6 Great Day Hikes in Washington State

Fog rising from moss-covered tree trunks on Hall of Mosses Trail.

Wilderness Peak Loop
Cougar Mountain Regional Wildland Park
The Wilderness Peak Loop, a circle of connecting trails, serves as nice summer jaunt through the forest for kids. The 3.6 miles of trails sit on the southeastern side of Cougar Mountain – the nearest of the Issaquah Alps east of Seattle – in Cougar Mountain Regional Wildland Park.

Hall of Mosses Trail
Olympic National Park
Hikers can walk among the greenest places on Earth on the Hall of Mosses Trail at Olympic National Park. The trail runs 0.9-miles round trip through the park’s famous Hoh Rain Forest. A popular trail, it can be crowded, even in summer when humidity levels can make the air feel thick.

Best trails for seeing North Cascades' sites
Among the best ways to see North Cascades National Park’s top sights is via a day hike. Just four short trails will allow you to enjoy each of the park’s highlights – glaciers, an ancient Native American travel route, an alpine landscape, and mountain lakes.

Learn more about national park day hiking trails in my Best Sights to See at America’s National Parks series.

Great hikes bookend U.S. Hwy. 101 drive

Damnation Creek Trail, Redwood National Park.

If driving the stretch of U.S. Hwy. 101 between Port Angeles, Wash., and Crescent City, Calif., this summer, you’re in for a treat. This scenic drive along the Pacific Ocean is wonderfully bookended by two popular national parks – Olympic and Redwood.

Water tumbles 90 feet over Marymere Falls at Olympic National Park west of Port Angeles. On the trail leading the falls, ferns spring beneath spruce, fir and hemlock while verdant moss covers every rock and bare patch of ground – and just about every tree, for that matter.

Continuing down the 101 to Ruby Beach, Wash., is the Hall of Mosses Trail at Olympic’s Hoh Rain Forest. Moss, lichen and ferns blanket a dense canopy of giant bigleaf maples and Sitka spruces, leaving you in perpetual twilight with a green hue. It’s a magical walk.

Redwoods up to 10 stories high and eight feet around highlight Redwood National Park’s Damnation Creek Trail at mile marker 16 just south of Crescent City. With an understory of rhododendron, which sports beautiful pink and purple blossoms in mid-May to early June, and incredibly tall huckleberry bushes – some reaching 15 feet high –you’ll feel like you’re in a scene from “Land of the Lost.”

Learn about trail guidebooks available in the Hittin’ the Trail series.

Seastacks line Olympic N.P. beachwalk

Abbey Island with Cedar Creek in foreground. Courtesy of Wikipedia.

Topo map of Ruby Beach Trail.

Ruby Beach Trail starts in forest, runs alongside Pacific Ocean 

Day hikers can explore a Pacific Ocean shoreline featuring gushing seastacks, piles of driftwood logs, and colorful, wave-polished stones on the Ruby Beach Trail at Olympic National Park.

The 1.4-mile round trip trail sits on the Olympic Peninsula’s west side. While most of the national park is inland centered on Mt. Olympus, a small stretch of it runs alongside the coastline on Kalaloch Beach.

Perhaps the best time to enjoy the trail is before sunset on a clear day, if only for the golden coloration of the rocks and ocean. Regardless of when you go, though, first check the tide schedule; some of the beach is passable only at low tide. Winter storms also can result in dangerously high surf.

To reach the trailhead, from the Kalaloch Information Station, travel north on U.S. Hwy 101. Turn left/west on the road to Ruby Beach. The trailhead and bathrooms are on the lot's north side.

The trail curves west through a spruce forest. Note the nodules growing on the Sitka Spruce trunks, which some people say give the woods a fairy tale feel.

As the trail nears the beach, breaks through the forest offer impressive views of seastacks. Made of erosion-resistant rock, the seastacks once were part of the mainland, but waves and wind since have washed away the softer stone, leaving them standing as lone sentinels.

