PNW

Reflecting on the trip I took in 2021, there’s so much from Olympic National Park that I remember. I met a photographer I still keep in touch with, Lawrence Leyderman (Overlanding Photography), I met a group of girls I’d then run into again in Mt. Rainer several days later, and I got to see the rugged beauty of the west-coast for the first time. I can’t write down all of my memories but here are the two that stand out the most.

Let’s start at the end. I was leaving Olympic that morning and had a long drive ahead of me to reach Enumclaw (where I’d be staying while visiting Mt. Rainier national park). As I was leaving Forks, I decided to visit Hurricane Ridge for sunrise and my god was it glorious. It was also incredibly lucky that I visited. As I was leaving the area, I chatted with a local about the sunrise and he warned me that I should be careful about visiting North Cascades National Park – wildfires in the area were shutting down the road.

Sure enough, when I called the hotel – they warned me not to come and that I’d get a full-refund. The town was being evacuated shortly after we were to get off the phone-call. From there I frantically planned and booked a stay in Oregon. I ended up making the most of it – and had a great time in Oregon.

The other memory that sticks out to me was my hike up Mt. Storm King. It was an incredible hike and I got there early but it was slow-going once I reached the switch backs. Over the next ~1,600 feet of elevation gain, I climbed 20 switch-backs. I then reached the unmaintained part of the trail. With a pair of loner gloves on, I began the vertical section of the hike. I repelled one foot in front of the other up a slick dirt wall. Eventually I reached the summit and got to rest. This is also the hike where I met the three girls from Texas! We chatted a bit at the top and I’d meet them again in Mt. Rainier as I was coming down from hiking one of the more popular fire-tower trails there.

Mt. Rainier surprised me. I went into it with a mindset I know realize was foolish. “How can one mountain govern an entire National Park” was the question I remember myself thinking as I drove in. What a dumb idea.

I think these low expectations are part of the reason I enjoyed Mt. Rainier as much as I did. The hiking was sublime and there was so much variety in the park. I loved every second of it – and I hope you enjoy the results. My favorite photo shoot was along the Lakes High Trail. The fog and mist in the summer were stunning compliments to the lush green of the fauna around me.

As I mentioned earlier on, Oregon was not originally a part of the trip I’d planned. I was at one point thinking of going to Oregon but had scrapped the idea. Fate had another idea for me.

I’m glad that I took the time to pivot and visit Oregon it was a blast. Each part of the state that I visited was stunning. I loved the rugged coastlines that I visited near Cannon Beach but the waterfalls and forests near the Colombia River Gorge were equally enchanting.

The moss never stopped amazing me.