-Forest-
Because the family slept the night at Hoh Campground (or dozed fitfully, in Astrid’s case), they didn’t have to wait in a long car line to get into this part of Olympic National Park, and after packing up camp, they simply walked to the first trailhead of the day.
In her more fashion-conscious past, Astrid would try not to wear too much green. The color dominated her closet and she didn’t want to always look like a domesticated leprechaun. But Mother Nature doesn’t have such insecurities at Olympic National Park. The trails at Hoh Rainforest were enrobed in a million different shades of green, from the dull silver-green of the moss in the trees, to the bright green duck weed floating on a small pond.
Hall of Mosses Trail and Nature Center Trail by the campground were lined with dusty-leafed ferns and oxalis (looks like clover), at the feet of furry trees, punctuated by long-fallen behemoths rotting to burnt-orange dust. These giant trees served a purpose: tree seedlings grew in the rotting wood along the trunk, often in a row. These fallen trees are called “nurse trees.”
While ocular fishing, Astrid spotted a few deer on the trail running off into the forest, and two pileated woodpeckers on a tree.
“What would I do differently?” was a question Astrid asked herself after every adventure. “Take better, more coherent notes,” was invariably one of her critiques, and the other usually had to do with the gear she packed. This was the first trip they had tent-camped at national parks an airplane ride away. Next time, if there was one, she would tent camp more than one night in a row, be better prepared with food, coffee and bedding, and bring a hammer, and two sets of towels.
“I don’t like camping on vacation,” Snorri gave his honest opinion when asked.
“What would make it better?” Astrid asked.
“Showers, beds, wi-fi. Camping on vacation seems too much like work.”
“Fair enough. Yes, yes it does.”
But, then again, there is value in doing challenging things which sometimes feel like work, when one visits beautiful places, to get to more beautiful places.
-Forest-Ocean-
The Cape Flattery Trail is on Makah Tribal Lands, and one must get a recreational permit at Neah Bay before setting out there. The trail takes you, via raised-board walkways and inclines, to the most northwest-ish point of the contiguous US. The trail is a little tricky sometimes, as the boardwalk is not quite wide enough for two strangers to politely pass one another without some maneuvering. But it’s worth the awkwardness. It’s a nice hike through a rainforest to overlook the Pacific Ocean. There, Astrid went ocular-fishing and caught Sea Weed, Starfish and tube-shaped mammals basking in the sun out on a distant island.
-Beach-
Realto Beach in Forks, WA is notable, especially at sunset. This beach had a peculiar inhabitant: pelicans. They weren’t sitting on docks, or posts. They were flying, diving in the wild, cutting an interesting silhouette in the sky. This beach was filled with drift wood, large sun-bleached logs, but also round stones, along with Astrid’s very favorite–sand.
The family’s Air BnB in Forks, WA was full of sensible IKEA furniture and adequate for their night’s stay, except for one very important thing: the futon that would be Snorri’s bed for the night was about two feet too short for his six foot length. He slept on the floor, but had access to wi-fi and a shower, so it was better than camping, for him.
–Early Morning Forest, then Beach–
Astrid woke up in a foul mood, and thankfully, she recognized it. She was tired of moving her home-base, and needed some extra rest, but it wasn’t in the plan. They were out the door by seven again and to a beach … again.
This trip to Washington was more challenging than most, not because of the hikes, or elevation, but because the family stayed at a different place every night, frog-hopping from site to site. But the sites were much the same, in terms of nouns: trees, sand, rocks, sky, and water. But they all had extravagantly different “characters,” starting with the roads and trails that led to them.
Sometimes Astrid’s adventures came with challenges that weren’t steep inclines, or persistence in walking a trail. Sometimes the challenge was to maintain an un-grumpy attitude. Walking in beauty helps. Coffee does, too. To take in the mesmerizing scenery around you, let it feed and nourish your mood and body so you can be–at the very least–nice, that is the challenge. The hike to Second Beach in the Olympic Peninsula filled that prescription.
Astrid got coffee (and Snorrie and Bjorn got breakfast) at a little shack in Forks, then off to the beach. A two mile hike down to a wide, expansive, beautiful Second Beach where she would wait and watch, and take in beauty to displace her dark mood. Large rock formations jutted out of the water. Smoke rose from groups of tents as campers made their breakfast among the copious driftwood. Astrid stepped cautiously over gelatinous corpses of jellyfish washed up on the shore. A woman, down away from everyone, with a tent near the crags, was fishing. The family made it down to the beach as the sun came shining over the tree-topped mountains.
-Short Forest Hike-
A dream-like, but short half-mile hike through Ancient Groves Trail leant a small sampling of what Olympic National Park is made of–gigantic, beautiful trees, making a magical setting accentuated by light sprinkling through the treetops and wonderful aromas of the forest. This trail had it all, moss, oxalis, giant titans of trees with soaring canopies, nurse trees horizontal and nurturing saplings, and sparse visitors.
-Forest-Water Falls-
“This is what National Parks are for.” So that many people can enjoy exquisite natural beauty.
And many people were enjoying the beauty of Sol Duc Falls Trail when Astrid visited with her family. Parked cars lined the road leading to the trail head, a line was constant at the toilets, packs of people milled around the parking lot and clotted the trail. They all came to see a bridge spanning a stream which fell beautifully over a 50 foot, rocky cliff, then passed through a very narrow, deep canyon. The trail continued on after this bridge, but most hikers turned back after seeing the falls.
Bjorn, camera at the ready, expected to photograph beautiful scenery. Because of the many, many hikers littering the stream above the falls (and right up to the edge of the falls!) Bjorn’s expectations were shattered. He expected that no one would be stupid enough to be hanging out-literally- in the stream on the edge of the water fall or if they were , they would move within minutes, but they didn’t.
National parks are, at times, deceptively dangerous. It’s usually gravity that kills in national parks. In the following June, a man walking along the top of these falls, just as dozens were doing the day Astrid visited, fell, was swept over and died. They had to close the trail down while they searched for his body.
Lulled by the beauty and majesty of the gentle-looking wilderness, sometimes we don’t realize the cold, unfeeling nature of … Nature. It’s all on you to keep yourself from dying of gravity in these parks. You are not in Disneyland anymore. The visitors visually polluting the stream and falls trusted themselves too much. Maybe it’s because they assumed it was like the sidewalks of civilization, where you are rarely in danger of dying of gravity or of being swept over the falls.
-Mountain Tops and Views-
Hurricane Ridge Trails in Olympic wind up and around the tops of the ridges of gentle mountains, allowing the hiker wide and wonderful views to surrounding snowy mountaintops. It was the perfect place to go ocular fishing, but Astrid didn’t need binoculars to find wildlife, the wildlife was very close. Deer strolled along the trails, grouse decorated the pines, little rodents and salamanders skittered across the paths.
The family ended the natural-wonders part of their trip in Seattle. The next day they visited the less than impressive Museum of Pop Culture (in Astid’s opinion). She gird her anxiety of crowds to walk through, briefly, the wall-to-wall people in Pike Place Market, then enjoyed the views of Seattle from Columbia Center Skyview Tower.
The whole adventure was more beautiful than she deserved.
Thanks for looking.
Not I 