Amy and I did a 32-mile backpacking trip in the Enchanted Valley on the Olympic Peninsula. It is reached by going north past Lake Quinault Lodge about 20 miles and then hiking another 14 into the heart of the valley. It is known for its steep rock walls with waterfalls cascading down and the lovely chalet built in 1930 as a recreation base camp. We had a beautiful camp spot on the Quinault River and enjoyed all the wildlife including grouse and an entire herd of elk. We saw fresh bear scat but no actual bears.
We hiked into the valley on our first day and stayed two nights. There were a ton (okay, maybe 80) hikers heading home on Sunday when we came in. I’ve heard it is very busy on weekends, but we shared the valley with just a few other tents each night. On our second day we and a lazy morning reading under big trees and on the chalet porch to stay dry in the drizzling rain. The rain let up after lunch and we hiked deeper into the valley, but ultimately decided not to try to climb Anderson pass due to the clouds that persisted which would erase any hope of views. Still, it was nice to peak further down the trail and see a cool ice cave.
