Atop Hurricane Ridge. A Hike 13 Years in the Making!

Olympic Peninsula Travelog #7
Olympic National Park, WA - Sat, 4 Sep 2021. 7pm.

Here it is entry #7 in a series of blogs about visiting Olympic National Park and I've just now gotten to the park. In blog seven. We had good reason to take our time getting here, though. The three waterfalls we visited yesterday on our slow drive out here were gorgeous. In case you're wondering, "What's the deal with all these waterfalls? Do you guys have like, a book or something?" the answer is Yes, yes we do have a book. And we supplemented it with a pamphlet we picked up yesterday at a ranger station that lists 25 waterfall hikes in the area. Trust me, there are more waterfall blogs to come!

But today is not about waterfalls. Today is about Hurricane Ridge. And lest you think 7 blogs constitutes taking a long time to get here consider that it's actually taken us 13 years.



13 years. The last time we stood atop Hurricane Ridge and gazed at the high peaks of Olympic National Park was June 2008. The pic above is today. Mt. Olympus, elev. 7,980' is on the left, mostly obscured by clouds. On the right is Mt. Carrie, elev. 6,995'.

What's different now from 13 years ago? We're here later in the summer so there's less slow. During our 2008 trip there was still enough snow lingering atop this ridge at elev. 5,242' that the trails were all blocked. We drove up here, looked around a bit, and had to drive back down the mountain. Today, instead, we'll hike along Hurricane Ridge to the top of Hurricane Hill— which is what we wanted to do 13 years ago. And later this weekend we'll come back up here for another hike out Klahane Ridge.

On the Bucket List, Off the Bucket List

When we were thwarted from doing these hikes in 2008 we were disappointed. They were the thing we most wanted to do in the park. The trip was hardly a failure, though. We did other things in and around Olympic National Park instead. We put Hurricane Ridge back on our bucket list. We knew we'd have to come back out here eventually to hike it.

Why wait 13 years to come back? Eh, that's just how long it took. It's a short season up here, just a few months, between when one winter's snow reliably melts and the next winter's snow begins to fall. With our ability to travel constrained by being working stiffs with meager US vacation benefits, the opportunity to return hasn't come around too often. We've considered it a few times in past years but have chosen to pick other items off the bucket list instead. It's a big list! And our opportunities are too few. But here we are now. Time to hike!

Hiking Hurricane Ridge (part 1)

Olympic Peninsula Travelog #8
Olympic National Park, WA - Sat, 4 Sep 2021. 11am.

Finally we begin our hike along Hurricane Ridge— a hike 13 years in the making! As skilled hikers we know that every hike begins with proper preparation. No, we didn't spend 13 years preparing, though we did spend an hour or so studying trail descriptions and maps. Then the visitor center at the trailhead had an even better map than we'd found online: this 3-D map of the Olympic Mountains.



"You are here" marks the visitor center. The Hurricane Hill trail heads off to the west/right from there, climbing out to Hurricane Hill, the highest point on the ridge.

I'd start the description of our hike with a picture of Hurricane Hill from the trailhead but there isn't one. The shape of the ridge is such that you can't see for a while after you start. Nobody's left wanting for views, though, as the Olympic high peaks to the south are constant companions.



The view of Mt. Olympus and neighboring snow-capped peaks wasn't the only view worth enjoying. While they were our constant companions to the left, Mt. Angeles and the Klahhane RIdge were our constant companions to the right.



In these photos you can see another piece of our preparation: coming dressed for the success. Though it's still summer, the weather up here at roughly 1 mile altitude will barely reach 60° today (about 15° C). And the wind is howling. They call it Hurricane Ridge for a reason! I'm wearing 3 layers of clothing; Hawk has 5. We packed extra layers beyond these in case the weather wasn't this "good". 😮

Finally after an enjoyable first leg of the hike the first real sight of Hurricane Hill came into view.



Hurricane Hill, elev. 5,757', is the top of the ridge at the right of the frame. You can see the trail winds around to the right, then around the far side of the knob to the left, then on up to the top of the ridge. From down here it looks so far! The starkness of the landscape ahead distorts the scale.

The adventure continues! Keep reading in Part 2: It's (always) Mountain Time.

It's Mountain Time! (Hiking Hurricane Ridge, part 2)

Olympic Peninsula Travelog #9
Olympic National Park, WA - Sat, 4 Sep 2021. 12:30pm.

The distance and the ascent melted away beneath our feet surprisingly easily as we hiked the Hurricane Ridge Trail to Hurricane Hill. Perhaps it was the constant views in all directions (previous) blog that helped us not notice the exertion. How far we'd come was easier to see looking back down the trail.



Here we're on the shoulder of the summit. Looking back down the trail, it loops around the far side of the knob at the right, then around the right side of the knob at the center of the photo, then down to the ridge beyond that. The trailhead is noticeable as a small bald spot on that ridge.

As much as the trail was surprisingly easy for us it was surprisingly easy for a lot of people. The trail was crowded. We expected that, of course; it is a national park, and it is a holiday weekend. But we do like hiking the trail less traveled. So near the summit we forked off on the Elwha trail to explore a quieter part of the ridge.



From this short trek out the Elwha trail we can see more than a vertical mile down to the Straight of Juan de Fuca below. Across the straight is Canada.

What about our "constant companion" Mt. Olympus?



Oh, it's still there, constantly over our shoulder when we're not looking straight at it.

We explored along the top of the Elwha trail just far enough to get off the beaten path. We weren't about to hike down that vertical mile only to have to climb back up it! Alas while the Elwha trail was quieter than the Hurricane Hill trail we did not have the area entirely to ourselves. We shared it with a few other hikers.



This photo reminds me of a quip from a Brit who's fascinated with America's varied geography— and its spread across four time zones. "You've got a whole time zone called Mountain Time," he wrote. "Whatever time it is, it's always Mountain Time somewhere!"

Now imagine the conversation between the couple in this photo.

"Hon, what time is it?"

"See, look, it's mountain time!"



Update: The adventure continues! Keep reading in Views from the Top.