Olympic and Rainier Tour

• Shuttle to Trailhead: 3 hours
• Hiking Mileage: 5.2 miles
• Elevation Gain/Loss: 1000 feet
• Accommodations: Lake Crescent Lodge

This Northwest hiking tour begins with pick up at your hotel in Olympia. Our first day features a scenic drive out to the Olympic Peninsula and then a hike along the alpine wonderland of Hurricane Ridge.

To start we’ll drive north along the Hood Canal, with beautiful early morning views of the islands and narrow of Puget Sound, before reaching Port Angeles and climbing up to Hurricane Ridge. After soaking up the views from the Visitor’s Center, we’ll leave the crowds behind and hike Klahane Ridge out towards Mount Angeles. On a clear day, to our north, we can see across the Straits of Juan de Fuca to Vancouver Island and beyond. To our east is the snowy cap of Mount Baker rising from the North Cascades, and to our south the glaciated Mount Olympus, with alpine wildflowers in the foreground of every view.

After ample playtime in these extraordinary mountains, we’ll drive back down to sea level and to our accommodations at Lake Crescent Lodge, a century-old hotel filled with charm and history. Showers and beds await, as well as opportunities for shorter hikes just out the back door. Or you can just lounge and enjoy the lakefront views! Weather permitting, we’ll enjoy an outdoor dinner on the shore of Lake Crescent, prepared by your guide.

• Shuttle to Trailhead: 1.5 hours
• Hiking Mileage: 6-8 miles
• Elevation Gain/Loss: 200 feet
• Accommodations: Lake Crescent Lodge

On day 2, after a hearty breakfast at the lodge, we’ll head west towards Neah Bay and the Makah Reservation. After parking near our trailhead, we’ll descend through coastal forests for two miles until we reach Shi Shi Beach, one of the most dramatic and beautiful beaches that Washington has to offer. Pounding waves, rugged cliffs, and towering sea stacks await, as well as tidal pools filled with marine life.

We’ll soak up sweeping views of the ocean and mountains, and intimate details of tidal pools crawling with sea creatures as we continue southward towards the Point of Arches. Your guide will serve you a gourmet lunch on the beach, and eventually we will bid farewell to the ocean and hike back to the vehicle. On our way back to our hotel we’ll have a chance to stop by the famous Makah Museum and learn more about the cultural history of the Makah people.

Our amazing day ends at our warm and cozy lodge to clean up for a wonderful, hand-picked restaurant dinner.

• Shuttle to Trailhead: 1.5 hours
• Hiking Mileage: 4-6 miles
• Elevation Gain/Loss: minimal
• Accommodations: Kalaloch Lodge

On day 3 we’ll say farewell to our lodge, load up our bags, and head southwest towards the famous Hoh Rainforest. With over 140 inches of rain per year, this is one of the nation’s largest temperate rainforests, and includes ancient trees towering up to 300 feet in height, moss-draped nurse logs, incredible biodiversity, and abundant wildlife.

We’ll hike up the wild Hoh River and explore all that the rainforest has to offer. Elk, deer, black bears, bald eagles, fascinating banana slugs, and more await us as we investigate this incredible ecosystem. Immense cushions of moss absorb sounds, contributing to the Hoh River’s title as “The Quietest Place in the U.S.”

When we’ve had our fill of hiking, we’ll make our way back to the trailhead and head further southwest to our destination for the night, Kalaloch Lodge, right on the Pacific coast. We’ll enjoy a casual stroll down the beach or just relax with a view of the ocean, eat dinner, and fall asleep to the sound of the waves crashing on the beach.

• Shuttle to Trailhead: 4 hours
• Hiking Mileage: 5 miles
• Elevation Gain/Loss: 1150 feet
• Accommodations: National Park Inn

Day four marks our transition from the Olympic Peninsula to the Cascades and Mount Rainier. Today we explore shimmering alpine lakes, abundant wildlflower blooms, and tumbling waterfalls on the shoulders of North America’s most famous volcano. Mount Rainier stands at 14,411 feet tall, and is the most heavily glaciated peak in the contiguous United States.

We will start our hike near scenic Narada Falls, before climbing gradually through gentle forests and abundant blueberry bushes. We’ll hike past famous, beautiful Reflection Lakes, aptly named for their stunning mirror image reflection of Mount Rainier, up to Faraway Rock with panoramic views of lakes and mountains below.

After wrapping up our hike we’ll check in to our accommodations at the historic National Park Inn, and then have time to stroll down the Wonderland Trail just outside the door, or to relax on the veranda with views of Mount Rainier. After a delicious dinner, we’ll enjoy the stars outside or take in a ranger talk at Longmire or Paradise.

• Hiking Mileage: 5-8 miles
• Elevation Gain/Loss: 1700-4000
• Accommodations: National Park Inn

This day’s hike takes us through the famous Paradise Meadows of Mount Rainier, a subalpine wonderland of flowers and fragile meadows. We’ll head up the Skyline Trail towards Glacier Vista, with its panoramic views of the Nisqually Glacier, and then continue our hike upward. A full day – and a lot of elevation gain – will take us to Camp Muir (over 10,000 feet), the basecamp for mountaineers aiming to summit Rainier. We’ll turn around when we want to, aiming first for Panorama Point, secondarily Camp Muir. On our way we’ll keep an eye out for marmots, pikas, mountain goats, and more, while absorbing stunning views of Mount Rainier and beyond. If the weather cooperates, we could get views of Mount Hood, Mount St. Helens, and Mount Adams, three of the other major stratovolcanoes in the Cascades range.

On our descent we’ll retrace our steps and return to the trailhead, where we’ll have a chance to explore some of the human and natural history as we poke around Paradise Lodge and the Visitors’ Center. We’ll eat one final celebratory dinner together in the beautiful Paradise Lodge dining room, with views of Rainier and the Tatoosh Range surrounding us.

• Hiking Mileage: 4-6 miles
• Elevation Gain/Loss: 1250-2150 feet
• Shuttle to Olympia: 2 hours

Our final day takes us up past a serious of torrential waterfalls and a beautiful creek, ending by the magnificent 300 foot drop of Comet Falls. Delicate ferns & subalpine plants, whitewater spray, and polished rock accompany us on this short but steep trail to one of Rainier’s hidden gems. For those who feel bolder, we can continue up and on towards Van Trump Park, a beautiful alpine meadow filled with flowers and open vistas.

We’ll enjoy a final picnic lunch, keep an eye out for any last wildlife sightings, and eventually head back to the car. A two hour drive will have us back at your hotel in Olympia where we’ll say our goodbyes, knowing we’ve had an unforgettable 6 days!