Parking
Follow South Shore Road to Graves Creek Road and continue to the road end at Graves Creek Trailhead. Start across the high footbridge over Graves Creek and follow signs for the East Fork Quinault River Trail.
Overview
About Pony Bridge Trail
Why go
- A striking river gorge and bridge reached before the long backcountry miles.
- A manageable day hike into the East Fork rainforest without the Enchanted Valley backpack.
Heads up
- The steep return climb and loose, sometimes slippery footing make five miles feel like more.
Pony Bridge crosses above a narrow, deep gorge. Look down the bend for small feeder streams cascading into the East Fork, with rapids and calmer pools below. This is the natural turnaround for a day hike. Take a moment on the bridge, then start back before the climb out feels like a surprise. For a photo, keep both the water and the steep gorge walls in the frame; they show the depth that a bridge-only shot misses.
Parkwolf’s verdictPony Bridge is the payoffMap & elevation
The route
Loading the Olympic map
Full mapElevation679–1,352 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 Pony Bridge 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
Graves Creek: Pony Bridge or Enchanted Valley0:00 / 0:25
“You're nearing Graves Creek Trailhead, where the route to Enchanted Valley begins.”
Plays as you drive up to this trailhead in the Parkwolf Olympic Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- Graves Creek Campground and the River Meadow
- The Wolves Olympic Lost
- The Bat’s Feeding Buzz
- North Fork Quinault: Camp or River Walk
- 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 Pony Bridge Trail
A good day hike into the East ForkPony Bridge Trail is about a 5-mile out-and-back from Graves Creek Trailhead to Pony Bridge,…
Pony Bridge Trail is about a 5-mile out-and-back from Graves Creek Trailhead to Pony Bridge, then back the same way. Allow about three hours. The climb adds up to roughly 1,000 feet, so this feels like a proper hike rather than a flat river walk. It’s a good choice if you want a taste of the East Fork Quinault rainforest without making the long backpack to Enchanted Valley.
The old road grade and the saddleFrom the road-end trailhead, cross the high footbridge over Graves Creek and stay with the East…
From the road-end trailhead, cross the high footbridge over Graves Creek and stay with the East Fork Quinault River Trail at the early junction; Graves Creek Primitive Trail branches off. The East Fork route follows an old road grade through forest, climbing about 500 feet to a low saddle before dropping steeply toward the river. The last half-mile narrows. Expect uneven rock, compacted and loose gravel, and exposed roots; loose gravel can be slick after rain. You’ll climb back up that steep section on the return.
Staying beyond the bridgeThree small campsites sit just north of the bridge, and there’s a pit toilet there.
Three small campsites sit just north of the bridge, and there’s a pit toilet there. Overnight trips need a wilderness camping permit, and food, garbage, and scented items must be secured in a bear canister. The East Fork and its tributaries are the water sources, so filter, boil, or chemically treat anything collected for drinking. Dogs aren’t allowed on this park wilderness trail. The East Fork route continues onward toward Enchanted Valley, but that’s a much longer backcountry trip.
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.
