Glacier National Park - Day Four - June 27, 2006

I headed north across the sun-drenched bridge from Astoria into the state of Washington this morning with low lying clouds ahead of me. The weather was changing slightly along the coast so my drive up to Olympic National Park along the coast was cloudier, as expected. Route 101 north through Washington meanders through evergreen forests, touches the coastline here and there and is generally lightly traveled though the occasional logging truck thunders by. My destination for the night was Crescent Lake Lodge along the north end of Olympic NP. I took the time to take the drive from the west side into the Hoh Rain Forest area and take a couple of short hikes. It took imagination to visualize this temperate rain forest in its rainy state. With fairly warm temperatures and dry conditions, the greenery was longing for a drink of water.

Further up the road, Lake Crescent is a spectacular setting for a lodge. The water is a deep blue with the surrounding evergreen trees reflected in its waters. I took a short hike up to a waterfall before dinner and had the trail to myself which was wonderfully peaceful.