Last year Terry and I went for a quick hike the morning before the Super Bowl. This year the weather was awesome so we did it again.

He wanted something short and strenuous so Storm King fit the bill perfectly. He had never been up this trail before so he was in for a treat.

We set off from the trail head at about 8:30. The air was cold and the sun wasn’t showing through the clouds yet. We prefer it cool like this for the tougher hikes; it’s easier to breathe and you don’t overheat as much. The only thing is that once you sweat, you chill so much colder.

The trail up to Storm King cuts off of the Marymere Falls trail and immediately starts at a heck of a grade. The 1st 1/3 of a mile or so always seems to be the worst. You aren’t properly warmed up yet, there are large root wads you must climb up and over. Soon, however, you warm up, your legs get into the swing of things and you settle in to the rhythm of the climb.

It’s a short climb but a steep one. We took our time, not wanting to burn out too quickly and before long we reached the warning sign:

Proceed at your own peril

We took a quick photo break and then pushed on.

A hundred yards past the sign is the first of the ropes. It’s not truly steep enough to really need them, but it’s  reassuring to have it with the sheer drop off to either side of you.

Hang on

There are a couple more short sections with ropes to assist you and then a final, longer rope ending in a fork in the trail. Here is where most people take a left, make their way over the little ridge and enjoy the spectacular view that awaits.

Lake Crescent

From here you can see Canada to the North, the parking lot 2000 feet below and Lake Crescent in its’ entirety. From the parking lot to this point is only around 2.25 miles, but because it’s so steep and all switchbacks, you don’t really travel that far from your starting point. From the parking lot if you scan to the left you can see Marymere Falls through a clearing in the trees. It’s a nice, short, mostly flat walk to the falls if you take a left once you reach the bottom of the Storm King Trail. It’s a nice cool down for your legs after making the 2 mile descent straight down the hill.

We took our time coming down. When you tear your eyes away from the amazing views you can discover an amazing little world in the details just off the trail.

Snow and plants

Thorny Stem

Album of the Trip

Map Of Storm King showing elevation and other stats

The end of August is normally a great time to do The High Divide, but this year, our winter was so late, (we had snow in May), that it made for a really interesting trip.

We started out at about 9:00 and decided to go up the Heart Lake side first, knocking out the 5 mile section following the river. It was just a routine hike, gradually working our way up through the old growth fir and blueberry patches which were just about prime for the picking. There wasn’t much wildlife to be seen, but there were plenty of other hikers coming down from up above.

At the Sol Duc Campground we came across 4 mountain goats grazing near a group of tent that were set up. They let us get within 20 feet of them before strolling off. We walked a short ways away to refuel ourselves with some carbs before tackling the rocky stair case up to Heart Lake.

Shortly after the Sol Duc River campground we came across a marshy pond with some nearby peaks in the back ground. Gene wanted a picture so we stopped. Upon stepping off the trail we saw about 5 frogs jumping out of our way and into the pond. They were all over the place, probably a couple hundred lined the pool and everywhere you stepped they scramble to get out of the way. I believe that they were Cascades Frogs. Gene said that this is just a great big orgy pool for them.

Checking out the frogs

The approach to Heart Lake is a killer. If you aren’t used to it or aren’t prepared, it can really take you by surprise. Large rocky steps prevent you from half-stepping, forcing you to step all the way up or not at all. It’s something else.

Heart Lake outlet

Before long, though, you come up over a rise and there lies the lake, snow-fed and ice cold. Step over to the stream and splash your face, it feels awesome. From this level you cant see what gives the lake its name, but continue up the trail and looking down from above it’s obvious: It’s shaped like a heart.

It was above the lake that we  got the first taste of snow. climbing hils in the snow is bad enough, but this snow was melting just enough to make the first inch on the top soft and almost slushy. The going was slow and aggravating and we had at least 2 miles of this to look forward to.

Snow going

The divide itself is the apex of this hike. Running east-west it divides the Hoh and Sol Duc watersheds. Looking south you see Mt. Olympus and the mighty Blue Glacier. It’s truly amazing.

Mt Olympus

Finally after trudging through the snow we reached the top of the divide; It was all downhill from here. Past the spur to the top of Bogachiel Peak and past the junction to Hoh Lake you come to one heck of a series of switchbacks. There’s only about 3 of them but it’s steep as heck. Today it was covered with snow as well. Jerry, being the lightweight agile fellow that he is took off across the snow field and was at the first switchback when suddenly we heard a couple choice words from Gene along with the sound of canvas sliding on snow. I looked up and there he was, sliding down the hill, snow was flying to the sides of him like a Bayliner plowing through the water.

There was a moment of  ”Oh shit!”, but I quickly realized that he would reach the trail below if he kept going. He kept going. Jerry shouted out, “That’s one way to cut out the switchbacks”. I couldn’t think of anything funny to say, so I just watched helplessly, wishing I could have gotten this on film.

Here's the snow bank gene slid down

Well, he finally caught a tree and was hanging there about 3 or 4 feet over the trail below. We heard a whimper come from somewhere down below. Gene said it was a marmot, but we couldn’t be certain.

Once he regained his composure, took a mental inventory of his limbs and other assorted body parts that he might have left behind, we continued.  The only casualty was his sunglasses. There was no finding them in the thick brush and he decided to leave them behind.

