This one is taking us way back. In Aug 2014, Angela and I had only been dating for ~9 months and this was the second backpacking trip we had been on together. The plan was kinda simple - park at the drop Sol Duc hotsprings, pay a van to take us to the Hoh Rainforest trailhead, and then hike from Hoh to Sol Duc over the next 3 days. Our van driver mentioned something about why are you doing it this way, most people do it the other way - not sure what he meant.
Permitting took a bit longer than anticipated and our first choice for campsite two was taken, so we got put somewhere else. First night at Olympus Guard station - which is in the Hoh rainforest valley - then we hike up and over to Cat Basin - which is a stock camp just on the edge of the 7 lakes basin - and then out to Sol Duc.
2014-08-15
Day one called for a 9 mile hike from the Hoh River Trailhead to the Olympus Guard station. This was a relatively easy hike - all flat and straight. The hoh rainforest is a gem of the Olympic national park - it’s sort of the epitome of what a temporate rainforest should look like.
Blueberries were in season and we ate. This was still fairly novel to me, being able to forage for food as I hiked, and I was loving it.
Right before we got to camp, we ran into some of the famous Roosevelt elk. They are native to the Olympic rainforest, but they have been introduced into other climates by humans as well. It’s actually larger than the rocky mountain elk - which was surprising to me, seems like it would be a lot harder to move around in this dense forest.
We had a delightful dinner by the river at the Olympus guard station - off to be bed early for the big hike tomorrow (21 switchbacks up to the olympic ridge and 7 lakes basin).
2014-08-16
The next morning started with a bang - it was basically straight up for almost 10 miles and then another 4 along the ridge and drop down into Cat Basin. I knew this would be a rough day and Angela was really struggling by the time we finished the uphill part. Thankfully the view of the lakes brought back the spirits.
Heart lake was especially memorable - if only the lake was positioned the other way around… :)
We saw some Marmots as we climbed along the ridge.
And right before we made the drop down into Cat Basin, a small family of mountain goats passed by. I had been told these were pretty agressive - they are not native to the area and there isn’t enough salt here for them - but they weren’t particularly agressive with me. I banged my hiking stick on a rock and they kept their distance. I basically followed them down into Cat Basin - unfortunately, I had decided to take my bag down to the camp first and come back to help Angela - so she missed them…
Cat Basin - although a stock camp on a rough trail outside of the basin area - was absolutely gorgeous. We setup camp, had dinner, and were treated to the most beautiful sunset (and sun rise) with mist forming off of the lake. I could not speak highly enough of this camp - a very nice surprise
2014-08-17
The next morning we had a short uphill and then a long downhill into Sol Duc (with just a little uphill in the middle). There were some big creeks/rivers to cross and some great views - at least for the first half until we dropped back down into the forest.
We were very excited to enjoy the hot springs when we got back - unfortunately, they were more of a wierd sulfury swimming pool with too many people and industrial vibe. We didn’t stay long - but thankfully the rest of the trip made up for it.