on a three-day loop around the peninsula on Highway 101. Day one: Hurricane Ridge and Lake Crescent from a base in Port Angeles. Day two: Sol Duc Falls, then the coast at Rialto Beach timed to low tide, sleeping in Forks or La Push. Day three: the Hoh Rain Forest early, Ruby Beach and Lake Quinault. Go from July through September for the driest weather. There is no road through the middle of the park. That is the first thing to understand.

Olympic is three parks in one. Glacier-capped mountains rise in the center, with Mount Olympus at 7,980 feet. Around them, on the western slopes, sit some of the wettest temperate rain forests in the world, where up to 12 feet of rain falls a year. And along the Pacific, more than 70 miles of wild coastline with sea stacks, tide pools and driftwood logs the size of buses. You can’t drive between them directly. You drive around them, and that loop shapes every trip.

• 3 daysMinimum for the full loop
• ~300 miAround the peninsula on Highway 101
• $30Vehicle entry, valid 7 days
• July–SeptThe driest months

The biggest misconception

People look at the map, see Seattle two hours away and assume Olympic is a day trip. It isn’t. The park’s highlights are spread around a peninsula roughly the size of Connecticut, connected by one road that loops the outside. From Port Angeles to the Hoh Rain Forest is about two hours. From the Hoh to Lake Quinault is another hour and a half. Add the ferry or the drive around Puget Sound to get there, and a day trip becomes ten hours of driving to see one corner.

Give it at least three days. Four or five is better. And choose your base for each night by where you will be at sunrise the next morning, not by where hotels are cheapest.

Hurricane Ridge: the mountains

Hurricane Ridge is the park’s easiest window into the high country. A 17-mile road climbs from Port Angeles to about 5,240 feet, where meadows look across a sea of peaks to Mount Olympus and its glaciers. On a clear day you can see north across the Strait of Juan de Fuca to Vancouver Island in Canada.

In summer, the meadows fill with wildflowers and black-tailed deer graze beside the paths. Short paved trails lead from the parking area, and the Hurricane Hill trail, about 3.2 miles round trip, climbs to a summit with a 360-degree view. It is the best short hike in the park.

A note on services. The Hurricane Ridge day lodge burned down in May 2023. The road and trails remain open in season, with temporary facilities, but check nps.gov/olym for current road hours and status. Rebuilding plans have been underway. Winter access is limited to certain days and often requires chains.

Lake Crescent and Sol Duc

Lake Crescent is a deep glacial lake, more than 600 feet in places, with water so clear and blue it looks unreal on a sunny day. Highway 101 runs right along its southern shore. Stop at the Storm King area and hike the Marymere Falls trail, about 1.8 miles round trip through old-growth forest to a 90-foot waterfall. Paddle the lake in the calm morning, or walk the Spruce Railroad Trail on the north shore to the Devil’s Punchbowl swimming spot. The water is cold. Very cold.

Just west, the Sol Duc Valley has a hot springs resort with mineral pools and the Sol Duc Falls trail, about 1.6 miles round trip, where the river splits into three or four channels and drops into a narrow mossy canyon. In fall, look for salmon jumping at the Salmon Cascades viewpoint along the road.

The coast: Rialto, Second Beach and Ruby Beach

Olympic’s coast is one of the wildest shorelines left in the lower 48. Roads touch it only in a few spots, which is why it still feels untouched. Here are the beaches worth your time:

Tides decide your beach day. At Rialto, Hole-in-the-Wall, a sea-carved arch about 1.5 miles north of the parking area, is only reachable at low tide. Tide pools full of sea stars and anemones appear only at low tide. And at high tide, some stretches of beach disappear completely, trapping hikers against cliffs. Check a tide table before you go, and plan your walk to be back before the tide turns.

Watch out for logs. Driftwood logs on these beaches can weigh many tons, and incoming waves lift and roll them without warning. People are injured and killed by them. Never climb on logs in the surf zone.

Note that La Push, First Beach and Second Beach are on or reached through Quileute tribal land. Respect posted rules and tribal decisions about access.

The Hoh Rain Forest

The Hoh is the park’s most famous rain forest, and the one most people picture: Sitka spruce and western hemlock draped in thick moss, ferns carpeting the ground, everything glowing green. The Hall of Mosses trail is an easy 0.8-mile loop. The Spruce Nature Trail is about 1.2 miles. Both start at the visitor center.

Bring rain gear even if the sky looks clear. The forest drips long after a shower ends, and the trails stay soft and muddy for days. That moisture is the whole point of the place. Embrace it.

The catch is crowds and parking. The Hoh is a dead-end road, and in summer the line of cars waiting to enter can stretch for hours by late morning. Rangers sometimes meter traffic, letting cars in only as others leave. Arrive before 9 a.m. or after 4 p.m. We cannot stress this enough. Early mornings in the Hoh, with mist in the moss and nobody on the trail, are magical. Afternoons in summer can be a parking lot.