Most of the remainder of the trail was clear. There were patches of snow above Deer Lake, however. Going downhill on the snow is MUCH more enjoyable than climbing it. We were running and sliding and having a good ol’ time when suddenly, we rounded a corner and there was a shapely young lady in a bikini up in the snow getting some sun. Naturally, when faced with the unexpected up in the mountains, all trace of suaveness escapes you and the best you can do is “Uh, hi.” Gene managed to get out a “Just do your thing…” and we continued on hurriedly.

The remainder of the trip was uneventful. We stopped at Deer Lake to refill some water bottles and then tackled the final stretch: about 3 miles down a rocky trail, picking our way over rocks and boulder that look like they’d be more at home on a river bottom. Gene, not used to this sort of thing was getting angry at the rocks. I could see it in his face, he HATED them. He swore that a few of them reached up through his boot and punctured the soles of his feet. We had to stop occasionally to let him calm himself.

Before long, though, we reached the falls and the throng of tourists ever present there, and quickly covered the last mile to the truck. Those beers tasted wonderful.

Full Album of the trip

High above the Sol Duc Valley, between Deer Lake and Mink Lake lies a small isolated lake aptly labeled Hidden Lake.

I had noticed it on the maps for some time but I had never heard of anyone going there.  I decided I would. From what I could gather from the maps, it was about 2000 feet off the trail; a little bushwhacking would be in order, but I didn’t think it would be that tough. I wondered why there wasn’t a trail cut to it. I would soon find out why.

I started out later than I would have liked, but it didn’t make a difference in the end. On the trail at 9:00 I reached Sol Duc Falls in no time and then began my ascent to the Canyon Creek bridge where I would leave the main trail and cut across the hillside to the lake.

I knew from studying the topo maps that I needed to work my way uphill, however, shortly into the off-trail trip I came across a rather deep and imposing stone cliffed canyon. I couldn’t tell where it ended on the uphill side so I started working my way down. Before long, it became shallow enough to cross safely and I continued on.

This was some steep terrain. My left foot was constantly a foot above my right on the hill. There were fallen trees, tangled branches and shrubs and stone cliffs rising above and below me. As hard as I tried to work my way uphill, the terrain kept pushing me back down. It was some rough going.

Coming around a bend I see a huge rock outcropping. I knew I was getting close to the finish because I could hear Hidden Creek on the other side of it, so I had to choose between going around the rock and following the creek up or figuring out a way up the hill on this side of the rock. I opted to climb the rock field on this side of it. It was steep and loose going but before long I was up on top looking back down at where I just was. Up here, the blueberry bushes are thick. In a couple months it will be so chock full of fruit I’m sure you’ll have to wrestle a bear to get your share.

I worked up that ridge and there was a toad in the middle of my path. He just sat there and let me pass, he barely moved.

Coming up over the rise, I saw the lake. Finally. It’s a small forest lake fed by an ice cold stream on its’ south side. It’s not that deep, but I’m sure there’s at least a couple trout in there. The southern shore is marshy and soft, carpeted by low white flowers. I asked around and finally, someone at The Survival Podcast identified it as Elkslip Marsh Marigold. Cool, thanks.

Working my way around the lake, I found a nice little campsite between two forks of the stream that feeds the lake. There’s a fire pit and a flat spot just big enough for a small tent. I want to come back here later in the summer.

On the other side of the lake, the open side, I pushed my way along the shore through tons of huckleberry bushes. They were blooming so thickly that once they start producing berries, you won’t be able to walk through the area without making juice. I really want to get back up here when they’re ripe. I wouldn’t be surprised to see a bear or two here when the berries are in season.

By now I had explored all around the lake and decided to head back. I was at a loss. I didn’t want to retrace my steps just because of the difficulty I had with it on my way up. I checked the map and saw a sort of shelf above my original route so I made for that. Before long, however, I ran into another outcropping barring my way… my options were straight up or straight down. I opted for down. I knew I could intersect my old path and then make a decision on how to proceed then. There was just one problem: It was uncomfortably steep. I knew I could scoot or slide down the hill, but if I lost control it would be bad news. Luckily I had a hundred feet of paracord in my pack. I wrapped it around my waist, the other end around a tree and then started picking my way down, letting the cord support me if I started to slip. Douled up, I could on make it about 50 feet before having to re-rig it around another tree. I did this about 7 or 8 times before a familiar sight appeared. I had only made it as far as that huge outcropping below the lake.

Now at the site of my original path I decided “screw it, I’m just making a bee-line to the Sol Duc”. I could hear it below and according to the topo map it was just another 700 vertical feet to the Lovers Lane trail.

The remainder of the descent was relatively uneventful. The forest thickened a bit and it reminded me of my youth; out there running around the hillsides jumping from fallen logs to the bushes below, scrambling over, under and around giant wind fell old growth and sword ferns. Before long the Sol Duc came into view. I was pouring sweat and having too good a time running down this hill, but I made it to the trail, dropped my pack, readjusted my clothes and drank almost the rest of my water.

I had 2 32oz bottles that I started with. I had emptied ne by the time I reached the lake and I drank my fill and refilled both bottles at the stream above the lake. I know, I know. Never drink wild water without purifying it first, and I’ve always been religious about that, but this stream was soooo nice, I couldn’t pass it up. Besides, I could afford to lose a little weight… heh heh. Giardia: The ultimate diet plan

Back on the established trail I made quick time to the falls and then back to the car at the trailhead.  It was one heck of a journey, and according to my GPS, I had gone less than 5 miles. It was a slow and rough 5 miles, but I’m sure I’ll do it again in the near future.

Trimble Outdoors Path and Stats From the Trip Up

Trimble Outdoors Path and Stats From the Trip Down

Google Earth File (From the graphic above)