On the beach
The trail next curves south until reaching the beach. You’ll instantly notice that the beach has a slight pink tint to it; that's due to the tiny grains of garnet mixed in with the sand.

Plenty of wildlife frequent the shore, so watch for paw prints in the sandy sections. Eagles often can be spotted flying above the shoreline.

Once the wooded trail ends, the hike turns into a beachwalk. Head south alongside the forest, where a number of wave-polished stones of all colors can be found. Sometimes people stack them into cairns, but don’t rely upon them for navigation.

As the beach narrows, turn north and walk along the water. If you take off your shoes, don’t let the waves run over your feet or you’ll be in for a shock, as the water is quite cold here, no matter the time of year.

Abbey Island
Upon nearing the hike’s northern end, you’ll be able to spot sneaker waves. These form when several waves traveling from different directions and at different heights overlap.

You’ll also come across a small seastack. A hole in offers a framed view of the ocean waves.

Upon reaching the point where Cedar Creek flows into the Pacific, you’ll be see a driftwood logpile and large seastacks, with one of them, Abbey Island, sizeable enough for trees to grow atop. The combo of seastacks and the stream outlet results in a natural trap for the logs. Some of the driftwood here has floated in from the distant Columbia River.

At the outlet, turn south on beach, following its edge along Cedar Creek. A freshwater stream, flat stones can be found in abundance here. Feel free to perfect your stone skipping skills.

Where the beach reaches the forest again, you can cut back through the woods on a narrow dirt path and pick up the stem trail. Once on it, retrace your steps back to the parking lot.

Final note: Leashed dogs are allowed on trail.

Learn more about national park day hiking trails in my Best Sights to See at America’s National Parks guidebook.

Trail heads through Washington rainforest

The Hoh Rainforest receives up to 14 feet of rain per year.

Topo map, Hall of Mosses Trail.

Hall of Mosses
Trail gives taste
of one of Earth's
greenest places

Hikers can walk among the greenest places on Earth on the Hall of Mosses Trail at Olympic National Park in Washington state.

The trail runs 0.9-miles round trip through the park’s famous Hoh Rain Forest. A popular trail, it can be crowded, even in summer when humidity levels can make the air feel thick.

To reach the trailhead, from the coastal community of Ruby Beach, Washington, take U.S. Hwy. 101 north. Turn right/east onto Hoh Valley Road/Upper Hoh Road. Park at the Hoh Rain Forest Visitor Center where the road ends.

Nurselogs
From the lot’s northeast corner near the visitor center, go northeast on the Mini-Trail. The Hall of Mosses Trail is the first path heading left/north. Both the Mini-Trail and the stem cross two spring-fed creeks that are crystal clear.

From there, the magic begins. Moss, lichen and ferns blanket a dense canopy of giant bigleaf maples and Sitka spruces, leaving you in perpetual twilight with a green hue.

The reason for the tropical-like growth is that the Hoh Rain Forest annually receives around 14 feet of precipitation. Bring a raincoat – even if no rain is falling that day, water drips off leaves and branches.

Quite a number of fallen trees line the forest floor. Thanks to the high rainfall, the soil is nutrient rich and moist, so tree roots generally are shallow, meaning the wind easily can knock them down in storms. The dead and decaying trees become “nurselogs” by supporting new life.

Elk and banana slugs
The moss are types of epiphytes, or plants that grow upon other plants. They do not harm the trees they live upon.

Where the 0.1-mile stem trail reaches the loop, go left/northwest or clockwise. Near the top of the loop is a 400-foot round trip spur leading to a grove of maples covered in spikemoss.

A number of animals call the Hoh Rain Forest home. Among the largest are Roosevelt elk, which sometimes graze near the parking lot. On the smaller side are banana slugs, whose bright yellow shape stands out on the forest floor.

Upon completing the loop, retrace your steps on the stem and Mini-Trail and consider making a stop at the visitor center for a look at the excellent displays.

