Parking
Access the east end from Camp David Jr. Road at its dead end, where the extension meets the Spruce Railroad Trail. The west ODT junction is a through-route connection, so plan onward transport before starting.
Overview
About Olympic Discovery Trail — Lake Crescent West
Why go
- Wide paved surface is wheelchair accessible.
- Follows the wooded north shore of Lake Crescent.
- A useful one-way link onto the broader ODT.
Heads up
- Point-to-point logistics require a pickup or a 13-mile return walk.
- The pavement is shared with cyclists and horses.
Map & elevation
The route
Loading the Olympic map
Full mapElevation665–1,189 ft
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
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 Olympic Discovery Trail — Lake Crescent West, 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
Olympic Discovery Trail: The Westward Link0:00 / 0:22
“You're nearing the Olympic Discovery Trail access at the end of Camp David Junior Road. It's a paved, wheelchair-accessible route through the woods, shared with cyclists and horses.”
Plays as you drive up to this trailhead in the Parkwolf Olympic Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- Lake Crescent North Shore: A Picnic by the Dock
- Pyramid Peak: The Wartime Lookout Climb
- Aurora Creek: A Steep Forest Climb
- La Poel: A Wooded Lake Crescent Picnic
- 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 Olympic Discovery Trail — Lake Crescent West
The westward linkThis is the 6.
This is the 6.5-mile paved point-to-point leg of the Olympic Discovery Trail along Lake Crescent’s north shore. It starts at the Camp David Jr. Road dead end, where it meets the separate Spruce Railroad Trail, then runs west through a wooded corridor to the ODT’s western junction near US 101. The pavement is wheelchair accessible, and walkers share it with cyclists and horses.
Make your return planThis is one way, not a loop.
This is one way, not a loop. Without a ride at the west end, retracing the extension makes a 13-mile day. The west end joins the broader ODT network, so arrange a pickup or onward route before you start. From East Beach, reach the extension by following the separate Spruce Railroad Trail west for four miles first.
On the old railroad gradeThis north-shore ODT corridor follows the historic Spruce Railroad grade.
This north-shore ODT corridor follows the historic Spruce Railroad grade. The line was built in 1918 to haul aircraft-quality Sitka spruce for World War I biplanes, but the war ended before local mills processed the wood for that use. It later carried freight and logs before being abandoned in 1951. The restored tunnels are east on the separate Spruce Railroad Trail; they aren’t part of this westward extension.
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.
