Olympic National Park Help
 

I posted most of this in another thread in the Canada forum but wanted to ask here too. We recently booked a last minute RT cruise form Seattle to Alaska, May 18-25. I was planning to go up to Tofino after the cruise but, between the border crossings and the ferry schedules, I'm seriously considering going to ONP instead. The problem is we are leaving in just 10 days and we'd be arriving in ONP in the middle of Memorial Day weekend so I need some quick help to see if I can/should make this change.

We'll be in Seattle a few days before the cruise and do local sightseeing with a friend so that is covered.

We like to hike and do activities. I've read that they've gotten tons of snow this year. Will a lot of sections be inaccessible in just 3 weeks?

We're on the Thu night red-eye home but right now there is a daytime flight available if I grab it before someone else does. That would give us 4 full days in ONP.

Can we stay in one location and make easy day trips or is it best to move around? We go hard all day long so we cover a lot more ground that most people. I can handle hiking up to 8-10 miles a day if not too steep but I'm not into gratuitous hiking. I need rewarding veiws along the way, not just a grand prize at the end.

Arriving in the middle of Memorial Day weekend, I assume we'll have better luck getting reservations Mon-Wed. If we can't find a place in ONP Sun, any suggestions what to do that night?

Any suggestions to get me headed in the right direction would be greatly appreciated!

I can't give you a lot of help on ONP, but I can try. It's huge and basically has 3 distinct areas: mountains (east side), rain forest and coastal area (west side). I've driven around it once and it was a really long day, so I would suggest staying in 2 different locations to explore: one for the east side and one for the west. Can't help you with current snow conditions - the park website has a page with 'current' conditions, but it hasn't been updates for most trails since mid-March.

I can't give you a lot of help on ONP, although I have been there a couple of times, but not recently. I would say that the weather there that time of year, though, is unpredictable. It could be great. Could be rainy and very cool the entire time. If you want sunshine and better weather, you could drive over to the Methow Valley in the North Cascades. Drive would be very pretty and Methow weather might be more reliable over that weekend. You would need to book accommodations ASAP though.

Hi, I live on the Olympic Peninsula so I hope I can help you. Many people who come to Olympic National Park stay in Port Angeles. There are many different lodging and dining choices available. Memorial Day weekend is a busy one, however. The big Juan de Fuca Festival of the Arts is that weekend. I would try to get a motel ASAP. I'm not sure if I would stay in Port Angeles for the full time. You would spend a lot of time in the car driving back and forth. It is 2.5 hours one way to the Hoh Rainforest from Port Angeles, for example. Consider staying somewhere in the west end (Forks, La Push, Kalaloch) for a night or two.

As far as accessibility is concerned. Most of the Park roads are open. One notable exception is the Staircase area in the Southeast corner of the park. It is closed currently and the opening date is uncertain. The Hurricane Ridge road is now open daily but there are still 117 inches of snow at the top. I would plan on hiking in the lowlands. There are a lot of nice low elevation hikes and of course you can hike for miles on the beaches. Be sure to stop in at the ONP visitor center in Port Angeles to get trail recommendations and advice. We answer questions on this subject all the time. I am happy you have multiple days to visit the Park. You wouldn't believe the number of people who want to see "everything" in the Park and only have an afternoon.
I hope this helps.

I'd suggest finding lodgings in Port Townsend for Sunday night. It's an interesting town, and staying there will give you a good jump on getting to ONP the next day.

I agree with y lou about splitting your time between the Port Angeles area and the west side. There are quite a few lowland hikes near PA (especially in the Lake Crescent/Sol Duc area), and of course the west side beaches and rain forest will be no problem.

If the weather is good, the view from Hurricane Ridge is not to be missed. After this year's record snowfall, hiking is unlikely, but you could always rent some snowshoes!

Thanks for the replies. I still am torn. I contacted Crescent Lake Lodge and they called back saying they do have space on those dates. I know it was recommended (and that it's rustic) but I'm not sure hwere it was (West of Port Angeles?)

I saw that there is rafting. Is that whitewater or a float trip?

For anyone that's been to both Tofino and ONP, assuming you could only go to one and you could never come back to get the other, which woudl you pick?