Learn more about national park day hiking trails in my Best Sights to See at America’s National Parks guidebook.

Oft photographed alpine mountain-lake vista awaits in North Cascades National Park

Mount Baker in North Cascades National Park

Trail map, Plate 1

Trail map, Plate 2

Trail map, Plate 3

Trail map, Plate 4

Trail offers views of park's two highest peaks

Day hikers can enjoy for themselves one of the most oft photographed mountain-lake scenes via the Baker Lake Trail at North Cascades National Park in Washington state.

Hike a segment of the 14-mile long Baker Lake Trail is necessary to see the impressive sights of Mount Baker and Mount Shuksan towering over an alpine lake. Mid-June through September marks the best time to hike the 8-mile round trip segment of the trail, as it will be driest then.

To reach the trailhead, from Hamilton, drive east on Wash. Hwy. 20. Go left/north on Baker Lake Road. In about 14 miles, turn right/east onto Baker Dam Road. After crossing the dam, go left on Forest Road 1107. Watch for signs for the Baker Lake Trail parking lot. This is the southern end of the trail.

Giant Douglas firs surround the trail while lichen, moss and mushrooms aplenty line the forest floor. Watch for giant, burned out stumps along the way; these are old-growth cedars wiped out in a forest fire following a volcanic eruption of Mount Baker in 1843.

Stratovolcano
A quarter mile from the trailhead, you’ll cross a small stream that flows into Baker Lake, which is beyond the trees to the left/right. Another stream crossing awaits at close to a mile uptrail and a third one at about 0.4 miles beyond that.

At four miles from the trailhead, you’ll reach your destination, tiny Maple Grove Campground, which hugs Baker Lake. Head to the shoreline and take in the two impressive mountains across the lake.

To the northwest is snow-capped Mount Baker rising above a ribbon of evergreens as the crystal blue lake spreads before you. The old stratovolcano tops out at 10,781 feet, the highest point in the national park and the third highest in Washington state. It last erupted in 1880.

To the north is Mount Shuksan, with a summit of 9,131 feet, is the park’s second highest point and the ninth highest in Washington.

Vertical relief
The ongoing rising of the North Cascades mountain range, in conjunction with erosion from water and ice, has created deep valleys in the national park, and consequently the vertical relief is significant, averaging between 4,000 and 6,000 feet. Mount Shuksan boasts among the most impressive of that vertical relief, as it rises 8,400 feet above Baker Lake. The vista attracts many nature photographers.

Both mountains and the others in this section of the park are part of the Skagit Range, which stretches north into British Columbia. The exposed rocks here are about 400 million years old.

As with the Douglas firs that replaced the cedars, Baker Lake is a new addition to the Skagits. It was created in 1959 by the damming of the Baker River.

A picnic on the shoreline and swim in the lake is a great way to enjoy the grand view and re-energize. After taking in the sites, retrace your steps back to the parking lot.

Learn more about national park day hiking trails in my Best Sights to See at America’s National Parks guidebook.

Best trails for seeing North Cascades' sites

Thornton Lakes Trail. Photo courtesy of North Cascades NPS.

Among the best ways to see North Cascades National Park’s top sights is via a day hike. Just four short trails will allow you to enjoy each of the park’s highlights – glaciers, an ancient Native American travel route, an alpine landscape, and mountain lakes.

Glacier central
North Cascades is home to a third of all the glaciers found in the lower 48 states. You can see one of them on the 9-mile round trip Hidden Lake Trail, whose trailhead is just outside the park's South Unit. The trail leads to the shore of Hidden Lake, where Quien Sabe Glacier fronts the far basin. Be forewarned that the trail sports an elevation gain of 2900 feet.

Native American travel route
For centuries, Native Americans worked their way from the Pacific Coast through the North Cascades Range to the interior of the continent. The Cascade Pass was long used as such a travel route. It can be accessed by a 7.4-mile round trip segment of the Cascade Pass Trail. The trail starts at the end of a gravel road and makes a 1700-foot elevation gain to the pass.

