The Hoh

Having three consecutive days off is nothing short of an anomaly - I knew that I'd have to do something really amazing to take advantage of the time off. So, my friend Brian and I set off for my first backpacking trip and first trip to the Hoh Rain Forest which is a part of Olympic Nat'al Park. After a three hour drive, we arrived and set out for an ambitious 9.1 mile hike to a campsite. I wish there was a word to describe the Hoh since amazing, beautiful, stunning, awesome just don't cover it. The forests have monstrous trees (spruce, maple, evergreen, cedar) that tower above you and are difficult to conceptualize. Most things are covered in moss and lush and green. Then there are meadows of pretty flowers and most of the hike we were hugging the edge of the Hoh River which is an icy glacial blue color - cold and refreshing. We encountered quite a few people with the same idea as us but after mile 5.7 it started to thin out. I think I did pretty good hiking that far and with a pack but I will say having all that wonderful scenery to gawk at along the way and an experienced and entertaining partner to walk it with, was a distraction from any discomforts, which were few. We camped at the Olympic Guard Station where around 5-6 other groups were camped. The only downfall was mosquitoes which were plentiful and on second thought we should have pitched the tent on the gravel bar which was mosquito-free, oh well.

The next morning we both felt energized after a night sleeping in the quiet peace of the woods and hauled it, unknowingly, back down the trail after mile 3 realized were were moving much more quickly than the previous day. I finally found a comforable position for my pack and it was feeling like an extension of my body. We decided that if we kept this pace we'd try to make it to the Sequim Lavendar Festival to get some good food on the way home. Although I was excited for whatever food awaited us, I started to feel a little nostalgic as we neared the end of the hike, not knowing when I'd come back to this wonderous place.

All credit goes to Brian for making the trip happen since all the gear was his, for being patient with me and for showing me the ways of backpacking (which is super easy as long as you have all the right gear and are prepared). Most importantly, Brian was enjoyable companion, since we all know doing certain things (such as being in a car for a long time, traveling, camping) require having the right company so you can fully enjoy the experience instead of worrying about getting along. Here's to more future awesome adventures that await me! P.S. in one of the photos (of forest), if you look closely, you can see Brian -- I thought this gave good perspective to help you imagine the size of the trees.