Hart Lake is in the Upper Duckabush River area of the Olympic National Park. It’s quite remote, keeping the number of visitors down well below the number that visit the more accessible areas of the park (i.e. The High Divide). The image above shows the outflow of the small lake and the view across the Duckabush Valley to Mt Steel. The image below shows the view north from about the same location. I thought the clouds were wonderful.
The Marmot Lake area of the upper Duckabush valley (21.1 miles or 34 km on the Duckabush River Trail) in the Olympic National Park provides a dramatic view of Mt Steel. The distance to access the view keeps the casual tourist away.
At 6.7 miles (10.8 km) on the N Fork Skokomish trail in the Olympic National Park is Camp Pleasant, one of my favorite camping spots. It isn’t too large a space, but there are several campsites spread along the river bank. I have spent several 4th of July evenings camped there to avoid the noise of the celebrations. It’s just a beautiful, peaceful locations.
The 6 Mile Bridge … actually at 5.6 miles (9.0 KM) … is where the North Fork Skokomish trail crosses from the east side of the river to the west side. As you can see, the river runs through a narrow chasm at that point. It’s one of my favorite spots for a break … such a nice view. And even on a hot summer day there always seems to be a cool breeze coming down the valley at this point.
The North Fork Skokomish valley (in the distance, left of center, above) is one of my favorite hiking locations in the Olympic National Park … and a frequent subject in this blog. It’s 12.6 miles (20.3 km) hiking from the trailhead at Staircase Campground to First Divide, the pass between the N Fork Skokomish valley and the Duckabush Valley.
The photo above is looking back down the valley from just below First Divide. My longest day hike ever was to First Divide (back in the mid-90’s). My feet were very tired by the time I got back.