Alpine landscape
As the North Cascades continues to rise, water and ice erosion has left deep valleys, resulting in significant vertical relief. This can be seen at Baker Lake, where the park’s second highest peak, Mount Shuksan, towers more than 8,400 feet above the landscape. To see this oft photographed vista, take the 8-mile round trip segment of the Baker Lake Trail segment from the trailhead to the Maple Grove Campground on Baker Lake's eastern shore. The trail makes an elevation gain of 500 feet.

Mountain lakes
Crystal blue lakes surrounded by evergreens as snow-capped gray peaks rise above can be found aplenty in the North Cascades. One such easy to reach lake can be found on the 10.4-miles round trip Thornton Lakes Trail in which Mount Triumph, peaking at 7271 feet, looms over the chain of Thornton Lakes in the park's North Unit.

Learn more about national park day hiking trails in my Best Sights to See at America’s National Parks guidebook.

See lower 48’s largest glacier on Mt. Rainier

Emmons Glacier flows off Mount Rainier, as seen from Sunrise.
Photo courtesy of Mount Rainier NPS.

Map for seeing Emmons Glacier, courtesy Mt. Ranier NPS.

Retreating ice can be spotted from famous mountain trail

Families can get a good view of the largest glacier in the 48 contiguous United States on a segment of the Wonderland Trail at Mount Rainier National Park.

The 93-mile trail encircles Mount Rainier, the Washington national park’s centerpiece. A few access points, however, allow small portions of it to be day hiked; among them is a 3.3-mile round trip in the Sunrise area.

About 650 inches of snow annually falls on Mount Rainier. Given this, August marks the best weather to visit the Sunrise area, which boasts a visitor center and day lodge. With such a narrow window for hiking the area, a lot of other backpackers will be at Sunrise as well.

Two retreats
To reach the trailhead, from Yakima take U.S. Hwy. 12 north, and turn north on Wash. Hwy. 410. Come into the park at the Nisqually Entrance and go left/east onto White River/Sunrise Park Road. Follow the road up the mountainside to Sunrise, parking at the visitor center. You’re at 6400 feet elevation, more than a mile above sea level.

From the southside of the parking lot where Sunrise Park Road ends, take the Sunrise Rim Trail south. Emmons Glacier – the largest in the lower 48 – is visible from the trail the entire way. It is the lowest sweep of snow and ice approaching Sunrise on Mount Rainier’s northeast flank. To the glacier’s left is Little Tahoma Peak; to its right is Steamboat Prow.

In about 0.1 miles, at the junction with the Emmons Vista Nature Trail, the Sunrise Rim Trail veers right/west. Follow the Sunrise Rim for 0.5 miles to the Wonderland Trail. At the Wonderland Trail, go right/east toward Sunrise Camp.

The Emmons Glacier at least twice was much larger than currently. During the 1930s, scientists determined that the glacier was retreating. A rockslide in 1963, however, covered the ice, slowing the melting, which led to the glacier’s actual advance in the early 1980s. Two decades later, though, Emmons began retreating again.

Glacier Overlook
From the Sunrise Rim Trail to the Sunrise Camp, the Wonderland Trail runs about 0.8 miles Along the way, the trail passes Shadow Lake. With its bottom dug out by a glacier, the remaining meltwater formed a lake. Surrounded by a meadow, it’s a popular spot for deer and mountain goats.

Once past Sunrise Camp, go left/south and walk alongside the looping Sunrise Park Road. On the opposite side of the loop, pick up the Burroughs Mountain Trail.

Follow the Burroughs Mountain Trail about 0.25 miles to Glacier Overlook. The overlook gives day hikers perhaps the best view of the Emmons Glacier. The glacier starts flowing from a height of 13,880 feet above sea level, just below Mount Rainier’s peak. Emmons covers 4.3 square miles.

