• Home
  • About
  • Work With Me
  • Contact
  • Nav Social Icons

  • Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • 2022 Guide to Cleveland in The Winter
  • View The Blog
  • Work With Me
  • About
  • Shop My Amazon Faves
  • Mobile Menu Widgets

    Social

    Search

Local Love & Wanderlust | Cleveland-Based Travel & Lifestyle Blog

Local Love & Wanderlust | Cleveland-Based Travel & Lifestyle Blog

All Things Cleveland Ohio & Travel

  • Destinations
    • Arizona
    • California
    • Illinois
    • New York
    • Louisiana
    • Nevada
    • Ohio
    • Oregon
    • Washington
  • Guides
    • Travel Guides
    • Cleveland Ohio Guides
    • Hotel Guides
    • Itineraries
  • Cleveland
    • 2022 Guide to Cleveland in The Winter
    • Neighborhood Guides
  • Shop
    • Shop My Faves
    • Shop Photo Prints

Epic 8-Day Pacific Northwest Itinerary: Part 2 Olympic National Park

Destinations, Outdoors

Welcome to part two of our Epic 8-day Pacific Northwest Itinerary: Part 2 Olympic National Park! We saw some of the most insanely beautiful sights, laughed at all the nods to the movie Twilight, and just enjoyed connecting with nature and exploring a new part of the country we’ve never been to.

Before we get going, be sure to check out the first leg of our epic Pacific Northwest trip starting in Seattle here!

Day 1: Port Angeles, A Waterfall & Mountain Top

9:00 am
Checked out of our awesome hotel, W Seattle, and made our way to the rental car shop to finally pick up a car. We had decided to walk and/or take a Lyft everywhere in town to save some money on parking and renting the car.

10:30 am
We made it down to Tacoma, Washington, and stopped for a late breakfast at an adorable cafe called Red Elm Cafe. We had yummy breakfast sandwiches and shared a Belgium waffle.

Breakfast at Red Elm Cafe
The Tacoma Narrows

11:00 am
Continuing our drive to Port Angeles, we crossed over the Tacoma Narrows, twin seafoam green suspension bridges over Puget Sound.

1:15 pm
Arrived in Port Angeles and checked into our hotel the Olympic Lodge, a quaint and rustic spot near the park. We grabbed some fast food before heading to our first destination.

Lake Crescent

Crystal blue waters against rocks in Crescent Lake, Olympic National Park | Local Love and Wanderlust

2:30 pm
We finally made it to Olympic National Park and we found a stop along Lake Crescent. A beautiful lake surrounded by mountains and forests with crystal clear blue and turquoise water. It was such a peaceful scene.

Unique tree at Crescent Lake, Olympic National Park | Local Love and Wanderlust

Read more about our trip to Lake Crescent here.

Marymere Falls

2:45 pm
After visiting the lake, we decided to do a small hike to Marymere Falls nestled deep in the thick forest near Lake Crescent. This was a fairly easy hike, mostly level surface surrounded by amazing trees, lush ferns, and other vegetation. When you get closer to the falls, you hear the rushing of Falls Creek and soon see a staircase that elevates you for the perfect views of the falls.

Marymere Falls in Olympic National Park
Bridge to Marymere Falls in Olympic National Park | Local Love and Wanderlust

On the way back we spontaneously decided to try the Mount Storm King hike. Sadly, we were not prepared for the dozens of switchbacks, and not even halfway up we pass some hikers coming downhill who let us know we weren’t even close to the top and we decided to head back down and spend the time in some other destinations. It was exhausting!

Creek flowing through Olympic National Park

Read more about our trip to Marymere Falls here.

4:45 pm
On our drive to our next destination, we stopped by the shore of the Elwha River – it had such a beautiful shade of seafoam green and was a serene stop.

Hurricane Ridge

5:30 pm
We make it to our next destination, Hurricane Ridge, and pay the entrance fee to get in. We spent about 2 hours driving up the mountain, taking in the views, and driving back down. Surprised by the almost 20 feet of snow at the top, we took our time observing all the hills and valleys we could see.

7:45 pm
Back in Port Angeles, we stopped for dinner at a local pizza shop called Gordy’s Pizza & Pasta. After dinner, we made it back to our hotel and had just enough time to soak in the hot tub before the pool hours ended for the evening.

