Parking
Use the Quinault Rain Forest Ranger Station parking area. The trail starts from the west end of the lot, across the ramp and bridge.
Overview
About Maple Glade Rain Forest Trail
Why go
- Moss-draped bigleaf maples, stream channels and a compact half-hour walk.
- Numbered interpretation leads to a memorable nurse-stump finale.
Heads up
- Raised roots, bridge edges and a 4-inch step interrupt the otherwise gentle tread.
- Parts may flood during the wet season.
Map & elevation
The route
Loading the Olympic map
Full mapElevation215–226 ft
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
Best time to go
Safety
6 active Olympic alerts
- 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
- ClosureStaircase wilderness trails and campsites remain closedWilderness trails and campsites around Staircase remain closed during recovery from the Bear Gulch Fire; the developed Staircase area, including the Rapids Loop, campground, and ranger station, is…Official details
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Olympic Tour Guide
Your drive to Maple Glade Rain Forest Trail, 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 trailhead
Quinault Ranger Station and Kestner Homestead0:00 / 0:32
“You're approaching Quinault Rain Forest Ranger Station, the starting point for a walk to Kestner Homestead. Choose this stop if you'd enjoy seeing how a farm fitted into the rainforest.”
Plays as you drive up to this trailhead in the Parkwolf Olympic Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- The Ants That Move Trilliums
- The Maple’s Spinning Seeds
- Kestner’s Rebuilt Barn
- Merriman Falls: A Roadside Cascade
- 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!!!!”
Trail guide
Hiking Maple Glade Rain Forest Trail
A quick rainforest loopMaple Glade is a gentle 0.
Maple Glade is a gentle 0.49-mile loop through mossy bigleaf maples and stream channels near Quinault Rain Forest Ranger Station. Allow about 30 minutes. It's a good pick for a short forest walk; Kestner Homestead is the longer continuation, not part of this loop.
Follow the numbered routeStart at the west end of the ranger-station parking area, take the ramp and bridge, then turn…
Start at the west end of the ranger-station parking area, take the ramp and bridge, then turn right at the first junction for Maple Glade's 13 marked stops. At the later Kestner Homestead junction, bear left to complete this loop. When you return to the first junction, go right to the parking area. The trail brochures are set out at the bottom of the ramp.
Look up at the maplesMosses and clubmosses drape the bigleaf maple branches, while the broad leaves filter the light…
Mosses and clubmosses drape the bigleaf maple branches, while the broad leaves filter the light overhead. The route crosses stream channels on short wooden bridges, with numbered stops explaining what is growing along the way.
Trees growing on treesOne of the final stops features a western hemlock growing from a rotted stump.
One of the final stops features a western hemlock growing from a rotted stump. Its trunk begins about 20 feet above the ground, where the tree first rooted; other roots run down the stump toward the soil. Fallen trees become nursery sites for another generation of conifers. This stump makes the trail's signature photo: frame it from below so the trunk appears to begin overhead.
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.
