Day Hike - Spruce Railroad Trail and Sol Duc Falls Loop

Meet at 10 AM Saturday at the Log Cabin Resort, 3183 E Beach Road, on the north side of Lake Crescent, about 45 minutes west of Port Angeles, reached by driving west on US 101 from Port Angeles and turning right on East Beach Road, shortly before reaching Lake Crescent.

From the Log Cabin Resort, where there are public restrooms, we will drive the short distance on East Beach Road to the east trailhead for Spruce Railroad Trail, where we begin hiking.  This is part of the new Olympic Discovery Trail, parts of which are still under construction.  When completed, it will allow hiking from Port Townsend to La Push, on the Olympic Coast.  We will do a 5.2 mile loop, entirely along the shore of Lake Crescent, passing through an historic railroad tunnel at one point and past the Devil's Punchbowl at another point, where cliff divers can often be seen.  We will have a trail lunch at a picnic table near a restroom at the end of the hike and then drive back to US 101, where we head west past Lake Crescent to the Sol Duc Hotsprings Road, where we turn left, show a National Park Pass for each car at the toll booth and then continue 11 miles up the road to Sol Duc Resort and campground. 

On Sunday we will do an easy hike through a rain forest on the Sol Duc Falls Loop trail, stopping for a trail lunch at beautiful Sol Duc Falls and ending at Sol Duc Hot Springs Resort, where we can soothe sore muscles in the hot springs pools for a small fee.

Check with the leader for a convenient group camping opportunity on Saturday night.