OLYMPIC NATIONAL PARK — Heart Lake on the way to the High Divide is the only Washington state camping area to make The Wilderness Society’s list of top 10 romantic nature outings.
But you may want to wait for the snow to clear and the Sol Duc Hot Springs Resort to reopen for the season.
“I recommend camping alongside Heart Lake in Olympic National Park,” Andrea Imler, a Seattle-based communications manager for The Wilderness Society, said after staff members were asked to come up with the most romantic wild places they could think of for the Valentine’s Day list.
“You can hike there on the High Divide Trail, enjoying old-growth forests and subalpine meadows — and perhaps catching a glimpse of black bear or Roosevelt elk,” she said, suggesting “after the trip, you can enjoy a soak in the hot springs at the Sol Duc Hot Springs Resort.
“The resort is closed until late spring, so this one is a great trip to give as a gift for down the road,” Imler concluded.
The resort on Sol Duc Hot Springs Road west of Port Angeles — which offers rooms, food and hot springs — reopens March 26.
And the trail to the lake at 4,750 feet — the High Divide Loop in the 7 Lakes Basin — tends to be snow-covered until early to mid-July, the Olympic National Park says on its Web site, tinyurl.com/yekxjbo.
“When the trail is snow covered, ice-axe and self-arrest skills are recommended for steep snow slopes,” the park Web site says.
Heart Lake, about 15 miles south of Lake Crescent, is the only spot on The Wilderness Society’s list that’s close to home. The others are in Alaska, California, Montana, Colorado, Texas, Minnesota, Alabama, West Virginia and Vermont.
For The Wilderness Society’s list of “Great Valentine’s Getaways,” see wilderness.org.
To reach the Sol Duc Hot Springs Resort this spring, phone 360-327-3583.
Peninsula Daily News
