Help, please! I'm so confused!
 

We are staying in Seattle for 3 days in September. After that, we are going to drive to Port Angeles to see Hurricane Ridge and then Forks to see the HOH rain forest and Rialto Beach. Then we want to head over to Mt. Rainier. Where is a nice area to stay overnight between Forks and Mt. Rainier? Somewhere with several restaurants and inexpensive hotels. How about Olympia?

OR, would it be better to stay in Port Angeles and make a day trip to Forks and then head to Mt. Rainier from Port Angeles? We don't need to spend a lot of time in any of these places because we basically just want scenic drives and a few very short hikes. I am open to all suggestions. Thanks.

I suggest you visit Mt. Rainier as a day trip from Seattle.

The drive south from Forks on 101 is not scenic except for a short stretch when it skirts the Pacific.

Assuming you will return to Seattle at the end of your visit, I suggest this scenic loop for the Olympic Peninsula:

Going: Seattle, Edmonds for ferry to Kingston, Port Gamble (charming town), Port Townsend (detour to Victorian seaside town), Port Angeles

Returning: Port Angeles, Quilcene, Hoodsport, Belfair, Tacoma, Seattle (this takes you along the west side of Hood Canal, which is very scenic).

HTTY

agree that mt rainier can be done as a day trip, but if you do want to stay over at mt rainier, i'd go with staying in port angeles and doing the hoh, etc as a day trip, then heading down the west side of hood canal to rainier.

Thanks so much for the info. We are going to take your advice and do Mt. Rainier as a day trip from Seattle. How do I find out about ferry service from Edmonds? Do we need reservations?

There are no reservations on the ferry at Edmonds. Here is a link to ferry info: http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/ferries/

HTTY