Rivers

Rivers in the Park

Goblins Gate, Elwha River, Olympic Nat’l Park

Elwha River Thulefoth Comments
Map-fragment closeup of Goblins Gate

Map-fragment closeup of Goblins Gate

[G]oblins Gate is a dramatic entrance to the Rica Canyon of the Elwha River in Olympic National Park.  It’s at the lower end of Geyser Valley and the Humes Ranch area.  The river is suddenly pinched into a narrow canyon between vertical rock walls (like a gate).  It is an easy day-hike to Goblins Gate, via Rica Canyon Trail.

A broad, low ridge of resistant rock, a few hundred feet high, runs athwart the main Elwha River channel, at the bottom end of Geyser Valley, and the river cuts through it. … cont’d >

Lake Aldwell, Elwha River, Olympic Peninsula, NW USA

Elwha River Thulefoth Comments
Log boom dam guard Lake Aldwell

Log boom dam guard Lake Aldwell

Lake Aldwell is the impoundment of the Elwha River above the lower of the two dams on it (both slated for removal in 2011).

The main local two-lane road through this region, Highway 101, makes a moderately steep descent from the east, to the bridge crossing the Elwha a short ways above the upper end of the lake. This slope forms the eastern side of the lake, and at the top before the road descends, is a large paved pullout & viewpoint. There are views of Lake Aldwell, and excellent views further up the Elwha River valley and surrounding & interior (National Park) mountains. … cont’d >

Anderson Ranch, Elwha River, Olympic Nat’l Park off-trail, river-bottom day-hike

Elwha River / Olympic Nat'l Park Thulefoth Comments
Anderson Ranch meadow, from south upsteam end

Anderson Ranch meadow, from south upsteam end

Anderson Ranch is a large river-bottom, flood-plain meadow on the left bank of the Elwha River; it lies immediately upstream of Goblins Gate. More fully, or historically, it was the Billy Anderson Ranch, and that name will sometimes be seen. It is quite near the beginning of the main Elwha River Trail, but is on the opposite side of the river.

To get to the Ranch, start from the Whiskey Bend Trailhead, where the main Elwha trail starts and follow it up-river through the Humes Ranch area (a popular day-hiking complex). Use the steel suspension Long Ridge Trail Bridge that (dramatically) crosses the river to give access to Long Ridge Trail. Then hike cross-country back down the other side to the Ranch. Or, much more direct, if the water is unusually low (late summer, fall, maybe), robust types ford the river from the foot of Rica Canyon Trail. … cont’d >

Rica Canyon Trail, Elwha River, Olympic Nat’l Park 1.5 mi to Elwha River's Goblins Gate

Elwha River Thulefoth Comments
Rica Canyon Trail sign

Rica Canyon Trail sign

The Rica Canyon trail begins at the 3rd intersection up the main Elwha River Trail, about 1.1 miles out of the Whiskey Bend Trailhead. The first two junctions are both for a short side-loop trail called Elk Overlook, which is a nice viewpoint for Anderson Ranch, itself an off-trail day-hike. It’s easy to miss the Overlook return junction, heading up-trail, which makes a bit of a stealth reentry. The Rica spur-trail leads several hundred feet down-slope to the river at the downstream end of Geyser Valley (no geysers), where the Elwha makes a dramatic entry into Rica Canyon at a feature known as Goblins Gate, a narrow slot with vertical cliffs on both sides. This is where the river enters Rica Canyon. … cont’d >

Hoh River Beach, Ocean Strip, Olympic Nat’l Park the middle stretch of the Olympic Park ocean-strip

Hoh River Thulefoth Comments
Hoh River mouth beach, south

Hoh River mouth beach, south

Hoh River beach is at the end of Oil City Road, down a short trail, and is the southern entrance to a section of undeveloped Olympic National Park coast strip stretching north to La Push], about 12 miles.  The small Hoh Tribe reservation occupies the far (south) side of the river mouth, with a few modest woodframe structures visible beach-side.  Most visitors here remain more or less close to the Hoh, and then exit here as well.  It’s a fine & easy day-hike, and an ideal overnighter too.

Hoh River mouth, headlands north

Hoh River mouth, headlands north

Not far up this coast to the north, the Hoh Head headland is impassable on the beach.  It is necessary to use a more or less short overland trail along the top of the bluffs.  Other headlands to have overland routes, usually only needed when the tide is high.  Getting up these bluffs can be a muddy scramble, but there are usually ropes and aids installed, so it isn’t too hard (or exposed).  The paths over the headlands themselves are then often messy and brushy, too … and difficult to keep well-maintained.  Because the right tides are needed, and the headland detours aren’t seen as an attraction, few people tackle them and most remain near the Hoh mouth, instead.

Hoh beach headland and slide

Hoh beach headland and slide

Of course, on the other hand … impenetrable temperate rain forest jungle, several times the down-wood and trash as the worst of the Amazon Basin;  ferocious underbrush from the ocean-bluff sun-opening; consumer-hiker antipathy … what’s not to like?  This ocean-strip was not preserved firstly for the tide-pools and wave-lapped sands, but for the obnoxiously rank habitat just inland from the beach-bluffs.  Few pay it close attention, except as an imposing obstacle, much less engage it.  Folks are here for the beach …

The terrain inland of the narrow Park-strip is all unpopulated commercial timberland without development, except for logging roads.  This section of the Strip is also backed by a rectangular block of State and corporate forest totally 50 to a 100 square miles.  A network of logical but easily bewildering roads covers all of it; the roads do not come quite “to” the Park boundary, instead the loggers drag logs from the boundary area, back to their roads.  Then the logged units regrow into baby, juvenile, adolescent and teenage jungle.  If there is anything worse better than the mature coastal jungle, it is this immature jungle.  Whoa.

Hoh River mouth from beach, at sunrise

Hoh River mouth from beach, at sunrise

Oil City, Hoh River, Olympic Nat’l Park is a rectilinear block of many dozens, perhaps 100s of platted small-lots, a mostly undeveloped inholding in the Park, situated on the upland just north of the Hoh mouth, and not far inland from the gentle (but jungle-carpeted) bluffs along this part of the beach.  These properties were sold off many years ago, and the Park did not acquire them when the Strip was taken over.  The owners are scattered across the nation, even the world.  They come and go on the real estate market.  Some with primitive cabins; an occasional Hippie-fantasy in the forest, but mostly just woods.