Olympic National Park: A first-timer's guide

Green is the overwhelming color on Washington's Olympic Peninsula.

From dazzling emerald to muted pine, you’ll detect a hundred different shades of it in the wet, mossy confines of the Lower 48’s most north-westerly national park. Here, you will find 1,000-year-old trees guarding the finest tract of old-growth rainforest in the US. The Olympics is also home to a small ski station, the majestic Roosevelt elk, tide pools, archaeological sites, sea stacks and a dark, eerie sylvan environment that has inspired a mini library of vampire books. Playing a noble supporting act are a muddle of heavily glaciated mountains, a trio of handsome lodges and a couple of rustic hot springs. 

Visit one of the most stunning parks in Washington state if you like rock-hopping on stormy beaches, paddling across windy lakes and hiking beneath drippy trees with just bears and rutting elk for company.

Where are the entrance gates for Olympic National Park?

Olympic National Park has multiple entrances that lead to its distinct environments, from temperate rainforests to alpine peaks and coastal beaches. Where to start largely depends on what you’re hoping to experience. Each entrance gives visitors access to specific ecosystems and landmarks, making it easy to tailor a visit based on what you want to see and do.

North Entrance

The park’s North Entrance, at Port Angeles, is the most popular gateway, providing access to the park’s headquarters, the visitor center and the popular Hurricane Ridge. This entrance is ideal for those interested in alpine views. Due to snowfall, Hurricane Ridge Road may close temporarily in winter, so it’s best to check conditions beforehand.

Hoh Rain Forest Entrance

Located on the park’s west side, the Hoh Rain Forest entrance provides access to lush, moss-covered trees, old-growth forests and trails like the Hall of Mosses and the Hoh River Trail. Open year-round, this entrance remains accessible during the winter, although trails can be wet and muddy. 

Southwest Entrance

Near Lake Quinault, the southwest entrance provides access to the lake’s valleys. This area is home to some of the park’s largest trees, like the Quinault Big Cedar Tree, and is ideal for a quieter experience, offering a range of hikes with fewer visitors and scenic drives around the lake.

Sol Duc Entrance

On the park’s northwestern side is an entrance into Sol Duc, known for the Sol Duc Hot Springs where visitors can relax in natural mineral pools. The Sol Duc area has seasonal access, with the hot springs and resort typically open from spring to late fall, depending on weather conditions.

Staircase Entrance

The Staircase entrance leads into the park’s southeastern region, which is less traveled but offers peaceful access to the park. It’s an excellent area for hikers interested in more rugged terrain, including the Staircase Rapids Loop Trail. While the road to Staircase is paved, some trails here can be challenging.

Ozette Entrance

The Ozette entrance on the northwestern coast gives visitors access to trails leading to the wild Pacific beaches and coastal forests. The Ozette Loop, a 9-mile trail that includes boardwalks and a coastal stretch, offers views of sea stacks, tide pools and driftwood-covered beaches. Additionally, the Kalaloch entrance on the park’s western edge provides easy access to the coastal regions and Kalaloch Lodge. 

Planning tip: Each entrance is open year-round. Olympic National Park charges a $30 fee per vehicle for a seven-day pass, though annual passes and the America the Beautiful pass are also accepted.

When should I go to Olympic National Park?

Welcome to one of the wettest places in the US! Rain, and its avoidance, is a primary consideration for most visitors. The Hoh Rain Forest gets nearly 130in of precipitation a year. Summer, between May and September, is the driest time, with July logging an average of only nine rainy days. This is also when most of the park’s facilities are open, from campgrounds to ranger-led hikes.

The winter season usually runs from late-November to late-March with snow activities centered around the small ski station at Hurricane Ridge.

If you hate crowds, January is the quietest (and wettest) month, while August (with over half a million visitors) is the busiest. Prices don’t fluctuate much in the park itself. In the surrounding communities, winter and the spring/fall shoulder seasons work out slightly cheaper.

Planning a trip to Washington State? Here's our seasonal guide

How much time should I spend in Olympic National Park?

You could easily spend four or five days working your way around Hwy 101, the Olympics’ unofficial ring-road with overnight stops in Port Angeles, Lake Crescent, Forks and Lake Quinault. If you’re planning on penetrating the park’s extensive backcountry on longer hikes along the coast or in the roadless interior, bank on putting aside a week – or even two.

Is it easy to get in and around Olympic National Park?