From the overlook, retrace your steps back to the parking lot.

Learn more about national park day hiking trails in my Best Sights to See at America’s National Parks guidebook.

Time lapse video of Mount Rainier

The most glaciated peak in the lower 48, Washington state’s Mount Rainier sits in the middle of a national park with the mountain as its namesake. It’s also among the best places in the United States for day hikers to see a glacier.

With a summit of 14,410 feet, the mountain gets about 650 inches of snow a year. Because of that, sometimes the mountain isn’t “out” but instead shrouded in clouds. Before hiking the mountain, always check the weather to ensure you’ll be able to see it in the distance, let alone safely go up it.

Here’s a brief time lapse video showing clouds over Mount Rainier on a day that it’s “out”:

A segment of Mount Rainier’s Wonderland Trail will give you a good view of the Emmons Glacier, the largest glacier in the 48 contiguous United States. From Sunrise, Wash., take the connector trail to Emmons Vista and then to Wonderland Trail. Past Sunrise Camp, continue on the connector trail to Glacier Overlook for a 3-mile round trip.

Learn more about national park day hiking trails in my Best Sights to See at America’s National Parks guidebook.

Video of Olympic National Park’s rain forest

Much of Olympic National Park consists of temperate rainforests. While not hot like a tropical jungle, Olympic receives plenty of rain – in some areas as much as 14 feet a year – and so is extremely wet and green, creating forests unlike any other in the United States.

An excellent day hike through an Olympic rain forest is the Marymere Falls Trail, which is easy to reach from Seattle. Another good route is The Hall of Mosses Trail, which heads into the Hoh Rain Forest.

Here’s a brief video showing a section of Olympic’s rainforests:

Learn more about national park day hiking trails in my Best Sights to See at America’s National Parks guidebook.

Best trails to see Mount Rainier’s wonders

Mount Rainier from Paradise Point.

Among the best ways to see Mount Rainier National Park’s best sights is via a day hike. Just three short trails will allow you to enjoy each of the park’s highlights – glaciers, summer wildflowers, and signs of past volcanic activity.

Glaciers
About 650 inches of snow annually falls on Mount Rainier, and glaciers can be found on the mountain’s sides. A segment of the Wonderland Trail will give you a good view of the Emmons Glacier, the largest glacier in the 48 contiguous United States. From Sunrise, take the connector trail to Emmons Vista and then to Wonderland Trail. Past Sunrise Camp, continue on the connector trail to Glacier Overlook for a 3-mile round trip.

Wildflower season
July and August mark the peak season for colorful wildflower displays on the mountain. Among the best routes to see them is the 2.75-mile Reflection Lakes Trail. The loop offers a fantastic view of Mount Rainier reflected in the lakes on days when clouds don’t cover the summit. Be aware that the trail sports an 850-foot elevation gain on the trail.

Volcanic activity
Mount Rainier is the tallest volcano in the Lower 48 states. The Palisades Lake Trail heads 7-miles round trip to the Palisades rock formation, groups of hexagonal column formations formed thousands of years ago when lava flowing from the volcano cooled slowly. The route gains 1200 feet in elevation.

Learn more about national park day hiking trails in my Best Sights to See at America’s National Parks guidebook.

Best trails for seeing Olympic NP’s wonders

Among the best ways to see Olympic National Park’s best sights is via a day hike. Just three short trails will allow you to enjoy each of the park’s highlights – a temperate rainforest, mountain glaciers, and the Pacific coastline.

Hoh Rainforest
Among the greenest places on Earth, the park’s Hoh Rainforest annually receives around 14 feet of rain. Moss, lichen and ferns lay beneath a dense canopy of ancient tress leaves you in perpetual twilight. The Hall of Mosses Trail loops 0.8 miles loops through the temperate rain forest and begins near the visitor center. Bring a raincoat.

