Olympic National Park Day Trip From Seattle: Pick One Side
Olympic has no road through the middle, so the park is a ring of spur roads off Highway 101 and a day trip means picking one. The best single day from Seattle is Hurricane Ridge plus Lake Crescent and Marymere Falls: about three hours each way with the Edmonds to Kingston ferry, and a mile high alpine viewpoint at the end of it. The Hoh Rain Forest is four hours each way and Rialto Beach four and a half, which is too far to do well in a day. Our Olympic Peninsula loop is the version with nights in it.
Why one day means one corner
The park is a million acres with a mountain range in the centre and no crossing road. Driving the Highway 101 loop around the outside is 330 miles. From Seattle, the northeast corner is three hours away and the west coast is four and a half, which is the whole problem in one sentence.
So there are really three day trips, and they are not interchangeable.
Day trip 1: Hurricane Ridge and Lake Crescent
The strongest option, and the one to pick if you are choosing once.
- Ferry: Edmonds to Kingston, 30 minutes, sailings roughly every 40 to 50 minutes. Reserve a vehicle slot where the route allows it and arrive 30 minutes early on a summer weekend.
- Drive: two hours from Kingston to Port Angeles along Hood Canal and the Strait.
- Hurricane Ridge: 17 miles and 40 minutes up from Port Angeles to 5,242 feet. Hurricane Hill is a 3.2 mile round trip on pavement and gravel with the Olympic peaks on one side and Vancouver Island on the other. The Cirque Rim and High Ridge trails are shorter.
- Lake Crescent: 30 minutes west of Port Angeles. Marymere Falls is 1.8 miles through old growth to a 90 foot fall, and the Spruce Railroad Trail on the north shore has the clearest water on the peninsula.
- Home: back through Port Angeles for the last ferry, or around the south end if you miss it.
That is 11 to 12 hours door to door with two short hikes in it. See Seattle to Olympic National Park for the ferry detail.
Day trip 2: Sol Duc and the hot springs
Same drive west, then 12 miles up the Sol Duc valley. Sol Duc Falls is 1.6 miles round trip through mossy forest to a fall that drops into a slot from three channels, and it is the best short walk in the park. The resort at the end of the road has mineral pools you can pay to use for a couple of hours, which is a good answer to a wet day. Slightly longer than the Hurricane Ridge day and much better in rain, since none of it needs a view.
Day trip 3: the coast, at a cost
Ruby Beach and Rialto Beach are four and a half hours from Seattle. Doing either in a day is nine hours of driving for two hours of sea stacks and driftwood. If you are set on it, go on a summer weekday, check the tide table before you leave, and understand that the Hole in the Wall walk from Rialto needs a falling tide. Better: sleep in Forks or Port Angeles and give the coast a proper morning. Our Olympic beaches guide has the tide rules.
What does not fit in a day
- The Hoh Rain Forest. Four hours each way. The Hall of Mosses is only 0.8 miles, so the walking is short and the driving is not.
- Quinault. Three and a half hours, and the two lake loop roads deserve a slow afternoon.
- Any two corners at once. Hurricane Ridge and the Hoh in one day is 300 miles.
Practical notes
- Entry is $30 per vehicle for seven days, or free with an America the Beautiful pass.
- Hurricane Ridge road is open daily in summer and often Friday to Sunday only in winter, with chains or traction tyres required. Check the park road status page the morning you go.
- Weather is local. Port Angeles sits in a rain shadow and gets a quarter of the rain the Hoh does, so a grim forecast in Seattle does not mean a grim day on the north side. Our rain shadow guide explains where the dry side is.
- No fuel on the Hurricane Ridge road or in the park interior.
Have us plan the day
Tell us your dates and where you are staying in Seattle and we will pick the corner that suits the forecast and time it around the ferry. Planning is free, and we earn only if you book through us.
Olympic National Park Day Trip From Seattle: Pick One Side FAQs
Yes, for one corner of it. Hurricane Ridge with Lake Crescent and Marymere Falls is about three hours each way including the ferry and makes a full 11 hour day. The Hoh Rain Forest and the Pacific beaches are too far.
Hurricane Ridge for the alpine views, paired with Marymere Falls at Lake Crescent for a walk in old growth forest. If it is raining, swap to Sol Duc Falls and the hot spring pools, since neither depends on a view.
Two and a half to three hours to Port Angeles using the Edmonds to Kingston ferry, then 40 minutes more up to Hurricane Ridge. Driving around through Tacoma instead takes about the same time and costs no ferry fare.
No, but it saves driving around Puget Sound. Edmonds to Kingston takes 30 minutes and runs roughly every 40 to 50 minutes. Arrive early on summer weekends, when the queue can be longer than the crossing.
The road is open daily in summer. In winter it often runs Friday through Sunday only, weather permitting, and chains or traction tyres are commonly required. Always check the park road status page on the morning of your visit.
Not well. It is four hours each way, so you would spend nine hours driving to walk a 0.8 mile loop. Stay in Forks or Port Angeles and the rain forest becomes a relaxed morning instead.