Getting to the park is relatively easy due to its proximity to Seattle. It’s just over two hours by car to the eastern park entrance at Staircase and 2.5 hours to Port Angeles in the north. Seatac, 15 miles south of downtown Seattle, is the nearest airport.

It’s relatively easy to travel to Port Angeles directly from Victoria on Vancouver Island in Canada. The Black Ball car ferry runs four times a day in either direction in the summer (and twice in the winter). The journey time is 1.5 hours.

The park is encircled by a scenic and well-maintained Hwy 101 with several more paved roads penetrating the interior where they dead-end at Hurricane Ridge, Hoh Rain Forest, Lake Quinault, Sol Duc hot springs and Staircase.

Planning tip: While public buses exist, we suggest renting a car as they are slow and discontinuous. You’ll need to change buses between the different counties of Clallam, Jefferson, Mason and Grays Harbor.

Top things to do in Olympic National Park

1. Appreciate ancient trees in the Hoh Rain Forest

For one of the most quintessential park experiences, take a deep dive into the greenest, wettest and oldest temperate rainforest in North America. Hoh, with its giant trees draped in spongy moss, is what makes the Olympics unique, a temperate “jungle” of foliage that’s humming with wildlife. The area has its own visitor center and several short interpretive trails, including the 1.25-mile Hall of Moss trail. In the summer, Rangers arrange nature walks and informative presentations on the rainforest.

Hike 3.2 miles up the Hoh River Trail from the visitor center above Mt Tom Creek Meadows. Find a Sitka spruce tree that you can walk through. That’s the entrance to “One Square Inch of Silence,” an area with the least amount of human-made noise pollution anywhere in the country.

The Hoh Rain Forest Campground is a popular spot for camping at Olympic National Park, with reservations required from June through September. 

Planning tip: Due to the area’s popularity, especially during peak seasons, the parking lot often reaches capacity early in the day. Arrive before 10am or after 5pm to increase the likelihood of securing a spot.

2. Observe the forces of nature on Ruby Beach

First designated in 1938, Olympic National Park was extended in 1953 to include a narrow coastal strip that stretches from Ozette in the north down to Kalaloch in the south. Of the coast’s stormy collection of beaches, Ruby Beach, characterized by its bruised clouds, eroded sea stacks and piles of washed-up tree logs, is the easiest to reach from Hwy 101.

3. Climb a rugged path up Mt Storm King

Arguably the park’s most rewarding day-hike is the 4.1-mile round-trip climb to the top of Mt Storm King, whose narrow craggy summit towers grandly above the timberline overlooking the blue-green waters of Lake Crescent and the Strait of Juan de Fuca. The trail starts from a lakeside ranger station and ascends steeply through forest for just under 2 miles, with the last section necessitating a challenging scramble over rough rock with ropes provided for assistance. It’s well worth the sweat.

Planning tip: During winter months, the upper sections of the trail are often covered in snow and ice, making the steep terrain more hazardous. Having experience with winter hiking is important, or stick to the trail between May and October.

4. Feel the wind in your hair at Hurricane Ridge

The most-visited park enclave is located near the urban hub of Port Angeles. Hurricane Ridge is home to a small family-orientated ski station (a rarity in US national parks), windy roadside lookouts, flower meadows, mountain goats and superb views into the park’s uninhabited interior. Trails, both short and long, penetrate the subalpine surroundings. While you can drive to the main area here, be sure to check for road closures and equip your tires with chains.

Planning tip: From late November through March, the road to Hurricane Ridge opens only on weekends, weather permitting, and is subject to closures during storms or heavy snowfall.

5. Go stargazing 

The Hurricane Ridge Astronomy Program is free and includes a Master Observer or volunteer Dark Ranger who can point out planetary nebula M57 (also known as the “Ring Nebula”) and M31 (the Andromeda Galaxy). You can find a schedule at olympictelescope.com.

The best places to stargaze are Hurricane Ridge, Lake Crescent and Kalaloch Beach, where there are open skies and minimal light pollution. Remember to bring binoculars, a red flashlight, water, gloves, a hat and jacket, and dress in layers.

6. Soak in hot springs at Sol Duc 

The most accessible and developed of the park’s hot springs, Sol Duc Hot Springs Resort sits at the end of a 14-mile-long approach road and funnels its recuperative waters into a quartet of tiled outdoor pools. If you’re not a hotel guest, you can pay an entrance fee to use one of the three hot mineral pools. 

