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10/01/15 - Back Home to Water

When we left for Australia the North Olympic Peninsula was in the middle of a drought. It was a real relief to get back home and see water, water from the skies and water in the streams. We went out to Sol Duc and took a look at the falls, then headed up towards Deer Lake on the trail that follows Canyon Creek. The falls were full of water as was the creek and as was the trail itself.

Canyon Creek from the bridge

The little streams are flowing too.

At some points the trail itself is a stream.

Sol Duc Falls

Water under the bridge

Keywords: sol duc, deer lake

07/17/15 - Sol Duc Falls and Beyond

A lot of people visit Sol Duc Falls. They walk from the parking lot to the falls, then they head back. This is definitely worth while, but there are all sorts of trails that run past the falls. One of our favorites is the trail up to Deer Lake which starts on the far side of the bridge over the falls. It's a rocky, lumpy trail, so it is hard going, and Deer Lake itself was a bit beyond us. We just weren't up to a 1600' climb.

Despite this, we saw some wonderful woodland as the trail ascended into the canyon. Around 400 or 450 feet up we cross Canyon Creek on a well built wooden bridge. Then we continued our climb. If nothing else, we were lured by the few hundred non-rocky feet of trail a bit beyond the bridge. It was a short stretch, but after the lumpy trail below, a pleasant relief.

We made it up past the clearing, but turned around exhausted. We've hiked up to Deer Lake, and even beyond to the Potholes, before, but today they were out of our league.


Sol Duc Falls

Sol Duc forest

One of the boardwalks

Devil's claw berries

Tiarella and a visitor

The falls on Canyon Creek

An old stump

Green

The trail

More forest

and even more forest

Keywords: sol duc, trails, deer lake

11/14/11 - Solitary Sol Duc

We drove out to Sol Duc Falls the other day. The resort was closed. The ranger's station was closed. Even sections of the road were closed with automated traffic signals regulating traffic. The parking lot was deserted but for a handful of cars. It was quiet and isolated and almost spooky. Maybe it was the Spanish moss. Maybe it was Halloween's ghost, but it was a touch spooky.

The trails were wet. In some places they were waterways. The falls were as roaring as ever. We made our way up to the canyon bridge. That's not very far, maybe a third of the way up to Deer Lake. It was cold, and there was ice on the bridges and wooden walkways, so we walked carefully.

It was a strange experience returning to the falls to find them deserted. Usually, there are at least a few people around. The bridge was a bit less icy, but still slippery. It was a strange walk, with a strong sense of being far away from people and things.

There were some elk crossing the road.

The forest was lush.

The little falls near the main falls - It's worth crossing the bridge and exploring a bit.

The falls, as ever

The canyon bridge

Snow on the valley walls

A bit of the trail

A fungal friend

These are either chanterelles or brown destroyers. Only our livers know for sure.

A damp bit of trail

A rocky bit of trail

Keywords: deer lake, halloween, sol duc, trails, elk

05/23/10 - Sol Duc Falls and Beyond

We drove out to Sol Duc and took a walk up towards Deer Lake. We got nowhere near the lake. We climbed perhaps 500', to the bridge over Canyon Creek, but things look promising. The one mile walk from the trailhead to Sol Duc Falls was in great shape. There's no snow down on the valley floor, but once we started climbing, there was plenty of wet snow, though it was melting rapidly. There were also trilliums and waterfalls, but we'll let our pictures do the talking.

There was a dusting of snow on the higher mountains.

There was no snow down on the valley floor.

There was snow a bit higher up.

That's the bridge over Canyon Creek with its snow as yet untromped.

The Canyon Creek falls.

We could get glimpses of snow covered hills from the trail.

All the little creeks were full.

We saw strange fiddleheads, ferns ready to leaf.

There were trilliums. They were wet.

A view of the Sol Duc.

The main falls were as spectacular as ever.

Keywords: deer lake, sol duc, trillium, waterfall

08/16/08 - Sol Duc Hot Springs Resort

We have finally reviewed the restaurant at Sol Duc Hot Springs Resort, and we were pretty impressed. You can actually have a good Northwestern meal in the middle of the Northwestern wilderness.

