Winter access follows the road
Hurricane Ridge Road controls access to the overlook. In winter, the road follows a weather-dependent schedule and vehicles must carry tire chains. Check the park's current road status before driving up.
Overview
About Water Journey Overlook
Why stop
- A short path reaches a mountain view from the Hurricane Ridge drive.
Heads up
- Fog can hide the distant Strait and island views.
Map
Where it is
Loading the Olympic map
Full mapPlan your stop
Before you go
Winter access follows the road
6 active Olympic alerts
- InfoNo potable water at Hurricane RidgeMentions Hurricane Ridge, referenced in this guideNo potable water is available at Hurricane Ridge; bring your own drinking water.Official details
- CautionUS 101 Hoh River Bridge reduced to one laneUS 101 at the Hoh River Bridge is restricted to one lane of alternating traffic; obey the signals and 25 mph speed limit.Official details
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Olympic Tour Guide
Your drive to Water Journey Overlook, narrated.
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Olympic National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
See the Olympic audio tourRecorded for this place
North Peninsula Overlook: A Quick Valley View0:00 / 0:17
“North Peninsula Overlook is coming up, with a short paved path to a view across the forested valley toward the Strait of Juan de Fuca. Stop if the distant view is clear; fog can hide the water.”
Plays as you drive up to Water Journey Overlook in the Parkwolf Olympic Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- The Goats That Flew Out
- The Patterns in a Rotting Log
- The Motorcycle That Pulled Skiers
- Morse Creek Overlook: The Vanished Lake
- 204 audio storiesacross Olympic’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor Olympic Marmot, Humpback Whale, Grey Whale, and 13 more
- Works offlinemaps, 148 trails, 94 places, and audio download before you lose signal
- CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Guide
More about Water Journey Overlook
A quick view on the way upWater Journey Overlook is a small viewpoint reached by a short path from Hurricane Ridge Road,…
Water Journey Overlook is a small viewpoint reached by a short path from Hurricane Ridge Road, on the drive from Port Angeles toward Hurricane Ridge. The trail leads to an Olympic Mountains view; on clear days visitors also report seeing across the Strait of Juan de Fuca toward Vancouver Island. Treat it as a brief stop on the way up, not a substitute for the larger mountain panorama farther along the road.
Follow the short pathThe view opens from a small trail off the roadside pullout.
The view opens from a small trail off the roadside pullout. Frame the valley between its forested ridges to show the depth of the scene. Fog and low clouds can hide the Strait and distant land, so this is a better stop when visibility is open than when you are counting on the far view.
Wildlife
Wildlife in Olympic
710 sightingsOlympic MarmotMost seen around 11 AMSighting map
30 sightingsHumpback WhaleMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
42 sightingsGrey WhaleMost seen around noonSighting map
23 sightingsMountain LionMost seen around 8 PMSighting map
71 sightingsMountain GoatMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
306 sightingsBald EagleMost seen around 11 AMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Olympic. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
