It feels as if the landscape is swallowing up all traces of human interference. The mists of recent rains evaporate from the roofs like smoke from burning buildings. Not far down the road, I find the shuttered National Park Center, eerily quiet. As a solo hiker, I’ll need to make noise along the way. Signs warn me about bears and a cougar that have been prowling the area. Although I am expecting the first big storm of the season, the sky is now blue, so I stow my rain gear.
A forest service road, which once led to the ranger station, is now gated. Just beyond the parking lot in Olympic National Park, the Elwha River rushes north toward the Strait of Juan de Fuca. Get full access to Outside Learn, our online education hub featuring in-depth fitness, nutrition, and adventure courses and more than 2,000 instructional videos when you sign up for Outside+ī ig-leaf maples blush with the first bloom of autumn on the Olympic Peninsula in Washington State.