Massage is also available and, if you’re truly besotted, there’s a rustic cabin resort, campground and restaurant dabbling in Northwest cuisine. A handful of trails embellish the area incorporating bubbling creeks, a pretty lake and a waterfall.

7. Photograph tide pools and sea stacks

Olympic National Park protects about 73 miles of coastline in partnership with three national wildlife refuges and the Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary. Tide pooling is best at Kalaloch’s Beach 4, Rialto Beach’s Hole-in-the-Wall, Second Beach, Third Beach and Ruby Beach. When the tide rolls back, you might find anemones, wolf eels, barnacles, clams, sea snails, sponges, starfish, hermit crabs and seaweed competing and cooperating in pools, alcoves and basins of rocks

Planning tip: The best time is during a “minus tide” that’s lower than normal. Look up tides lower than 1ft via the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

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My favorite thing to do in Olympic National Park

The Quinault Valley is one of several road accessible enclaves in the park’s interior and one of my favorite places to linger for a day or three. The area is anchored by a rippling lake upon whose shores stands the handsome Lake Quinault Lodge, a historic hotel built in rustic style in the 1920s, a good decade before the national park was created.

I like Quinault because it offers a litany of indoor and outdoor things to do depending on your mood and how energetic or lazy you feel. This is an ideal base for embarking on long- and short-distance hikes, admiring giant trees, kayaking on the adjacent lake or merely relaxing in a well-worn leather armchair beside the lodge’s spirit-reviving fire.

How much money do I need for Olympic National Park?

In common with many national parks, you can expect the prices for items such as food to be a little more expensive than the surrounding towns, plus there are fewer options to find cheap substitutes. Balancing things out, many of the park’s outdoor activities – including hiking, wild swimming and wildlife-watching – are free or almost free.

A guide to daily costs

• Park entrance fee: $15–30

• Campground per night: $15–24

• Basic room for two: $150–250

• Kayak rental (4 hours): $45

• Hot springs entrance fee: $18

• Public transport ticket: free–$10 (70-mile journey)

• Coffee: $3–4

• Dinner entrée at Lake Quinault Lodge: $26–48

Frequently asked questions

How unpredictable is the weather?

The weather is always fickle in this neck of the woods. Dress in layers, particularly in the mountains and bring a waterproof jacket and leggings. Summer months have the most reliable weather, and that’s also when most of the campgrounds are open.

Are there any rainy-day activities in the area?

Located just outside the national park boundary in Neah Bay, the Makah Museum is well worth an hour or two of your time, offering an unparalleled glimpse into one of the oldest and best studied Native American archaeological sites in the US.

Is there a park visitor center?

The park’s main visitor center is situated on the southern edge of Port Angeles and is open daily year-round. There’s a Wilderness Information Center next door. There’s another visitor center in the Hoh Rain Forest with more limited off-season hours. The visitor center at Hurricane Ridge burned down in 2023, and the park is currently using temporary tailors to provide visitors support and restrooms

What’s the deal with camping?

There are 14 front-country campgrounds in the park; half take reservations, and the other half are first-come-first-serve. Five campgrounds are suitable for tents only, and two have electrical hookups and water. Reservations can be made on the National Park Service website.

Backcountry campers must purchase a permit for $6 and subsequently pay $8 per person per night. Sites must be booked in advance and are available from May 15 through October 15. There are 120 backcountry campgrounds in the park, each able to accommodate between six and 12 people.

Where can I hike in Olympic National Park?

Hiking in Olympic National Park will take you from mist-shrouded rainforests to alpine peaks. Beginners will enjoy the easy trails in the Hoh Rain Forest like the 0.8m Hall of Mosses, where giant trees draped in green moss create an otherworldly atmosphere. The nearby Spruce Nature Trail (1.2m) is another gentle loop offering scenic views of the Hoh River.

For those looking for a moderate challenge, Hurricane Ridge offers stunning views and a bit more adventurous trails. The Hurricane Hill Trail (3.2m) is a popular option, while more seasoned hikers might venture further along the Klahhane Ridge Trail, a 7.6m round-trip walk from the visitor center to the ridge.

If waterfalls are more your style, head to the Sol Duc Valley. Here, the easy 1.6m Sol Duc Falls Trails rewards hikers with a dramatic cascade plunging into a mossy gorge. For a longer adventure, try the 6m Lover’s Lane Loop, which takes you a winding route along rivers and quiet woodlands.

For a coastal hike, take a trip to Rialto Beach. The Hole-in-the-Wall trail (3.3m round trip) is best done at low tide.