Olympic National Park, WA
A steep ridge climb opens to alpine lakes and far-reaching views.
Overview
Map & elevation
Plan your hike
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Olympic Tour Guide
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 tourMore stories near here in the app
“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!!!!”
Trail guide
Happy Lake Ridge is a primitive mountain route from Olympic Hot Springs Road to the Boulder Lake side trail. The mapped line is about 9.2 miles; the park lists 9.5 miles, which fits this one-way traverse. It climbs through forest and subalpine meadows before crossing an open ridge. Allow about 9 to 11 hours for the full line, or plan to camp; this is not a loop.
The climb to Happy Lake makes a more practical day hike. The lake spur branches off about 5.8 miles into the ridge route, then drops roughly 400 feet over a half mile to the grassy shore. Going down and back adds about a mile, and returning to the road makes the day roughly 12.6 miles. The lake is also a natural place to refill after the early creek.
The trail gains steeply through forest for about three miles to the ridge crest near 4,500 feet. It then opens up: a viewpoint around mile 4.8 looks over the Elwha Valley toward Mount Appleton and Mount Angeles. Expect more climbing and descending along the ridge rather than a level walk once the big climb is behind you.
Past Happy Lake, the views reach toward the Strait of Juan de Fuca, Mount Olympus, and the Bailey Range. Around mile 8.3, the route meets the Aurora Divide junction; the westward line continues through rolling ridge terrain toward Boulder Peak and Boulder Lake. A steep descent drops about 500 feet to the Boulder Lake side trail, the end of this mapped route.
Water is sparse along the ridge. A small creek early in the climb is the last reliable source before Happy Lake; fill there and treat water from lakes or streams. The tread is primitive, and map-and-compass skills may be useful where the trail is hard to follow. Snow can cover the high sections in any season; July through October is the usual hiking window.
There are no toilets along the trail. Overnight camping requires a wilderness permit and bear canisters, and campfires are prohibited above 3,500 feet. Pets are not allowed on this route. If you camp, use established sites or bare ground well away from water and vegetation.
Wildlife
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.
Keep exploring
ChallengingHappy Lake Trail9.6 mi · 9 hr · At the trailheadA steep ridge climb drops to a grassy alpine lakeshore.
ModerateSmokey Bottom Trail3.8 mi · 2.5 hr · 1.8 mi awayFollow the Elwha restoration story into the former Lake Mills valley.
ModerateSmokey Hill Trail0.8 mi · 1.3 hr · 1.9 mi awayA short, steep drop into the Elwha, with the same climb back.
ChallengingElwha River Trail to Lake Margaret55.4 mi · 1.2 days · 2.3 mi awayLong Elwha wilderness trek to Lake Margaret with a required river ford.
ModerateHumes Ranch and Geyser Valley Loop6 mi · 4 hr · 2.3 mi awayRiver flats, canyon forest and a 1905 homestead on one loop.
ModerateGoblins Gate Trail3.6 mi · 2 hr · 2.3 mi awayA steep canyon spur drops to the Elwha’s narrow rocky gate.
ModerateLillian River Trail13 mi · 8.5 hr · 2.3 mi awayA 13-mile forest hike to the quiet banks of Lillian River.
ChallengingElwha to Hurricane Hill Trail11.6 mi · 12 hr · 2.7 mi awayA hard forest climb opens into meadows with Bailey Range views.
Sight · 1.8 mi awayGlines Canyon Dam OverlookThe reservoir is gone; the river now runs through its canyon.
Sight · 2.9 mi awayOlympic Hot SpringsA long Elwha Valley walk or bike-and-hike to hot springs.
Sight · 4.4 mi awayMadison FallsA short Elwha Valley walk ends below a 60-foot waterfall.
Picnic area · 5.3 mi awayHurricane Hill Picnic Areas A and BA summer picnic stop with mountain views along Hurricane Hill Road.
Sight · 5.9 mi awayHurricane RidgeBailey Range views from the road-end meadow.
Sight · 6 mi awayCirque Rim OverlookA quick paved walk to broad views across the Strait.
Sight · 8.6 mi awayElwha Dam Interpretive SiteA compact pavilion tells the story of the Elwha's dam removal.
Sight · 8.8 mi awayMarymere FallsA mossy old-growth walk ends at a two-level waterfall view.Parkwolf’s Olympic ranking
The audio tour guide for the drive, plus offline maps, trails, and wildlife heatmaps for when the signal drops.
