Join us on the Hoh River Trail in Olympic National Park, one of the top temperate rainforest hikes in the Pacific Northwest.
The trail travels through a moss-draped rainforest along the glacial blue Hoh River. The whole Hoh River Trail travels nearly twenty miles to Glacier Meadows and is usually backpacked. We did a 5.6-mile section as a day hike, turning back at the beautiful Mineral Creek Falls. We were lucky to see a herd of Roosevelt elk in the forest!
In today’s video, I’ll share the highlights of day hiking the Hoh River Trail, and everything you need to know to visit this beautiful place yourself.
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The Hoh River Trail is on the west side of Olympic National Park. It’s just over 4 hours’ drive from Seattle, and just over 5 hours’ drive from Portland.
The trail begins right next to the Hoh Rainforest Visitor Center. It’s a popular place, so you’ll likely see a lot of people near the entrance. The good news is that most of the crowd will be hiking the shorter Hall of Mosses trail, so once you split off onto the Hot River Trail, it gets more peaceful.
The Hoh River Trail is relatively gradual. There are some roots to navigate, and the occasional stream crossing. There was a pretty large fallen log across the trail on the day we visited that requires a bit of clambering to cross.
There are two waterfalls that you’ll notice in the distance to the left of the trail. The main trail doesn’t go close to either, but there are small side trails that do. We followed the side trail to the second waterfall. It’s a bit narrow and rocky, so take care and make sure it’s in your comfort zone.
The second waterfall was our turnaround point, making the hike 5.6 miles. Here is the link to the AllTrails entry so you can find the trail map and recent trip reports easily: [ Ссылка ]
