It’s time to put the backpack on and head out! I have a few trips planned this summer and needed a warm up to get the legs out in the wilderness with a decent amount of weight. A friend from work joined me for their first overnight trip. This is always a joy and exciting to try gear and see the wilderness coming to life in mid-spring.
Where? Western Washington can be intimidating with so many hikes heading up into the mountains with unpredictable weather, snowpack, and just a lot of water everywhere. We decided to head out to Dosewallips, on the east side of Olympic National Park for a great entry level hike with spectacular forest scenery, and a gorgeous river to follow. My introduction to this site came long ago, listening to my grandmother talk of her adventures car camping in the ’60’s in the park. Dosewallips used to be a full drive in experience with ranger station, bathrooms, and a fine road. Then in the late ’70’s, a landslide took out the road, and the park system decided against rebuilding. So now the road ends, and a 6 1/2 mile trail follows the grown over road bed up to the old campground, which is pretty much as it was left 50 years ago.
The trail is basically perfect for hiking and the grade is not steep. The woods and finally the camp seem like they are out of an elven paradise in Middle Earth. I would suggest hiking on the little detour around the wash out as it is much easier to navigate. The trail follows the Dosewallips River and the campground is right on it, allowing easy access to water the whole trip. The main feature to look forward to is the river flowing down a steep section with rapids and falls along the way: so amazing in the spring with significant volume moving through the small spaces.
Wildflowers are beginning to bloom and wild rhododendrons as well.
Basically with lots of photo stops and a break for a snack at an old campground halfway, it took us 4 hours to hike at a nice pace. We set up camp right on the river and had the use of an old picnic table and fire pit for the afternoon and evening. There is a pit toilet for use.
Like I mentioned, the camp itself is beautiful, with lush vegetation, old growth trees, and plenty of trees to hang a hammock.
I took a little nap and then finished off a great book. My legs felt pretty good. I did not hold back on the weight and carried about 47 pounds in my pack. Part of my goal was to warm up for a longer hike planned at the end of June. Water filtering worked well, and this is the first time I used a gravity feed system. Testing equipment is always a good idea: my sleeping pad deflated horribly and I just need to get a new one. We had two different brands of mixed fuel stoves, which worked about the same.
Our food choices turned out great! Enjoyed freeze dried dinner and breakfast. I fastened my Camelbak to the backpack for a nice combo! Worked well for easy water access, and then I had a day pack to use.
This was a great trip, with perfect weather and the location was spot on!
Check out the map below for a rough idea where this is, and how to navigate. I used Alltrails for navigation, and a map I bought at the forest service ranger station in Quilcene.
Backpacking is an awesome workout, and an amazing way to dive into the wilderness. Once you experience the peace and serenity, you just want to keep going back…
For more information, check out the Washington Trails Association website:
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