Sometimes it’s really worth getting your feet wet, even if the water is really cold. In this case, wading across this stream (and a little hike uphill) gave us the perspective below. Well, that little wading plus a few days hiking. These were taken in Martins Park in the Central Olympic National Park.
On the trail to Sol Duc Falls (see previous post), we had to walk across many little streams that were running down to the river. This was one that caught my eye. It was raining, which made the ferns shine … and the stream had water running in it (it dries up in the middle of summer). I’m not sure what has opened up the area around the stream. Mostly this area of the Olympic National Park is a dense stand of huge old trees.
What’s a river? What’s a stream or creek? The amount of water doesn’t tell the whole story. Where on the river are you? These photos were taken in the Olympic National Park, so they aren’t long rivers or creeks, but they can carry a lot of water, especially in winter.
The image above shows the Duckabush River over 20 miles up the valley from the mouth. The location is where the Duckabush River Trail crosses the river (via ford) and starts the climb to Marmot Lake and then up to O’Neil Pass.
The photo below is Home Sweet Home Creek just about where it enters the Duckabush River, adding to its volume. This creek runs down from First Divide … the pass between the Duckabush Valley and the North Fork Skokomish. There is no bridge crossing this stream … go rock hopping or wade, your choice.
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.
Any time you have a small (in this case, unnamed) creek crossing the trail, you have an opportunity to enjoy some natural air conditioning. Nothing is finer on a hot summer hike than walking through a cool breeze coming down a stream channel. This was the North Fork Quinault trail at mile 10 or so, in the Olympic National Park.