Blogs from Olympic National Park, Washington, United States, North America

7/30 Fog hugged the lake on this chilly, foggy morning so I enjoyed our fireplace as long as possible before we bundled up and began the day with breakfast in the glassed in Roosevelt Room overlooking the lake and the Quinault resort. We had a window table with a lovely view. Dave watched as a Douglas squirrel perched himself on the windowsill lusting after his breakfast. As I sat eating my amazing pancake breakfast I wondered if President Franklin D. Roosevelt enjoyed the same experience as he sat eating his meal in this very room. Apparently he did because nine months later President Roosevelt signed legislation that created the Olympic National Park. I had reserved an early morning guided tour of the lake but on this chilly morning I wondered if I had done the right ... read more

7/29 It was 46 degrees when we woke but quite comfortable on our cabin, although our neighbors were very noisy moving furniture with crying children late at night and early in the morning. Smells and sounds from the campfire lured us out of our warm cabin to the outdoor bonfire kitchen. True to Bill’s word we enjoyed a terrific Cowboy Breakfast including a generous-sized healthy pancake with a fried egg breakfast cooked by chef Tammy, outdoors by the fire under the wooden mortice and tenon gazebo. Bill built the gazebo, cabins and most of what was around here. He was a font of information explaining the local history, telling stories about the Spanish invasion on the Nikali ship around Neah Bay in 1792. Bill built a monument to the history of this interaction in Neah Bah ... read more

Von den schroffen Bergen der North Cascades sind wir auf die Olympic Peninsula gefahren. Olympic hat alles, was das Herz begehrt: mystischen Regenwald, idyllische Seen, schneebedeckte Berge und wild-romantische Küstenlandschaften. Außerdem gibt es hier normalerweise Millionen von Blutsaugern (erstens: Mücken, aber für die ist es schon weitgehend zu spät; zweitens: Vampire, denn die Twilight-Vampirfilme spielen hier in Forks - aber wir haben keine gesehen) und literweise Regen, aber wir hatten riesiges Glück und wurden verschont. Wir haben am Lake Quinault begonnen und dort den beeindruckenden Regenwald des Enchanted Valley erkundet. Im Hoh Valley haben wir damit mit einer 2-tägigen Wandertour mit Zelten in der Wilderness weitergemacht. Highlight: wir haben 2 imposante Roosevelt-Hirsche bei ihren Revierstreitigkeiten beobachten können. Für Fotos waren sie zu sehr vom Gebüsch verdeckt, ... read more

Day 28 and 29- We loaded up and met up with Sareena-another nutrition gal and her boyfriend for brunch downtown Portland,OR. It was great to catch up and discuss life as a registered dietitian with another friend. It's so close yet so far for me! After, we headed north to the Olympic national forest in Washington. We didn't really know what campsites we were looking for or which area to start with so we decided to take a gamble on a side road noting the entrance to the national park. Hamma Hamma, It ended up being one of our favorite spots! The next day I was feeling a little rundown so we went driving on some dirt roads in the back country that led us to this beautiful little lake with only a small hike to ... read more

August 22 – 23th, 2013 The Olympic Peninsular is home to, I’m assuming, some wonderful scenic forests and mountains. It can’t be that dissimilar to British Columbia after all and we have in the past explored a little of it. And this visit we‘ve travelled over beautiful glacier blue rivers en route to the coast and have been tempted by forest trails and waterfalls but the truth is we only have 4 whole days here and the coast, like a giant thunderous magnet, draws us every time. On Thursday we travelled the same stretch as the day before, taking us back through Forks to reach Ruby Beach a bit lower down on the Pacific Coast. Another glorious day of sun so we eat lunch on yet another idyllic beach and stay a few hours, lounging in ... read more