After visiting the Hoh Rain Forest in Olympic National Park, we decided to stop by Forks to do some…read moreTwilight stuff. We wanted to check out "Bella's" trucks out front so went to the Visitor Center to do that. It is a really small space, but the people who work there are really sweet. They had us fill out a guest book to know where we were from and what brought us to town. There were fun maps with pins for people to pin where they were from and they were FILLED. There was a small all-gender restroom with a huge line when we went in. They also sell some Twilight merch. They had maps of the area. It was also next to a timber museum. It was a cute and quick stop.

For my trip to Olympic National Park, I decided to stay in Forks. After completing the first leg of…read moremy trip to Mount Rainier National Park, I began the long drive over to this part of Washington. When I arrived in Forks, I stopped by this visitor center first because I knew nothing about the town. Forks is the rainiest town in the contiguous United States. There was a nice staff on hand that was answering questions and handing out brochures and maps. The first thing that caught my eye was all of the Twilight gifts and memorabilia. I have never read the books or seen the movies. But the employees were telling me that the setting of the books is here in Forks. There were a number of super fans in the shop that made the trek all the way here to go on self-guided Twilight tours of the town. Out in front of the visitor center are a couple of red vehicles that were used in the movies. Each year, Forks holds an annual celebration honoring the Twilight movies. They also host a sasquatch festival. Here at the visitor center is the Forks Timber Museum and a nature trail. It is a nice area to walk around and explore. This visitor center was a nice place to stop at to get information about my next destination.

Very beautiful visitor center. It reopened in 2025 after being closed for renovations and I have to…read moresay, the architecture is GORGEOUS with vaulted ceilings and large windows to let in the surroundings. There's wood paneling which helps you feel immersed into nature. There's an informational desk about the area, helpful for visitors newish to the area or those with questions. The gift shop is also accessible with the usual offerings of post cards, tchotchkes, and such. Do note that the restrooms are accessible outdoors at the side of the building. There's a pay area part of the center which is $5/18+, $2.50/7-17, free for 6 years old or younger, and family $15 for 2 adults and children 7-17 years old. They also honor veteran's disabled pass, WA state disabled pass, and senior limited income pass. It's definitely worth the admission, since there's a lot of exhibits explaining the geology of the area, the flora and fauna, the native peoples, and the later commercial and recreational uses of the area. There's even a place where you can walk into a huge mock up of Mt St Helens! Very fun. They have a short film playing about the eruption too. I didn't get to explore much outside as it was super rainy, but I saw a boardwalk trail out in the back. I did not see Mt St Helens due to the weather, but I'll be back when the weather is nicer!

Just stopped in to get a map and road conditions. you can…read morepay a small fee and see the exhibits. Discounts for Washington Residents only.

Hurricane Ridge is one of the most visited areas in Olympic National Park. It has an elevation of…read moreover 5,000 ft and is about an 18 mile drive from Port Angeles. Hurricane Ridge is known for skiing, sledding, snowboarding and its many hiking trails. The mountain views from up here are just breathtaking. A lodge and visitor center stood here for 70 years. While preparing for renovation work, the building was completely destroyed by fire on May 7, 2023. Right now there is a temporary structure in its place that has working toilets. A ranger is on hand to give out paper maps and answer any questions for those that want to hike or explore the area. Sadly there is no food options or a gift shop here at Hurricane Ridge anymore. If you want to shop for gifts, you can visit the Olympic National Park Visitor Center in Port Angeles. They have set up a small table outside for those that want to stamp their National Park Passport books. The parking lot near the Hurricane Ridge Visitor Center is really spacious. You can also hop on a shuttle from Port Angeles for a couple bucks if you don't want to do the drive yourself. There are many trail options that range from easy to difficult for those that like to hike.

Very good spot . Visitor center has a cafe which serves good food . We got few stuff to eat and it…read morewas good . Especially the potato fries . Loved it . Few seats to sit and eat . Wish they had more seats . Lovely views from visitor center . Clothing / merchandise is very expensive. A hoodie costs about 52$ here ! Insane .. not a very good place to shop souvenirs.. parking can be tricky . Overall a good experience.

First and best place to stop along the way to Mt St Helens. Helicopter ride (2 person minimum)…read morestarting at $270 and a good restaurant are two things the other stops further up won't have.

Stopped by the Cowlitz Salmon Hatchery on our travels to stretch our legs. It ended up being a fun…read morelittle place to stop! They had a visitors center with an interactive salmon egg exhibit. Very cool! Clean restrooms as well. Outside they had the sign to the adult salmon collection, but when we got to the top, everything was closed up. However, they had jumping salmon over in the juvenile raceways! We saw quite a few. Plus this place is less than a mile off the highway!

Not that you want this secret released, but this is a quieter and less visited area of the rain…read moreforest to explore. Many go to Hoh and miss exploring this portion of the park. The ranger station is small, there are a couple of exhibits, but the staff here is amazing and will share the good spots many overlook by not spending time here. I didn't even cross another hiker as I explored this area which was refreshing in itself. Amazing experience!

I wrapped up my long trip to Olympic National Park in Quinault Valley. Quinault is located in the…read moresouthwestern area of the park. I had never been here before and the Wi-Fi isn't the greatest in this area. So I stopped here at the Quinault Rain Forest Ranger Station for some assistance on how to get to my next destination. The ranger on hand was very helpful and explained to me that there is a north and south road into Quinault. The visitor center itself isn't very large, but there are a few exhibits that you can check out that give information and history about the area. The Quinault Rain Forest is a temperate rain forest that is located in a valley formed by the Quinault River and Lake Quinault. Quinault Valley has a number of record size tree species and is also called the "Valley of the Rain Forest Giants". I stayed near the rain forest and enjoyed the hikes in the area and the views of the lake from my hotel. If you want to explore the area around the ranger station, check out the Maple Glade Rain Forest Trail. It is a short nature trail that features mature bigleaf maple trees. Just heads up, make sure you spray yourself with bug spray before you head out. The mosquitos were eating me alive on this trail. There is a restroom near the beginning of the trailhead. The Quinault Rain Forest Ranger Station is only open in the summer months. You can get your National Park Passport book stamped here.

We went on the Orcas Only tour in the 3 oclock time slot. The process to check in was smooth and…read moreeasy. A thing to note: parking right by their building is about $13. I believe there was street parking farther away, but we didn't look. TJ and Sophia were great hosts to us. Sophia was very knowledgeable and so willing to answer any questions we had. On the tour, we saw a grey whale from a ways a way. Orcas were being scarce today but we traveled near Seattle and pungent sound. They really went the extra mile to make sure we were able to see orcas as this was not close by. The pod had a NEW BABY! Such an exciting experience. Not only that, they were also having fun socializing and slapping their tails. Then we saw some glorious breaching. It was honestly such a great experience. We were in awe!

I've only experienced them through assistance through the booking process. Called and spoke with…read moreEthan twice cause I needed help. He was so hospitable! Can't thank him enough! If the rest of my experience is compared to how Ethan took care of us, I know we're going to have the best time!