4 Day Road Trip To Lake Quinault
Treasure hunt at Rialto Beach
May was only half way through, and I already completed two trips with our kids.
Last week, I went on a 4-day road trip along the Pacific Coast with my two little ones alone.
Despite the rain (and even snow on our way out), we managed a number of hikes along the beaches, lakes and in the rain forest.
Crescent Lake
Rialto Beach, Ruby Beach, First Beach, Kalaloch Beach, Hoh Rain Forest, Lake Crescent were among our repeats while Lake Quinault was our first time.
Rialto Beach
This trip is a key milestone. After 100+ visits to Olympic National Park over the past 2 years, we finally marked our footprints onto the southwest corner of this park, and somehow completed our knowledge and experience of this beautiful place!
Parachute jumping at Lake Quinault
Day 1
Our first day started out in crazy weather. 10 minutes after Port Angeles, it started to rain. Then the rain became hail and eventually, snow. A big snow! Everything calmed down a little before we reached Forks, where we spent the first night.
Rialto Beach
We made a quick stop at Rialto Beach in the rain, and did an early checkin at Woodland Inns before heading out to the same beach again.
I always wanted to try the Hole In the Wall hike, but even in the lowest tide for the day, we couldn’t cross a stream, where you had to walk or climb over a myriad of logs hanging pretty high over the stream. It wouldn’t be a problem for adults, but wasn’t a safe option for young kids. So we had to give up this time.
Rialto Beach
The boys however enjoyed the sand slide a thousand of times while I watched groups of people going through the logs toward the destination. I was a little envious, and knew we would be able to make it one day.
Rialto Beach
We made a stop at First Beach afterwards. It wasn’t a fancy place. As a matter of fact, I was the only one stepping out of the car to see this beach in our last trip here.
First Beach
To my little ones, as long as there were some spots to climb, or just some rocks to throw, they were happy. That was exactly what they did.
First Beach, Olympic National Park
Day 2
We checked out Woodland Inns in the mid-morning and went to Hoh Rain Forest.
It was our second visit over 2 years. Apollo got lost on the trail for a good 15 minutes last time, and I reminded him we had to stick together. We completed both Hall of Mosses and Spruce Nature Trail, 2 miles in total.
After that, we visited Ruby Beach. It was supposed to be the only day that would not rain much for the entire trip. We definitely wanted to make the most of it.
Ruby Beach
Different from last time we were here, the beach was cut apart by a stream. So no hikes to the sandy section, and we basically stayed in the same place. Apollo saved some small fish trapped in low tide from being eaten live by crows. Orion played with his red bucket, aka my favorite outdoor photo prop (see featured image from my last post), while I spent most time with my new Sony A7IV, which gave me some quirky problems (another story that I can share later). Needless to say, we were all immersed in our favorite moments of the day. Time slipped by quickly.
Ruby Beach
We skipped all the four Kalaloch beaches and drove straight down to Lake Quinault, the highlight and the purpose of this trip.
It was our first time to visit the southwest corner of Olympic National Park. I was curious what would unfold in front of us.
We checked in Lake Quinault Lodge. The hotel looked a bit rundown from outside but the interior gave you a taste of old charm. The room amenity was basic, despite the nightly cost of around $400. Nevertheless, the lake view and the surrounding area with a jungle of forest trails added so much bonus and made the stay all the more worthwhile.
“Roar” at Lake Quinault Lodge
We had dinner at Roosevelt Dining Room in the hotel. The dining room had sweeping view of Lake Quinault. Not having much fine dining experiences over the past 2 years, I felt somewhat pampered when the food came up. In fact, I had to eat more than 2 people’s portion as the boys were completely full just after the bread.
Roosevelt Dining Room at Lake Quinault Lodge
Day 3
I wasn’t feeling my best. With two little ones constantly coughing and sneezing next to me for days, I came down with a sore throat and light cough.
Nevertheless, I decided to take them for a hike along the Quinault Rain forest Nature Trail, a 0.9-mile trail minutes away from our hotel.
My biggest enjoyment was to photograph the Marriman Falls after the hike. The waterfall was less than 10 minutes drive from the hotel, and is super easy to locate right off the road. I did a few long exposure shots in the drizzle and wrapped up before the rain picked up.
Marriman Falls, Quinault
We also saw the world’s largest sitka spruce tree. To be honest, before the trip, I never heard of sitka spruce tree and had no idea what it looked like. But whenever you heard the world’s No. 1 something, you just had to check it out, and snap a shot.
World’s Tallest Sitka Spruce Tree
We went back to the hotel and hung out at the lawn before the rain poured down. Can you tell the kids kept their photographer mom busy?
The boys spent the afternoon in the hotel swimming pool, where I simply rested in a chair. We were the only one there almost the entire time. It was exactly the quiet time I needed, so I could conserve energy for the trip back the next day.
For dinner, needless to say, it was Roosevelt Dining Room in the hotel again. We ordered salmon two days in a roll, and would order it again next time we come back.
Day 4
I was pretty proud of myself.
We had a long drive today, starting from a 34-mile loop around Lake Quinault in the rain. I chose to drive clockwise so I could be closer to the lake. In fact, I didn’t see any cars before or after me on my side. There were a handful from the other direction during the whole hour-long drive. Rainy day travel wasn’t all that bad - at least there was little crowd.
Due to the rain, we didn’t stop, nor take any pictures. But I’d highly recommend this loop drive to anyone visiting Quinault Lake for the first time.
We stopped at Beach 1 at Kalaloch. This was the first time we stopped at this beach. There were many logs, perfect for our little ones to climb. Apollo made some friends (as he did everywhere else), and perfected a small natural bridge over a little stream.
We weren’t monitoring the weather, but just as we were leaving, it started to rain again.
The next stop was a new spot next to Lake Crescent. Really, we didn’t have much choice as to when and where to stop along the way. It was raining pretty hard most of the time. We simply stepped out of the car whenever there was a rain break.
Lake Crescent just never disappoints. There are only good or great views. We were lucky to explore a new corner this time.
I was able to do a long exposure with my 10-stop filter to capture the serenity of the lake (check out my blog written 9 years ago about when and how to use filters), while my kids played with two wild ducks. We all ended up having damp hair when I wrapped up.
Lake Crescent in rain clouds
Beyond all these stops, we even managed to play at a playground on our way home.
This wrapped up our 4-day road trip to the Pacific Coast. If we have to do it again, which I’m sure we will, I’d like to stop by Neah Bay, the most northwestern point of continental USA, also home to a Native American tribe, and perhaps try to hike at least a portion of the Shi Shi Beach, ideally, during a colorful sunset.
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It’s that time of the year again. I’ve started writing our year in review since 2019, and find it a healthy “habit”, even this habit takes me just once a year to practice.