Posted by Les Barstow on April 29, 2006 at 3:05 PM
I'll be heading up to Washington in a couple of weeks and am wondering if anyone can give me a heads-up on flowers and other seasonal nature photo targets. I'll be staying in and around Olympic NP; I'm definitely looking to do some tidal pool photography during the extra low tides early in my trip, but I was wondering what else was good this time of year...
Also, I'll be camping some of the trip; I'm okay with rain, but was wondering about temperature in the rain forests at night (and vs. beach camping...). Anyone have a favorite low-altitude (aka warmer) park campground? Tent-friendly and relative quiet are my main interests...
(PS - thanks to all who replied to me last year; I didn't make it then, and am narrowing my goals for this year to just the Olympic area to save on fuel costs a bit...)
Posted by Mark Windom on April 30, 2006 at 10:57 AM
May is my favorite time of year for Olympic NP...if it's sunny head for the coast, if it's overcast head for the forests (or tide pools). Everything is within relatively easy driving distance of one another.
As far as the National Park is concerned for tidal pools I've had good luck at Rialto Beach up by Hole in the Wall. Another great spot but harder to get to is Point of the Arches at Shi Shi Beach.
Must-see beaches include Ruby, Second (access denied for now but that may change by the time you arrive), Rialto and Shi Shi. Forest photography should include the Hoh and Quinalt Rain Forests and the Sol Duc area. There should be some ground cover flowers available in those areas. Too early for flowers on Hurricane Ridge.
There are several campgrounds in the area. If you're going to spend some time at Ruby Beach then I would recommend Kalaloch but it tends to fill up late in the day. There is a small campground at the Hoh. My favorite is Mora out of Forks which gives you easy access to Second and Rialto Beaches and not too bad of a drive from there to Sol Duc (which also has nice campgrounds) and the Hoh. As far as temperatures go hard to say but any should be fairly comfortable, if dry.
Posted by Les Barstow on April 30, 2006 at 4:30 PM
The Park lists Mora as a "walk-in" at this time; is it a short walk-in, or a hike? That sounds like it's to my liking. I'll mostly be camping mid-week, so hopefully I'll have less of a problem with campsites.
I'm already scheduling Ruby and Shi Shi for sunsets, and Rialto for sunrise/tidal pools. I think Point of Arches is a bit far for an early morning tide if I'm not camping overnight (and I don't have a frame pack to do that...), so are there any second suggestions for tidal pools?
Hoh and Sol Duc were definitely on my list; Quinault hadn't made it yet, but was a possibility (I don't want to schedule my entire week, so I left a few possibilities depending on what my wife and I decided we wanted an extra dose of...)
Posted by Mark Windom on April 30, 2006 at 6:37 PM
Last time I was at Mora (a couple of years ago) you could drive right to your campsite so I have no idea why it would be listed as a "walk-in". The campground is a very short drive off the main road that leads to Rialto and is comprised of several loops that you drive around to select your site. So, unless they've closed some roads I'm not aware of there shouldn't be any walking necessary.
No second suggestions for tidal pools within the confines of the Park from me. Hopefully someone else will chime in.
Discussion
3 repliesAlso, I'll be camping some of the trip; I'm okay with rain, but was wondering about temperature in the rain forests at night (and vs. beach camping...). Anyone have a favorite low-altitude (aka warmer) park campground? Tent-friendly and relative quiet are my main interests...
(PS - thanks to all who replied to me last year; I didn't make it then, and am narrowing my goals for this year to just the Olympic area to save on fuel costs a bit...)
As far as the National Park is concerned for tidal pools I've had good luck at Rialto Beach up by Hole in the Wall. Another great spot but harder to get to is Point of the Arches at Shi Shi Beach.
Must-see beaches include Ruby, Second (access denied for now but that may change by the time you arrive), Rialto and Shi Shi. Forest photography should include the Hoh and Quinalt Rain Forests and the Sol Duc area. There should be some ground cover flowers available in those areas. Too early for flowers on Hurricane Ridge.
There are several campgrounds in the area. If you're going to spend some time at Ruby Beach then I would recommend Kalaloch but it tends to fill up late in the day. There is a small campground at the Hoh. My favorite is Mora out of Forks which gives you easy access to Second and Rialto Beaches and not too bad of a drive from there to Sol Duc (which also has nice campgrounds) and the Hoh. As far as temperatures go hard to say but any should be fairly comfortable, if dry.
I'm already scheduling Ruby and Shi Shi for sunsets, and Rialto for sunrise/tidal pools. I think Point of Arches is a bit far for an early morning tide if I'm not camping overnight (and I don't have a frame pack to do that...), so are there any second suggestions for tidal pools?
Hoh and Sol Duc were definitely on my list; Quinault hadn't made it yet, but was a possibility (I don't want to schedule my entire week, so I left a few possibilities depending on what my wife and I decided we wanted an extra dose of...)
No second suggestions for tidal pools within the confines of the Park from me. Hopefully someone else will chime in.