Keywords: sol duc, restaurants

08/15/08 - Deer Lake Adventure

The high country is officially open, at least as far as we Kalebergs are concerned. We have returned to Deer Lake. This is always a hard climb, not because of the nearly 1600' ascent, but because the trail is rough going with rocks large and small and portions of the trail are a bit warm and humid. There are only one or two short smooth sections, but the rest of the trail is "watch your step". Mind you, it is a beautiful hike, and Deer Lake is a silken wonder, but it takes something to get up there.

It took us the better part of two hours to get from the Sol Duc trailhead to the little bridge at the head of the lake. We munched our sandwiches, ventresca tuna with roasted green peppers and sweet onions. Then we made our way back down.

Usually, our adventures end in the parking lot, but this time we had a way to go. Our car wouldn't start, or rather, it would start, but then turn off. Something was off with the anti-theft transponder. So, we got a ride with a Dutch tourist who was nearing the end of his drive from San Diego to Seattle. We called AAA, and we settled down to dinner at the Sol Duc resort. We had a few nice glasses of wine, planked salmon, crab cakes and a marionberry crisp. That put us in a better mood. We knew AAA wasn't going to make their one hour goal. We were at least a full hour's drive from the nearest station. Still, we had faith. There were no rooms at the inn.

Our tow truck driver was great, with a gentle hand and a big truck. We dropped the car off for repairs and tucked into bed late. This time we Kalebergs had a bit more adventure than we had bargained for.

Deer Lake under a cloudy sky

There was still some snow on the mountains. The park reports a foot or two of snow at the High Divide.

The bridge over the marsh

These guys had neat looking flowers

More great summer flowers

The canyon falls at 450 apl (above parking lot)

This may be the 10,000,000th photo of Sol Duc Falls, but we couldn't resist.

Keywords: deer lake, high country, sol duc, salmon, kale

07/05/08 - Expedition: Deer Lake - Fail!

With the success of our Hurricane Hill expedition, we were all set for further high country exploration. We sallied forth to Sol Duc Falls for an assault on Deer Lake, a rocky one thousand, six hundred and fifty feet APL (above parking lot). Our journey began well, particularly the 0.8 miles from the parking lot to the falls which were roaring with the enthusiasm of early summer and a lot of water.

Then, we began our climb, up towards Deer Lake. This trail, if you are unfamiliar with it, ascends slowly at first, and is notable for its rockiness which often leads to battered foot syndrome. Luckily, our running shoes were up to the challenge, so we rolled along nicely, climbing, climbing, ever climbing. It wasn't long before we reached the Canyon Creek crossing, a high bridge over a powerful stream and a great photo op.

We continued. We passed through the lone unrocky section of the trail among the tall trees, and still we ascended. We did not get far. About 200 feet above the bridge, the snow began. Snow may look harmless, but ask Robert Falcon Scott. Rather than suffer his fate, we turned tail, discretion being the better part of valor.

Our lesson learned was simple. The high country is opening, but at its own pace. We'll be back at Sol Duc soon, and in due course Deer Lake will be ours.

Snow: our nemesis

The canyon falls

A late season trillium

Sol Duc Falls

Pacific dogwood in bloom

Keywords: deer lake, high country, hurricane hill, sol duc, summer, trillium

09/14/07 - Deer Lake and Potholes

Most tourists stop at Sol Duc Falls which is a pleasant mile from the end of Sol Duc Road. We will admit that the falls are spectacular, especially set as they are in the lush green forest of the Northwest. Wem on the other hand, continued across the bridge and up into the high country towards Deer Lake. The trail is rocky and muddy. If nothing else our feet get all banged up as we climb. The trail rises and leaves the main Sol Duc valley and into a side canyon. Since there are trees all around, this is rather subtle. You have to catch glimpses of more distant mountains to realize what is happening and why the air grows still.

There is a little bridge across the side stream that flows from Deer Lake to the Sol Duc, then the trail begins to climb in earnest alternating between flat areas and staircase like climbs. The lake is about 1600' above the falls, but the effort is worth it. Deer Lake is a jewel in the mountains.

We were energetic today, so climbed higher. Rather than walking around the lake the way we usually do, we took the side trail to the Seven Lakes Basin and climbed towards the potholes. This trail follows the side of a mountain past several little ponds, but eventually it turns inward and through a grove of blueberries, still surprisingly full of ripe berries, and then up to the barren open area of the potholes.

