Three-quarters of the nation right now is dealing with an intense heat wave and smoke from Canadian fires. And even flooding.
I was reminded the other day what a special corner of the world this is driving back from Montana through Moses Lake and Yakima. Not only was it 97 degrees at noon in Moses Lake, but the air conditioner in my car wasn’t working particularly well, reminding me just how much I love the Olympic Peninsula and wanted to get back there as quickly as I could.
I was so happy when Hurricane Ridge finally reopened. You do have to get up very early to avoid the lines, I’ve learned. One recent morning, I slept in a little longer than I would have liked and started driving up to the ridge at 8 a.m. The parking lot was full and there was already a line at the entrance station where they were metering drivers.
I didn’t really want to sit around in line, so decided to head for Lake Crescent instead. The Spruce Railroad trail is one of my favorite summer hikes. I got to the turnoff for the Spruce Railroad and the road was temporarily closed for a construction project. Arrrgghh, I had driven all that way only to be rebuffed again.
Wait, there are more options, I realized. There is an area off of Highway 112 that isn’t well known. It feels very private, but it’s open to the public with a trail and a couple of picnic tables. There’s tons of wildlife in the area. I’ve seen bald eagles, river otters and even a gang of elk there. That’s all the details I’ll provide — and maybe I’ve said too much already — because one of the reasons it’s such a special area is very few people are aware of it.
So I headed out to that spot and I had the place entirely to myself. After feeling like I drove completely around Port Angeles looking for somewhere to go, I ended up spending a quiet few hours there.
The following day, I got up plenty early and left for Hurricane Ridge at 7:15 a.m. Even at that time in the morning, I’d say the parking lot was two-thirds full already. Still, I know some pretty private places to go up there. The Klahhane Ridge trail is one of my favorites. It’s a great hike with awesome views of both the Strait of Juan de Fuca and the Olympic glaciers — and plenty of Olympic marmots along the trail. You hit it early enough, you will have the trail all to yourself. By noon or so, it becomes fairly crowded.
This particular hike, people going the other way exclaimed they saw a black bear below the trail. Sure enough, he poked his head out of the bushes and we spent a good 15-20 minutes watching him on the hillside a couple of hundred yards below the trail before he finally lumbered off into the trees.
How special is it that there’s such a wide variety of choices, all within 30 to 45 minutes away? Black bears, bald eagles, river otters, marmots all to be found. It’s one of the reasons I stay here and am glad I moved here.
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Sports Editor Pierre LaBossiere can be contacted at plabossiere@peninsuladailynews.com.