Day 2: A Rainforest, A Beach, & Twilight

9:45 am
Began our drive back to Olympic National Park with a quick visit to Lake Crescent once again. We were driving by our destination and the whole day felt different so we decided to check it out.

Rialto Beach

10:30 am
We stop at a gas station and convenience store along our way to Rialto Beach to get gas and drinks and were surprised to find so much Twilight (movie) related signage. There was a vampire threat sign, a huge billboard with painted wood cut-outs of the movie’s two lead male characters, and there was even a treaty line. If you’re a Twilight nerd, you’d find this entertaining. Apparently, this is also a resort called Three Rivers Resort.

11:00 am
We arrive at Rialto Beach and find a parking space. The sky is very grey on our visit giving us the eerie Pacific Northwest vibes we didn’t get in Seattle with the sunshine and blue skies that were around on our visit. We walk along the coast, see tide pools, eagles, and beautiful scenes.

1:15 pm
We decided it was time to get lunch and we found a restaurant in the city of Forks. For those of you who are into Twilight, you’ll know this is the city they all live in. We may or may not have driven by Forks High School only to be disappointed that all they did was use the sign and the school looks completely different. We stopped for lunch at a little local bar & grill called Blakeslee before we made our way to the next stop.

The Hoh Rainforest

The Hall of Mosses

3:30 pm
We make it to the Hoh Rainforest and decide to take the Hall of Mosses trail and it was incredible. The trees, the moss, the ferns everywhere were such a sight to see. It was so peaceful and beautiful.

Cape Flattery

5:30 pm
It was close to dinner time and we had to decide whether we wanted to eat dinner at the same Italian restaurant Edward & Bella ate at in Twilight (come on, it’s the novelty of it all!) or go on one more adventure. We chose adventure and decided to drive up to Cape Flattery, the Northwesternmost tip of the United States, instead.

This trip required us to get a different park pass as this land belongs to the Makah Tribe. We found one of the stops to get a pass in a general store and made our way up to the top of the cape. Once we got to the top, we can see we were 2 of the few people up there. To get to the cape, you had to hike through .75 miles of a mix of dirt, boardwalks, and stairs along the trail. Once we got to the point we were rewarded with some of the most breathtaking views. Our phones thought we were in Canada we were so far north.

The walk back to the car was eerie as we knew we were all alone. Our drive back to the hotel was on a pitch-black country road so it was a little spooky. We got back to Port Angeles around 10 pm and all the restaurants were closed since it was a Sunday night so we settled for fast food. Did we make the right decision to do this trip last minute? Absolutely.

That sums up our two days in Olympic National Park! Two days is nowhere near enough time to truly experience the splendor and beauty of this National Park, however, we were packing a lot into this trip so this was just a taste. I dream about visiting the park again in the future.

Check out the final part of our epic Pacific Northwest trip in Portland, Oregon here!

Find more content like this under: Destinations, Outdoors, Hiking, Itinerary, National Parks, Washington

Other Posts You Might Like

Moss-covered rocky ledges leading to a waterfallThe Most Amazing Ohio Hike At Nelson Ledges: Photos + Tips
5 Amazing Cleveland Metroparks You Need To Visit (Plus, What To Do & See At Each)
A man walks through tall Redwood Trees in Muir Woods National MonumentMuir Woods and Point Reyes Day Trip (7+ Iconic Views & Amazing Hikes)

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Next Post >

Hotels We Love: The Ace Downtown Los Angeles

Primary Sidebar

Behind The Blog

Hi there, I’m Jen. Cleveland-based photographer and designer with an eye for well-designed spaces and places. Local Love & Wanderlust is a travel and lifestyle blog that shares photo-focused guides and content with a focus on life in Cleveland, the outdoors, and postcard-worthy destinations across the US.

Learn More

Let's Connect

Reader Favorites

  • Cleveland A Look Inside City Goods in Ohio City, One of Cleveland’s Most Unique Shopping Experiences
  • The Lone Cypress on the 17-Mile Drive Monterey, California
    Destinations , Guides , Outdoors Where to Stop Along the 17-Mile Drive in Monterey, California
  • View of the Golden Gate Bridge from Battery Spencer across the Golden Gate strait.
    Destinations , Guides San Francisco to Big Sur: Iconic Views, Things To Do + Huge 5-Day Itinerary
  • A man walks through tall Redwood Trees in Muir Woods National Monument
    Destinations , Guides Muir Woods and Point Reyes Day Trip (7+ Iconic Views & Amazing Hikes)

Shop My Travel Faves

Away Luggage Away Luggage

I love this cary-on sized luggage, complete with a battery charging pack. It fits all my luggage perfectly.

