Olympic National Park
Hiddy Ho my good friends!
A few weeks ago, my human and I took a trip to the Hoh Rainforest in Olympic National Park. Now this isn't a tropical rainforest like the Amazon, but it is a typical forest found in the Pacific Northwest with plenty of pine trees. It gets A TON of rain during the year, so the trees grow big and tall. Plus there is moss on everything. Pretty much, if it doesn't move, it gets covered in moss.
Notice the moss on the tree.
My human and I hiked a pretty easy trail called The Spruce Nature Trail. This is a 1.2 mile long trail that crosses a lovely little creek, called Taft Creek, then loops through the forest and out to the Hoh River before turning back to the visitor center. There were areas with exposed tree roots on the trail which gave my human some troubles, but mostly it was easy enough for her. (Remember, she walks with this contraption called a walker. I like it because I can ride on the seat sometimes. FUN.)
There was one spot that was downhill and had lots of roots. My feline evilness came out and I tried to murder my human by wrapping my leash around her legs. But she got free and down the hill safely. In my defense, she was going entirely too slow! I am glad I failed however because she gave me salmon once we got back to the car. Have I mentioned I love salmon? Sooo very good!!!
The forest was beautiful and full of fallen logs for me to climb. It was late enough in the year that the river was low (the snow melt was gone), but still lovely.
Me crossing the boardwalk over the creek.
Exlporing a fallen log.
Sitt'en on a log, just sitt'en on a log.
The Hoh River.
More of the Hoh River. Notice how low it is.
We did learn something. There is a thing called a nurse log. These are logs that have fallen. The trees around them drop seeds on them and some of these seeds germinate on these fallen logs. Over time, these fallen logs, or nurse logs, rot away leaving behind the new trees which have lovely exposed root systems. Really cool to see.
You can see were the nurse log was. There is a space between the base of the tree and the ground. The nurse log has long since rotted away.
Pretty cool, huh?
When several trees grow on the same nurse log, they grow in a nice neat row. It looks like they were planted by a person. Very interesting to see.
Trees growing in a row. All of them started life on the same nurse log.
After the rainforest, we drove out to the beach area of the national park, an area called Beach 4. Now, to get to the beaches in this part of the country, you have to walk down steep paths or stairs. Beach 4 was over 130 steps down to the beach. Simple for me, but my human can't do that. However, Beach 4 has an overlook area she could get to. From that spot you can see the beach below and the Pacific Ocean. We sat there and watched a VERY beautiful sunset. Very nice and relaxing.
At the Beach 4 overlook. That ocean sure is big!
Me and my human at the overlook.
Those colors are breathtaking!
Overall, it was a lovely day with great weather, a lovely hike, a stunning sunset, and, of course, SALMON!!! We both liked the Hoh Rainforest and Beach 4 in Olympic National Park.
Till next time, have a great day and keep wandering. You never know what you will discover!
A few weeks ago, my human and I took a trip to the Hoh Rainforest in Olympic National Park. Now this isn't a tropical rainforest like the Amazon, but it is a typical forest found in the Pacific Northwest with plenty of pine trees. It gets A TON of rain during the year, so the trees grow big and tall. Plus there is moss on everything. Pretty much, if it doesn't move, it gets covered in moss.
My human and I hiked a pretty easy trail called The Spruce Nature Trail. This is a 1.2 mile long trail that crosses a lovely little creek, called Taft Creek, then loops through the forest and out to the Hoh River before turning back to the visitor center. There were areas with exposed tree roots on the trail which gave my human some troubles, but mostly it was easy enough for her. (Remember, she walks with this contraption called a walker. I like it because I can ride on the seat sometimes. FUN.)
There was one spot that was downhill and had lots of roots. My feline evilness came out and I tried to murder my human by wrapping my leash around her legs. But she got free and down the hill safely. In my defense, she was going entirely too slow! I am glad I failed however because she gave me salmon once we got back to the car. Have I mentioned I love salmon? Sooo very good!!!
The forest was beautiful and full of fallen logs for me to climb. It was late enough in the year that the river was low (the snow melt was gone), but still lovely.
The trail crossing Taft Creek.
Notice the nice mushrooms on the side of this log. Those things were strong! I stepped on them and they didn't give at all. Amazing!
We did learn something. There is a thing called a nurse log. These are logs that have fallen. The trees around them drop seeds on them and some of these seeds germinate on these fallen logs. Over time, these fallen logs, or nurse logs, rot away leaving behind the new trees which have lovely exposed root systems. Really cool to see.
Here is one where the nurse log hasn't rotted away yet.
When several trees grow on the same nurse log, they grow in a nice neat row. It looks like they were planted by a person. Very interesting to see.
After the rainforest, we drove out to the beach area of the national park, an area called Beach 4. Now, to get to the beaches in this part of the country, you have to walk down steep paths or stairs. Beach 4 was over 130 steps down to the beach. Simple for me, but my human can't do that. However, Beach 4 has an overlook area she could get to. From that spot you can see the beach below and the Pacific Ocean. We sat there and watched a VERY beautiful sunset. Very nice and relaxing.
Look at that glimmer on the water. Wow!
Those colors are breathtaking!Overall, it was a lovely day with great weather, a lovely hike, a stunning sunset, and, of course, SALMON!!! We both liked the Hoh Rainforest and Beach 4 in Olympic National Park.
Till next time, have a great day and keep wandering. You never know what you will discover!
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