I was pining to go away this weekend but Paul wasn't feeling hot. I had a campground picked out and the ferry schedule ready but it looked like we wouldn't go. Saturday morning Paul started feeling better and so we made a last minute decision to just go for the day. It was a 3 hour drive but we did it anyway. We drove about 30 minutes north to Edmond and took the ferry to Kingston on to the Olympic Peninsula. We drove for about an hour and a half on the peninsula to get to Port Angeles. I had earmarked to see the Ridge Trail, the Marymere waterfalls and the Dungeness Spit. Of course I always over-plan. We parked at Lake Crescent and began the waterfall trail which was an easy flat trail.
Before we started hiking.
The woods were magnificent. It was like a fairytale forest with moss draped everywhere and trees covered in green fuzz. The trees were huge, but not as big as redwoods. We found some signs that said that the large ones were Douglas Fir which just blew our minds. But they are "ancients" and are over 200 years old so I suppose that is why they are so large.
The kids had a blast just running and playing on the giant fallen trees and hiding inside hollowed out trees. (seriously, they are the cutest kids ever, right?)
There was a great bridge made out of a fallen tree that the kids and Paul had fun jumping on.
We reached the falls and they were okay... not much but a nice hike.
I had read that there was an offshoot off the falls trail called Storm King but it wasn't for the faint of heart. Paul was all for it since Storm King is one of his favorite Victory Beers and the kids were ready to go.
It was straight. up. hill. the. whole. way. There were NO flat parts to this trail. We climbed and climbed and climbed straight uphill for 2 miles. Noah dragged the first half mile but then picked it up and rain uphill. Maeve was awesome and stayed at the front with Paul. I was struggling for sure! I kept calling myself Granny! It took a very long time to get to the top.
We stopped and Paul carved an M and N into the trees for the kids. There was a weird coating on many of the trees that looked like molasses.
Along the way there was a vista and we took a seat for a drink and these birds starting swooping at us. They followed us the rest of the way up the mountain. Paul is convinced they are used to tourists with food and were waiting for crumbs but they literally stayed by our side. We were waiting to have our eyes pecked out.
When we got to the top view point we sat and enjoyed the view. It was magnificent. There was a point higher we could climb but the guide said you had to hold on to ropes tied to trees to make the climb and I wasn't comfortable with the kids doing that.... Paul was disappointed for sure. It was already after 4 and we had to head back down.
Over the mountains around Lake Crescent is British Columbia! This lake is actually a bright blue color. It is 1,000 feet deep and over 7000 years old. It was formed by a glacier and has something in it that inhibits the growth of algae so it is completely clear water!
So many hikers remarked that the kids were doing this trail because it was so hard. Plenty of kids were on the waterfall trail but none on the Storm King. They were amazing and such troopers!!!!!
The way down was quicker but harder on us. We all took some serious spills because it was so steep. Noah banged up his arm, Paul hurt his knee, Maeve just kept slipping (it is very wet in the forest, it's actually right next to a rainforest) and I took a big spill when my foot got caught under a root and I twisted my knee. It's still bothering me and I'm just praying I didn't do anything wrong.
This is the elevation from the Storm King Trail. It's pretty awesome that I can see the trail and the elevation while we are hiking on my phone. No paper maps!
When we finally got down we took an alternate trail through a Sleepy Meadow forest which was even more magnificent than the beginning with draping moss and drooping trees.
(she looks just like me as a kid here.....)
This is what we climbed up... it doesn't look as impressive in a photo as it does in person!
This link will take you to much better pictures of what we saw!
trees in the olympic national forest
We got back in the car after 6.5 miles and drove to Port Angeles for a great dinner at Next Door Gastro Pub and then back to the ferry. The kids were asleep in the car before we ever hit the ferry and we arrived home around 10pm We were all sooooo tired!!! But it was a GREAT day!