Glaciated Mount Olympus
Though hardly the highest peak in Washington state, Mount Olympus enjoys large snowfalls, resulting in among the greatest glaciation of any non-volcanic peak in the Lower 48. Unfortunately, only one glacier is accessible, and that requires a backcountry hike. The best bet for views of Mount Olympus via a day hike is the 3-mile round trip Hurricane Hill Trail on Hurricane Ridge, which gets you high enough to see the glacier-capped peaks to the southwest. Be aware that the trail is steep.

Pacific coastline
Olympic National Park’s Pacific Ocean shoreline features gushing seastacks, piles of driftwood logs, and colorful, wave-polished stones. To enjoy all three, take the 1.4-mile Kalaloch Beach #1 Trail. Some of the driftwood here has floated in from the distant Columbia River.

Learn more about national park day hiking trails in my Best Sights to See at America’s National Parks guidebook.

Trail heads through rain forest to waterfall

Marymere Falls, courtesy of Olympic NPS.

Topo map, Marymere Falls Trail.

Marymere Falls easy
to reach from Seattle

A trail through a lush, old growth forest that ends at a waterfall will delight kids day hiking the Marymere Falls Trail at Olympic National Park.

The 1.6-mile round trip really is like taking two entirely different hikes in one. Most of the trail heads through a Pacific Northwest rain forest while the last portion at the destination is purely about the waterfalls.

The trail can be hiked anytime of the year, though rain is more likely during winter. The upside is that the water flow is higher, making for a more spectacular falls and creeks.

While perhaps not as stunning as a walk through Olympic’s Hoh Rain Forest, the Marymere trail is much easier to reach from Seattle. At Port Angeles, head west on U.S. Hwy. 101. After about 17 miles, Lake Crescent appears on the right/north. Turn right onto Lake Crescent Road. At the first stop sign, turn right/east, which takes you to a parking lot. The trailhead is on the lot’s east side and curves southeast back toward the highway.

Lowland forest
The trail passes the historic Storm King Ranger Station then heads beneath Hwy. 101. The ranger station is a good example of early North Peninsula log construction and at one time was the residence of a homesteader and forest ranger who was instrumental in convincing Congress to create Olympic National Park.

From the highway, the trail curves westward, roughly paralleling it. The next half-mile is fairly flat as you walk through a lowland forest, seeing more green that you might imagine ever existed. Ferns cover the ground from which spring spruce, fir and hemlock. Verdant moss covers every rock and bare patch of ground – and just about every tree for that matter. If hiking the trail in late May, purple forget-me-nots dot the forest floor.

The emerald forest, as with others on the park’s north and east side, sit in the Olympic Mountains' rain shadow. The result is they receive only 60 inches of rain per year. In contrast, those on the west side, such as the Hoh Rain Forest, receive up to 150 inches annually.

As the trail curves southward, it follows Barnes Creek on the right/west. Watch for trail signs pointing where to turn right/west for Marymere Falls. The trail then crosses the creek over a wooden footbridge.

Welcome to the falls
When the rush of the falls fills your ears, you’re only about an eighth of a mile from the destination. The trail next crosses Falls Creek beneath Marymere Falls. From there, the trail is quite steep, but easy enough for kids to handle.

Marymere Falls is about 90 feet high, and you’ll get close to as the trail passes the small plunge pool. Falls Creek ultimately flows into Barnes Creek, which feeds Lake Crescent.

Hikers also can take a stairs to see the falls’ upper segment. A few landings on the stairs offers fantastic views of the falls from different angles. Alternately, the trail loops back to the footbridge over Falls Creek.

After taking in the views, return the way you came.

Light rain is not unusual in the Pacific Northwest, so be sure to wear (or at least pack) rain gear for everyone. In addition, you’ll want waterproof boots with decent traction, though the hard-packed trail is well maintained. It’s wheelchair accessible up to Barnes Creek.

Learn more about national park day hiking trails in my Best Sights to See at America’s National Parks guidebook.