We both get $20 off when you use my link


“Fjallraven Fjallraven Kanken Daypack

Is it trendy? Sure. However, it’s been my favorite travel companion, camera bag (they have inserts!), and the perfect personal item on flights.


“Fuji Fujifilm x100v

This is the perfect compact mirrorless camera when you don’t want to carry your bigger DSLR around.

Here is the wrist strap I use link

Disclosure

Local Love & Wanderlust is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, as an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you. Read our disclosure for more details on other partnerships we have.

Follow Along

@localloveandwanderlust

Have you seen these Pop Art gems in Cleveland? To Have you seen these Pop Art gems in Cleveland?

To celebrate #popartday I wanted to share a few great pieces you can see in Cleveland museums from one of my favorite artists and someone I share a birthday with, Andy Warhol 🤍

1-3 Andy Warhol’s Endangered Species exhibit currently going on at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History @gocmnh 

4-6 Two Warhol pieces currently hanging at the Cleveland Museum of Art: Marilyn x 100 in the Contemporary Art wing, and Jaqueline Kennedy II in the Photographs in Ink exhibit.

That’s just a preview, there’s more great Pop and other art to discover in Cleveland. Do you have a favorite piece or artist?
.
.
.
.
#andywarhol #popart #clevelandmuseumofart #museumsoftheworld #thisiscle #ohiofindithere @ohio.findithere
4 Exciting Ways to Celebrate Mardi Gras in Clevela 4 Exciting Ways to Celebrate Mardi Gras in Cleveland on the blog now!

You’re going to want to save this one.

Visit localloveandwanderlust.com

Of course there is the New Orleans style revelry, but did you know Cleveland celebrated 3 other cultural festivities with ties to Mardi Gras?

PLUS Did you know Cleveland is also going to have a Mardi Gras parade and big celebration downtown?

We even have a New Orleans-themed restaurant!

It doesn’t end there- I also reviewed menus from so many local restaurants, bakeries and other shops to find who is making Beignets, King Cakes, Paczki, New Orleans cocktails, and delicious Cajun & Creole food.

If you love this, please share! If you learned something new or feel I forgot somewhere, let me know in the comments 💜💚💛
.
.
.
.
#mardigrascleveland #mardigras #thisiscle #paczkiday #clevelandkurentovanje #ohiofindithere #clevelandfattuesday
I need your help! What other Ohio winter hikes sh I need your help!

What other Ohio winter hikes should I add to this wishlist??

Tell me in the comments
.
.
.
.
#hikeohio #winterhiking #ohiohikers #clevelandblogger #clevelandmetroparks #summitmetroparks #lakemetroparks #ohiofindithere #thisiscle #hike24in23 
Winter hike in Ohio, snowy hikes, Ohio Parks
Love hiking that first fresh snowfall! The vivid Love hiking that first fresh snowfall! 

The vivid green pops of the hemlock trees truly made the views something special.
.
.
.
#lakemetroparks #remarkablelakecountyoh #hogbackridgepark #snowyhike #instanature #exploremore #hike24in23
This is my new favorite Ohio winter hike! Our sec This is my new favorite Ohio winter hike!

Our second hike on our goal of hiking 24 new-to-us trails this year was also our first snowy hike of the year.

@lakemetroparks feed influenced me to add this park to our list. The vivid hemlock trees really pop against the snowy and leafless tree landscape. It was so worth the drive to get there.

What I liked most was how much visual and trail surface variety this park has. It’s a new favorite and I hope to return in the spring when an abundance of wildflowers are said to be in bloom. 

You’ve got to see this place, it’s dreamy.

📍Hogback Ridge Park part of Lake Metroparks
.
.
.
.
#hike24in23 #ohiofindithere #lakemetroparks #hikeohio #hogbackridgepark #ohioblogger #beautiful_ohio_scenes #thisiscle #remarkablelakecountyoh #bestofthebuckeyestate #ne_ohio_parks #snowyhike

Footer

Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here: Cookie Policy

On The Blog

  • Cleveland
  • Destinations
  • Lifestyle
  • Outdoors
  • Guides
  • Photography

Info

  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use
  • Disclosure

Search The Blog

Copyright © 2023

 

Loading Comments...