Category: Duckabush Valley

On The Trail

On The Trail: Duckabush River Trail

Trail maintenance has suffered for years … some trails get brushy or have trees that have fallen across the track. Depending on the ‘importance’ of the trail, maintenance may go waiting for years. Trails are a valuable and limited resource and should be protected from neglect. All of these trails are in the Olympic National Park … and show different levels of maintenance. The top image shows a meadow area where the trail has almost disappeared: it is a rarely used section. The middle image shows a trail that gets regular maintenance due to heavy use. The third image shows yours truly on a trail that gets very heavy use … and regular maintenance.

On The Trail: East Fork Quinault Trail
On The Trail: Staircase Loop Trail

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Valley View

Valley View

This is the Duckabush Valley in the Olympic National Park. This is looking east down-valley out to the Puget Sound basin. The mist is typical for a morning … when it’s not even more cloudy, or just downright raining. I believe the peak in the distance (the low spot) is Mt Jupiter … which is one of the peaks of Seattle’s western horizon. The image is an older one before digital cameras and is a low resolution scan. I find that the softer image has an appeal … even if there is significant loss of definition.

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Mountain Meadow

Mountain Meadow

The mountain across the valley (which is the Duckabush) is Mt Steel. The small stream runs down into LaCrosse Basin … this is all in Olympic National Park. It’s a very remote area … 20 miles or so away from any trailhead … which helps cut down on the number of boots smashing the flowers down. We were very careful to step on rocky areas as we made our way across the meadow.

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O’Neil Pass and Mt Steel

O’Neil Pass and Mt Steel

Mt Steel is just south of O’Neil Pass. Lt. O’Neil established the first route across the south Olympics from Hoodsport to the Quinault in the 1890’s. The pass separates the Duckabush Valley from the East Fork Quinault Valley (The Enchanted Valley). It’s a beautiful remote area of the Olympic National Park. The image below is the same view but in a portrait mode.

Looking up to O’Neil Pass
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Hart Lake View — North and South

Hart Lake View — South

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.

Hart Lake View — North
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