Hey guys! This post is about the big hike we did at Olympic National Park, the High Divide Loop. One little tip for when you’re backcountry camping in this kind of environment, it’s good to check the weather the day before you begin. Actually, ALWAYS check the weather before any hike. That’s Leave No Trace rule #1. Y’all will see what I mean soon enough. I hope you all enjoy it!
On Day 1, we hiked 8.4 miles from Sol Duc Trailhead to Lunch Lake. On this day, Miss Shanna joined us on the trail. At the start of the hike, Dad realized he forgot his hat and turned back to the car to get it. He told us to keep going, and he would catch up. He caught up to us when we paused to take pictures at a small bridge crossing a little stream. Afterward, we continued until we got to a bigger bridge crossing the Sol Duc River at 0.2 miles from the trailhead.
This bridge is the best place to view Sol Duc Falls, which is magnificent! The Sol Duc River spills over a rocky precipice where it splits into three waterfalls that rejoin at the next tier of rock before flowing together once again as a single river. It was so loud, I felt like it was going to burst my eardrums. The waterfall misted all over the bridge making a layer of muddy, slippery leaves. Of course, we took photos and selfies before continuing on our way!
We continued along our hike until we got to Deer Lake. Along the way, we looked at fungi and other cool bits of life, and continued to climb higher up the mountain. As we went up, I saw snow on the taller mountains and was ecstatic. There was a chance I would get to play in the snow! After seeing it in the distance, I wished for snow on our hike too. Immediately, Mom, Dad, and Miss Shanna were like, nooooo. We ate lunch at Deer Lake where we saw no deer. Just as we would have no lunch at Lunch Lake because life is just crazy like that PLUS Lunch Lake was still literally miles away. No exaggeration. What we did see at Deer Lake were beautiful fall foliage and tranquil waters. Since it was a bit chilly, I got out my puffy coat to stay warm. Mom shared a Seattle Chocolate bar, which is the BEST chocolate in the world.
Back on the trail and past Deer Lake, we continued to climb a steep incline and were now on the High Divide Trail. Sprinkled along the trail were small alpine pools and lakes and SNOW! Somewhere between Deer and Lunch Lakes, Miss Shanna split off because she is MUCH faster than us and could arrive at Lunch Lake campground faster by herself. We decided to split the group because we needed to secure a good campsite since the weather was turning nasty. As we gained elevation, the temperature dropped drastically. The light sprinkle of rain soon became a light sprinkle of snow, which became heavy snow. At first, I was happy, but as we continued, I felt miserable. We were cold and wet. The snow only fell harder and harder until we could barely see 100 feet in front of us. This really slowed us down. We were looking for a fork in the path. Miss Shanna said earlier to turn left once we saw two trees sandwiching a boulder. When we finally got to the boulder sandwich, I was so elated and more than a little relieved. A short and snow-covered spur trail led to an icy stone staircase that steeply plummeted down to the lakes. It was scary.
At one point, Dad almost slipped on the steps. While we were on the stairs, we saw a round lake and thought it was Lunch Lake. Unfortunately, it was a different lake, called Round Lake, and the one further away was Lunch Lake. When we reached Lunch Lake, we celebrated and took lots of pictures by the lakeshore, then we started looking for Miss Shanna. We looked for a while and couldn’t find her. At that point, we were pretty worried. Just as we started to put down our packs to search more diligently, she found us. We followed her to the campsite, and it was a great one. The trees blocked the strong wind and blowing snow. The ground also didn’t have any rocks, and pine needles cushioned the tent. After we set up our tent and unpacked our sleeping gear, Mom and I huddled together in the tent under our rumpl (not a spelling error) down blankets and my sleeping bag. We were sharing body heat because it was frigid and we were shivering. I would guess it was 20°F or less. While Mom and I huddled in the tent, Dad made dinner. Once it was ready, we hesitantly got out to eat. I didn’t eat much, and as soon as I could, I went to bed. Mom came to bed after me. A magical moment during the night was when Dad came back with water bottles filled with hot water for Mom and me to warm our sleeping bags (see camping tip below). We all went to sleep. That was the end of Day 1.
Camping tip: a sturdy plastic water bottle filled with hot water can keep you warm when you sleep with it in your sleeping bag. Remember when I said you should always check the weather before going on an adventure? Well, this is the moment. If we hadn’t checked the weather, we wouldn’t have had the water bottles to make the magical moment happen.
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