Hiking to Sunrise Point
Sep. 13th, 2021 05:47 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
canyonwalkerOlympic Peninsula Travelog #20
Sunrise Point, Olympic National Park - Mon, 6 Sep 2021. 10am.
This morning we got up early to start our day in Olympic National Park. It feels ironic that this morning, our last day in the area, was the one we got up early. We ate breakfast, packed our bags, and checked out from the hotel by 8am. The previous 3 mornings we didn't roll until 9. But getting an early start today was imperative. We needed enough time to hike several miles in the park and still be able to drive 3+ back to SEA airport in time for our flight home.
We arrived up at Hurricane Ridge before 9. The sky today was brilliantly clear compared to the gloom of the past few days. It made me wish we had time to re-do all of Saturday's hiking up here! Alas we only have a few hours.
I slaked my thirst to do everything over by just taking a few pictures over. Here's a view (photo above) of the park's high peaks seen from Hurricane Ridge. Mt. Olympus is in the way back toward the left. On the far right is the Hurricane Ridge Visitors Center.
We began hiking around 9. Our goal for the day was to hike to Klahhane Ridge— or at least toward it. More on that in a moment. Our immediate goal was Sunrise Point, a dual-peak hill a few hundred feet above the trailhead.
Once we were over the first hump of Sunrise Point the views toward Klahhane Ridge opened up significantly. In the photo above you can see Sunrise Point's second peak on the left. In the distance is actually Klahhane Ridge, with Mt. Angeles its peak. The half-tree-lined ridge in the mid ground is actually still part of Hurricane Ridge, I believe. Maps and guides are unclear on whether that's part of Hurricane Ridge or Klahhane Ridge. Either way that's where we'll go... soon.
I mentioned the other day that one weird thing you have to get used to about hiking peaks is that while you're looking up from below you're frequently looking up at the peak; you set that as your frame of reference. But once you're atop the peak it's no longer in the frame. It's under your feet! If you want photos of the mountain you're in the wrong place. 🤣 Thankfully the point of hiking to Sunrise Point is not to see Sunrise Point— it's actually kind of ugly as a treeless, triangular summit— but to see from Sunrise Point.
Here's a view back down over Hurricane Ridge to the high peaks again. As we've gained elevation, Mt. Olympus more clearly emerges in the distance (left).
You can also see in this photo that the parking area on Hurricane Ridge is not very full. When we finished our last visit Saturday afternoon it was packed. This is one of the benefits of getting an early(ish) start on the day. There are still a fair number of people on the trail already this morning... but nothing like the human parade on Saturday.
Mt. Olympus isn't the only great view from up here, of course. This photo shows the view up the Elwha Valley— miles further upstream than we were able to get yesterday— from Sunrise point. In this view, Olympus is off to the left and Obstruction Point is off to the right.
Another thing you have to keep in mind when hiking mountains is that sometimes the view is not where you're focusing. You may be looking down at (or below) your feet and not see something above, or be looking far off and not see what's below your feet. A small herd of deer were foraging on the steep hillside below Sunrise Point.
This is another benefit of being out early(ish) in the morning. It aligns better with the activity cycle of wildlife; they're most active in the hours after down and before dusk. And with fewer of us humans on the trail at this hour, there's less chance of us frightening them off.
Sunrise Point, Olympic National Park - Mon, 6 Sep 2021. 10am.
This morning we got up early to start our day in Olympic National Park. It feels ironic that this morning, our last day in the area, was the one we got up early. We ate breakfast, packed our bags, and checked out from the hotel by 8am. The previous 3 mornings we didn't roll until 9. But getting an early start today was imperative. We needed enough time to hike several miles in the park and still be able to drive 3+ back to SEA airport in time for our flight home.
We arrived up at Hurricane Ridge before 9. The sky today was brilliantly clear compared to the gloom of the past few days. It made me wish we had time to re-do all of Saturday's hiking up here! Alas we only have a few hours.
I slaked my thirst to do everything over by just taking a few pictures over. Here's a view (photo above) of the park's high peaks seen from Hurricane Ridge. Mt. Olympus is in the way back toward the left. On the far right is the Hurricane Ridge Visitors Center.
We began hiking around 9. Our goal for the day was to hike to Klahhane Ridge— or at least toward it. More on that in a moment. Our immediate goal was Sunrise Point, a dual-peak hill a few hundred feet above the trailhead.
Once we were over the first hump of Sunrise Point the views toward Klahhane Ridge opened up significantly. In the photo above you can see Sunrise Point's second peak on the left. In the distance is actually Klahhane Ridge, with Mt. Angeles its peak. The half-tree-lined ridge in the mid ground is actually still part of Hurricane Ridge, I believe. Maps and guides are unclear on whether that's part of Hurricane Ridge or Klahhane Ridge. Either way that's where we'll go... soon.
I mentioned the other day that one weird thing you have to get used to about hiking peaks is that while you're looking up from below you're frequently looking up at the peak; you set that as your frame of reference. But once you're atop the peak it's no longer in the frame. It's under your feet! If you want photos of the mountain you're in the wrong place. 🤣 Thankfully the point of hiking to Sunrise Point is not to see Sunrise Point— it's actually kind of ugly as a treeless, triangular summit— but to see from Sunrise Point.
Here's a view back down over Hurricane Ridge to the high peaks again. As we've gained elevation, Mt. Olympus more clearly emerges in the distance (left).
You can also see in this photo that the parking area on Hurricane Ridge is not very full. When we finished our last visit Saturday afternoon it was packed. This is one of the benefits of getting an early(ish) start on the day. There are still a fair number of people on the trail already this morning... but nothing like the human parade on Saturday.
Mt. Olympus isn't the only great view from up here, of course. This photo shows the view up the Elwha Valley— miles further upstream than we were able to get yesterday— from Sunrise point. In this view, Olympus is off to the left and Obstruction Point is off to the right.
Another thing you have to keep in mind when hiking mountains is that sometimes the view is not where you're focusing. You may be looking down at (or below) your feet and not see something above, or be looking far off and not see what's below your feet. A small herd of deer were foraging on the steep hillside below Sunrise Point.
This is another benefit of being out early(ish) in the morning. It aligns better with the activity cycle of wildlife; they're most active in the hours after down and before dusk. And with fewer of us humans on the trail at this hour, there's less chance of us frightening them off.
