On our last day in the Olympic National Park we visited the Hoh Rainforest. It is one of the largest temperate rainforests in the U.S. Within Olympic National Park, the forest is protected from commercial exploitation. This includes 24 miles of low elevation forest 394 to 2,493 feet along the Hoh River. The Hoh River valley was formed thousands of years ago by glaciers. Between the park boundary and the Pacific Ocean, 48 km of river, much of the forest has been logged within the last century, although many pockets of forest remain.
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| The beautiful Hoh River flows in and out of Olympic National Park |
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| Forks, Washington welcome sign |
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| It looks like Bella is visiting the Forks Timber Museum! See her red truck on the left? |
To get to the Hoh Rainforest we traveled west on Highway 101 and then headed south on the same highway going through Forks, Washington. Forks may look familiar because it is the setting (and partial filming location) for the Twilight Movies.
After passing through Forks we turned back to the east and traveled on the Upper Hoh Road and back into the Olympic National Park.
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| Hoh Visitors Center |
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| EVERYTHING in the forest is covered with moss! |
The Hoh Rainforest is home to a National Park Service ranger station, from which backcountry trails extend deeper into the national park.
Near the visitor center is the Hall of Mosses Trail, a short trail—0.8 miles - which gives visitors a feel for the local ecosystem and views of maples draped with large growths of spikemoss. There is also the Spruce Nature Trail (1.2 miles), which includes signs that identify various trailside trees and plants. We enjoyed a hike through the Hall of Mossess but, unfortunately, we didn't have the time or energy to tackle the Spruce Nature Trail before we headed to Ruby Beach and back to home base, Lake Sutherland.
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| Gman or Hobbit? |
On our last day in the Olympic National Park we visited the Hoh Rainforest. It is one of the largest temperate rainforests in the U.S. Within Olympic National Park, the forest is protected from commercial exploitation. This includes 24 miles of low elevation forest 394 to 2,493 feet along the Hoh River. The Hoh River valley was formed thousands of years ago by glaciers. Between the park boundary and the Pacific Ocean, 48 km of river, much of the forest has been logged within the last century, although many pockets of forest remain.