For a quieter rain forest, visit the Quinault Rain Forest on the south side. It has the same moss and giants with far fewer people, plus the Quinault Loop trail and some of the largest trees of their species in the world, including a famously huge Sitka spruce near the lake.

A three-day loop

Day one: Port Angeles, Hurricane Ridge, Lake Crescent. Drive or take the ferry from Seattle in the morning. Head up to Hurricane Ridge for the views and the Hurricane Hill trail. Late afternoon, drive to Lake Crescent and walk to Marymere Falls. Sleep in Port Angeles or at Lake Crescent Lodge.

Day two: Sol Duc and the coast. Morning at Sol Duc Falls and a soak in the hot springs if you like. Drive to Rialto Beach, timing your walk to Hole-in-the-Wall at low tide. Sunset at Second Beach. Sleep in Forks or La Push.

Day three: Hoh and the south. Arrive at the Hoh early. Walk the Hall of Mosses. Drive south to Ruby Beach, then Kalaloch for tide pools. Finish at Lake Quinault for the rain forest loop and a night at the Lake Quinault Lodge, or drive back toward Seattle via Olympia.

When to go

July through September is the driest and warmest time, with Hurricane Ridge fully open and wildflowers in July and August. It is also busiest. Late September and October bring fewer visitors and moody weather. The rain forests get most of their rain from October to April, which keeps them lush, and winter storms on the coast are spectacular to watch from a safe distance. Many high-country roads and some facilities close in winter.

Getting there

From Seattle, the fastest route to Port Angeles is usually the Washington State Ferry from Seattle to Bainbridge Island or from Edmonds to Kingston, then a drive of about 1.5 to 2 hours. Ferries are fun and scenic but have lines on summer weekends. Driving around through Tacoma takes about the same time without the boat. Sea-Tac Airport is the main gateway.

Where to stay

The park has historic lodges: Lake Crescent Lodge, Sol Duc Hot Springs Resort, Kalaloch Lodge on the bluffs above the beach and Lake Quinault Lodge, just outside the boundary. All book up for summer. Port Angeles has the most hotels. Forks is the main town on the west side, with motels and a few restaurants, and it is famous as the setting of the Twilight novels. Campgrounds in the park include Kalaloch, Mora, Hoh and Sol Duc; reserve where possible.

What it costs

Entry is $30 per vehicle for seven days, or covered by the annual pass. Ferries cost roughly $20 or more each way for a car and driver, plus passengers. Historic lodges usually run $200 to $400 a night in summer. Motels in Forks and Port Angeles are cheaper. Food options are limited on the west side, so stock up in Port Angeles.

With kids

Olympic is a wonderful family park. Tide pools are a natural aquarium, and kids can spend hours finding crabs and sea stars. The rain forest trails are short and flat. Driftwood forts on the beaches, built by other visitors, are a classic. Just keep everyone away from logs in the surf, and hold hands near the water. The Junior Ranger program is available at visitor centers.

Packing list

• A real rain jacket, even in August.
• Waterproof shoes or boots for wet trails and beaches.
• A tide table, printed or saved offline.
• Warm layers for Hurricane Ridge, which can be cold and windy.
• Binoculars for whales, sea otters and eagles along the coast.
• Snacks and a full tank. Services are far apart.

Common mistakes

Treating it as a day trip from Seattle. You will mostly see the highway.

Arriving at the Hoh at noon in July. Expect a long wait.

Ignoring the tides. You can miss the best features or get stranded.

Skipping Quinault. It is the calmer, often better rain forest.

Wildlife to watch for

Roosevelt elk, the largest elk subspecies in North America, roam the Hoh and Quinault valleys. The park was originally protected partly to save them. Look for herds in river meadows in the early morning. Black bears are common across the park, and black-tailed deer graze at Hurricane Ridge. On the coast, watch for sea otters in the kelp, harbor seals on the rocks and bald eagles perched on snags above the beaches. Gray whales migrate along the coast in spring, and you can sometimes spot spouts from Kalaloch or La Push. Olympic marmots, found nowhere else on Earth, whistle from the high meadows in summer.

Is it worth the drive?

Absolutely, if you give it time. Few places let you walk through moss-draped rain forest in the morning, watch a sunset between sea stacks in the evening and see glaciers on the way. The distances are the price of all that variety. Pay it, slow down, and Olympic becomes one of the most memorable parks in the country.

Frequently asked questions

Next steps

1. Book three nights along the loop: Port Angeles or Lake Crescent, Forks or La Push, and Quinault.
2. Save a tide table for the coast days and plan Rialto at low tide.
3. Check Hurricane Ridge road status the week of your trip.
4. Pair the trip with our Pacific Northwest road trip or Mount Rainier guide.