Thinking of staying 2 or 3 nights in Port Angeles in the middle of a Pacific NW trip. We plan on hiking and canoeing.

Haved stayed in the past at Lake Quinault Lodge, but were thinking of taking a day trip or overnight to Victoria this trip, and thought Port Angeles would be more convenient.

Will it be a lot more difficult to get to other parts of the park, or are there good hikes within a reasonable distance from Port Angeles? It's hard to tell by looking at the park map, as the road system is rather circuitous. We are looking for 2-5 mile hikes, and will probably spend 1 day driving to the Hoh Rainforest regardless of where we stay (realize this will be at least a 90-minute drive from Port Angeles).

Dining and nightlife not huge factors in our choice, as we will be going on to Seattle next. Also, the B&B looks like it will have a good breakfast. Thanks for your suggestions.

No, there are MUCH better options! Pt. Angeles is ok, but somewhat industrial.

We explored Olympic NP last summer. We spent two nights in the lovely, little 'village' called Port Townsend. We went whale watching and also explored Hurricane Ridge from there. Lots of motel choices and some good restaurants and shopping. And this is a town we'd definitely visit again!

We then spent two nights inside the Park at the Pyramid Mountain Lodge. It wasn't quite El Tovar or Old Faithful, but is right on the beautiful Crescent Lake. From there, we explored Hoh Rainforest and other parts of the park.

Olympic Nat'l Park has lots to offer, but i would definitely NOT stay in Pt. Angeles.

Enjoy!

Port Angeles is okay to use as a base and the ferry to Victoria leaves from right there. Plus, it is closer to the Olympics and Hoh Rain Forest. It is not as picturesque as Port Townsend, though, as the other poster suggests. Port Townsend is more developed for visitors. Still, it has a nice downtown with murals, a brew pub and a little touchy feely acquarium at the docks.

Hurricane Ridge is beautiful. It's a mile high and gives vistas north to the Strait of Juan de Fuca all the way to Victoria on the other side. To the south, you see the peaks of the entire park, inaccessible by road.

You can get info on the park and trails at the Olympic National Park Headquearters in Port Angeles. A good trail is from Obstruction Point east for two miles to Elk Mountain.

If you want to spent a night closer to the Hoh Rain Forest, Kalaloch Lodge is nice. It has a beach full of huge drift wood.

Victoria is fun, too. So much to do, so little time!

Thanks for your response. I will actually be staying 10 days in Port Townsend for a conference at the end of the trip, but thought Port Angeles would be more convenient for a vacation, being closer to the ferry and points west and south.

Last summer we stayed a few nights in Sequim, which is near Port Angeles. Below is the hotel part of my trip report I posted in August. We found that Sequim was a reasonably good location as a home base for exploring the O.P. and it was a nicer town than P.A., but still within a short driving distance of it.

We stayed at a small B&B called the Dungeness Lodge B&B (http://www.dungenesslodge.com). It is a nice, small B&B located in a residential neighborhood on the Strait of Juan de Fuca. It's a log lodge style house with an A-frame front with a three floors high glass window overlooking the beach and water. The owners are nice, live on the property and give you plenty of privacy. The breakfasts are homemade and very good - we were served coffee, juice, yogurt, fruit and baked goods each morning. Some rooms offer a mountain view and some a water view. Located in Sequim and convenient for trips to Olympic National Park and Victoria, B.C., it was a good place to stay as a home base for our Olympic Peninsula vacation.

I think PA or Sequim are fine as base camps. PA is convenient as the jumping off point for Hurricane Ridge but otherwise it's any small industrial burg. Sequim could be quaint, but it's not. Dungeness Spit is a wonderful walk starting from a park near Sequim. Port Townsend is the only north Peninsula town with any character. I much perfer to stay at Lake Crescent. A bit west of PA and much, much prettier. I like Log Cabin Resort even if a bit dated. I went there as a kid and keep going back. Lake Crescent Lodge is more upscale, but still rustic. Some nice day hikes take off right from the lodgings. The two resorts are about all there is on the large lake. The lake is also not too terribly far from the northern ocean beaches and these beaches are wild and unpopulated. I return there everytime I get overdoses of CNN. Enjoy!

We stayed at the motel ...can't remember the name...next to the ferry and park for 2 nights...(2yrs ago)...and were very happy with the motel and location.
Did loads of exploring from there...and took a trip to Victoria...wasn't to thrilled with that, tho. I wish we would have taken more time to explore the Island and taken less time in Victoria.

If your intent is to use some town as a base for treks and daytrips, PA will do fine, especially if you plan to visit Victoria as a foot passenger (recommended). Crescent Lake or points further west (e.g. Forks, ugh,) won't have much in the way of facilities, plus a greater chance of poopy weather.

Hurricane Ridge and other northern areas of Olympic NP are easily accessible from PA, and plenty of hikes, hot springs, and other attractions are close by. I second the idea of going out the Dungeness Spit.

We stayed at the Juan de Fuca cottages in Sequim..charming! Have a dinner or luch at the 3 crabs.

stayed in sequim and enjoyed it. Also ate at 3 crabs - nice view.

Two very short hikes we took were at the visitor center as you enter the Hurricane Ridge section of the Olympia NP. Very interesting.