Olympic National Park

(Kalaloch Beach)

(on the road to Kalaloch from Quinault)

(Lake Quinault Lodge)

(rainforest walk)

Out of the five days we spend in Seabrook, we went to the Olympic National Park twice. And I feel like I barely scratched the surface. We entered in from the southern part, and went to Lake Quinault, to Kalaloch Beach, and on a Rainforest Walk just a mile away from Lake Quinault. I know there are lots of options of places to stay within the park itself, but there was something really nice about going back to our sweet little town, that didn't have RVs around. The Lake Quinault Lodge is a beautiful wooden structure from 1924, with a swimming area and dock, and boats you can rent, and you don't have to stay there to take advantage of these activities. We parked the car in their lot (free), got lunch from the Quinault Mercantile, a general store/cafe across the street (the restaurant at the lodge seemed mismanaged and unappetizing), and then went for a swim and a row-boat ride. Afterwards we had huckleberry ice cream back at the general store. A 5 minute drive further north brings you to "the world's largest spruce tree" which is definitely worth a look, and a 5 minute drive the other direction brings you to a lovely rainforest walk, which takes about 30 minutes tops, and that's with some lollygagging kids and adults. On another day we brought a picnic and went to Kalaloch, a lovely beach filled with driftwood. I think we could have stopped anywhere along the way and been blown away by the beauty. It's just that kind of place--everything you see is so spectacular, and it is surprisingly lacking in tourism.

(Quinault Mercantile--the general store)