This is a relatively bare flat area with a number of small ponds sparkling and reflecting the sky. We ate our tongue sandwiches here keeping a wary eye out for bears. There were bears in the high country according to several campers we met, but they were another six miles down the trail which was close enough for us.

The descent was lovely. The feeling of accomplishment was glorious. The pounding of our feet by the rocky trail painful.

One of the potholesClick here for more info

Another pothole, still full of water, but you can see the rocky lake bed

Some early autumn color

A great looking mushroom - yes, we are obsessed

A curtain of drips, click for the movie

Keywords: autumn, deer lake, high country, sol duc

04/01/06 - Lake Crescent Opening Dates

The Sol Duc Hot Springs Resort has been open for a while now, but the two Lake Crescent resorts are still getting ready. We run Lake Crescent Cottage, a vacation rental on Lake Crescent, which is already open for the season, and some of our guests have been asking us about dining options in the area. So, for the information of our guests and anyone else browsing the web:

  • Lake Crescent Lodge - wonderful NW cuisine- Opens May 6th
  • Log Cabin Resort - breakfast, lunch, dinner, canoe rentals - Opens May 26th

Keywords: lake crescent, restaurants, lake crescent cottage, sol duc

Fall Color at the Potholes

09/23/04 - Deer Lake

The high country is still open around the High Divide. Needless to say, we didn't quite make it up to the divide itself, but we did make it up past Sol Duc Falls and up past Deer Lake to The Potholes. This is a climb of about 2200 feet.

Since it is late in September, we were glad that the snow has held off this long. We ran into some campers who had run into snow a few days before, so we know that the high country will be closing to casual hikers soon.

In exchange for our efforts, we got to see the fall foliage. The leaves are turning red and brown and gold. We could smell to leaves just starting to decay and the other crisp smells of autumn.

Summer wasn't completely over though. We did manage to grab a few of the last blueberries.

If you do plan to head up to Deer Lake, The Potholes, or beyond, do hurry. The snows will be coming soon.
More Fall Color
 Even More Fall Color

Keywords: deer lake, high country, autumn, sol duc

06/09/04 - Snow Melted at Deer Lake

The snows have melted at Deer Lake, so we were up the trail to take a look. The weather was scattered showers, so the sky was a mix of gray and blue patches. It rained under the gray and it was warm and bright under the blue.

Since the sky was gray when we arrived, we stopped for a coffee at the Sol Duc Hot Springs resort. The pools were empty, and we were tempted to take a dip, but with the new whirlpool bath at Lake Crescent Cottage, we decided that we had mountains to climb instead.

We headed down from the Sol Duc trailhead parking lot and passed by the falls. The Sol Duc falls were spectacular. There was a lot of water blasting through the rocks by the bridge, but we still had mountains to climb. 
 Mist at Deer Lake

The trail was usual stony self. The air was heavy and misty, so it was hard going. The trail was wet, but not impassable. We had to stop on the bridge to marvel at the waterfall. There was a lot of Pacific dogwood in flower for the first half of the trail, and a lot of glacier lilies as we got higher.

As for the lake itself, it was by turns brilliant and misty as you can see in our photo. The water was clear and fresh, and the snow seems to have melted all around the lake. You can see the snow above, and we hear that the Potholes are still in deep snow only a few hundred feet above.

For more on this great trail, click here.

Keywords: deer lake, high country, sol duc, lake crescent, lake crescent cottage, waterfall

05/23/04 - Storm King

We climbed Storm King today. We spent the last month dreading it. It is a brutal climb with a lot of slippery scree. Naturally, we can never make a head on assault. We have to work indirectly, so we drove off to Sol Duc to check out the trail to Deer Lake. As we neared Barnes Creek, we slammed on the brakes and swerved into the Storm King parking lot. Before we knew what had hit us we were at 450', passing the ramada where a youth group was lunching. Around 1200', as we were passing the little side spur to the alpine overlook, we regained consciousness and realized that we were going to make it. You'll find a couple of new snapshots on our Barnes Creek et al page.

Keywords: storm king, deer lake, sol duc

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