9/24/06 - 7.6 miles
Good things do come to those who wait. I have been wanting to hike this trail for a little over two years now - more than any other in Olympic Park. The descriptions are so enticing, talking about views that last forever above treeline closer to the clouds than one could imagine.
This 7.6 mile trail is usually done as a thru-hike starting at one trail head and ending at the other, so having two cars is necessary unless you want to do the complete 15 mile round trip. We had attempted the trail last year in late June with my sister but were thwarted by mud & snow on the Obstruction Point road so opted instead for the High Ridge trail and the abundance of wildflowers there. When June/July rolled around again this year, I couldn't find anyone with an available day and an extra car to hike it with us so we only hiked out to Elk Mountain then back through Badger Meadows - a fabulous hike in its own right. However, that day was cloudy and we only were given hints of the beautiful views that lay beyond.
After Michael & I bought up our second car, we had a good excuse to try it ourselves. We left home early and drove around to park one car at Deer Park then headed back out and around for Obstruction Point. Michael later figured that the driving between both trail heads for the day would be well over 100 miles - not to mention the drive from Auburn & back. We didn't even start hiking until noon. (We did stop on the way to eat breakfast and pick up lunch.)
The flowers that had decorated our trail only two months before were now dried and colorless. But we were not saddened by their demise. I wonder if we would have noticed them if they had been in bloom. The mountains that rose to the south of us drew our attention away from what lay at our feet. Sitting stately in the center with its crown-like peaks was Mt Olympus reigning over the other but no less stately mountains of the Olympics. We steadily climbed up the hillside, each step revealing more of the mountains and enticed us with what was over that ridge to our north. It wasn't too long before we were able to look upon the splendor to the north. Mt Baker rose from the mists on the other side of Puget Sound, but it was not Puget Sound we were looking down upon.
We saw at our feet the peninsula cities of Sequim and Port Angeles and their distinctive sand bars. Beyond was the Strait of Juan de Fuca with Victoria and Vancouver Island just beyond. Lunch was eaten at the top of Elk Mountain, looking upon the same view with the inside passage sparkling just beyond Vancouver Island and the snowy peaks of the BC cascades beckoning us to explore. Off to the east, the trail wound its way around another hill before descending back into the trees. After lunch, we descended sharply, continuing our way to Deer Park. Several years ago I would have turned back at this part of the trail - the descent was narrow and worked its way across a shale slope. But I confidently set my feet and poles and slowly worked my way down. I was a bit saddened when we lost our northern view, but our southern view was still spectacular - revealing hidden gems in the valleys as they reached up to the rocky faces above. It was about this point when we came across the swarms of gnats - so thick they became a black cloud blocking my vision.
I began to notice after we made it to treeline that spring must be wonderful down here. There were remnants of heathers, lupine & lilies speckling the forest floor. The floor must be covered in either avalanche lilies or glacier lilies during the spring. (Mental note to self - get back & do this during the flowering months.) The descent through the trees was farther than either of us expected and we were not looking forward to what must be a steep climb back up to Deer Park. Boy were we fooled. The trail here follows an old roadbed and the climb out was as gradual as the climb in and in no time we were back on the road to pick up our other car. We waited for sunset near Obstruction Point and made our way home again.
