Olympic National Park/Rain Forest

 Rainier is the the standout national park in Washington while the Olympic NP stands out on the map in that upper left hand corner. While we've traveled in the vicinity it was never clear that we were really in the throes of a grand national park. 

    We circumnavigated the park this trip and made forays towards the interior. What was not evident before planning the trip, is this park is 95% wilderness. No road in that 95%, no lodge, no flush toilets, well you get the idea. While there are some intrusive roads from the edge, it's not the visitor-centric park we often expect.

I favor this idea, wilderness parks , even when I am unable to plunge in on my two pins. I was able to sample from the edges. It is much more a space for the species other than homo sapiens, where we visit on our own power. I had hoped to do that, but as we all know, currently-able doesn't mean always able. I injured a knee before the trip which severely limited my self-powered range. 

   The Northwest I'm familiar with is more lush than SoCal where I live now, but the temperate rainforest you see in these photos is as far the other side as my adopted home. I threw my hat out to compare the size of the leaves. I recall seeing tobacco and maybe these compare favorably.

 I expect every plant I see to be native to the park, but because they look good where I find them I've learned doesn't mean that's where they belong. I have an appreciation for the web of life that depends on native plants and the adapted wildlife including especially insects that depend on them.
   One ranger talk emphasized insects as wildlife and she met a resistant audience in appreciating her enthusiasm. No biters or stingers were in evidence either.

 Trees become giants and while not sequoia or redwoods, they tower thickly creating dense cover. When we need shade at home, I could use more of these in the neighborhood. In the Oly it was so cool I was often seeking the open for sunshine. 

 Arriving at camp in mid-morning has its perks and the locals who had most the campsites on the Elwah river said we scooped the best. We settled in to listen to the river sing and enjoy the peaceful environment. It was wonderful to rest my knee here in camp. No walking necessary.

  Our fellow campers were mostly from nearby Port Angeles or surrounding areas. This is an easy access park with wonderful serenity, why go any further? It doesn't stand out in the park map as a major attraction and that helps diminish the outsider traffic. The two dams on the river were newly removed and we observed the steel gray river looked like the glacier fed rivers of Alaska and so it is, though much of the silt was in the bottom of the upper dam for decades and is now wearing away. 

It's not poison oak, though the red color in July might suggest that first down in our country. Here it adds color to foliage, and far as I know, not to skin.

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