Olympic National Park & Olympic National Forest
Spent two days touring various areas in these two national treasures. I am just beginning to discover that these parks encompass an amazing number of ecosystems. I have already visited some forested areas and rain forest in the last couple of days. Now I head to the shoreline where Olympic NP reaches the Pacific Ocean.
First stop was the beach overlook of Destruction Island Lighthouse. This stretch of beach runs about 30 miles along the coast and includes a hiking trail along the coast that can only be walked during low tides.
That’s Destruction Island amidst the trees in the distance.
The next day I head out early to Hoh River Rain Forest and hiked three different trails, each of which demonstrate the vastly different foliage and terrain. After those hikes, I went back down the mountain and headed back out to the coast, first to visit Rialto Beach and then across the river to the little town of La Push on the Quileute Indian Reservation.
Rain Forest DougFirs, Wind blown blow down and the Hoh River. Note the milky coloration of the Hoh River from the glaciers hundreds of feet above that grind the surfaces of rocks together to make a fine powder that is washed away by melting ice.
Cavalcade of Trees, and two views of Rialto Beach. Note the trees in a line. This is called a Cavalcade, which occurs when a larger tree falls and begins to decay. New trees sprout from the fallen tree which is then called a nurse tree. As the new trees mature, they all stand in line like good little soldiers.
Pelicans on Patrol, Coast Guard sculputre in La Push, and a two masted schooner headed up the Quillayute River.