Park of China
Overview
| Designation | UNESCO World Heritage (natural, 1981) US National Park |
| Location | Northwestern Washington State, USA |
| Latitude, longitude | 47.7, -123.5 Google Maps |
| Highlights | Rainforest, coast, snowy peaks |
| Area | 922,000 acres |
| Elevation | 7,965 feet |
| Nearby cities | Seattle |
| Nearby sites | North Cascades National Park, Mount Rainier National Park, Crater Lake National Park |
| Themes | Mountain, Snow Mountain, Forest, Ocean, Beach, Stream, Glacier, Lake, Tropical rainforest, Coastal landforms, Hiking & climbing |
About
Olympic National Park is in northwestern Washington State. It became a US national park in 1938, and in 1981 it was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List as a natural site.
Visitor map
Travel tips
Getting there: The park is on the Olympic Peninsula and no road crosses its central mountains, so each area is entered separately. From Seattle, take a ferry to Bainbridge Island or Kingston, then drive about two hours to Port Angeles.
Areas: The park falls into the northern mountains (Hurricane Ridge), the Lake Crescent and Sol Duc area, the Hoh Rain Forest in the west, and the Pacific coast; each is an hour or two by road from the next.
Hurricane Ridge: The road climbs from Port Angeles in about half an hour to views of the snowy peaks around Mount Olympus; in winter it is sometimes open only at weekends, and chains may be required.
Rain forest: The Hoh receives over 3,000 mm of rain a year; trails run under moss-hung maple and spruce, and the Hall of Mosses loop is only about 1.3 km.
Coast: Ruby Beach and Rialto Beach have rocks, driftwood and sea stacks; check the tide table, as some stretches are covered at high tide.
Hot springs: Sol Duc Hot Springs sits in the forest and has a resort and pools.
Time and season: Three days is comfortable. July to September is driest; winter and spring are wet, though the rain forest is worth seeing in autumn and winter too.
Where to stay: There are lodges and campgrounds at Lake Crescent, Sol Duc and Kalaloch; otherwise most people stay in Port Angeles or Forks.
More photos
Map
Photo credits: Olympic National Park: King of Hearts (CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons)