On Top of the Olympic Peninsula

After exploring a temperate rainforest and some Pacific Ocean beaches, we leave Forks and head to Sequim for 4 nights to view Mt. Olympus and enjoy the northern shores of the Olympic Peninsula.

We follow Highway 101 north out of Forks. At Sappho the Highway heads east.

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Nestled in the northern foothills of the Olympic Mountains is Crescent Lake. We catch our first glimpse of its brilliant blue waters through the fir trees and below the shadow of the mountains.

Crescent Lake was formed during the last Ice Age when glaciers carved out deep valleys. Approximately 8,000 years ago, a giant landslide from one of the Olympic Mountains damned a creek and filled this valley with water. (en.m.wikipedia.org)

The lake’s brilliance and clarity is due to the lack of nitrogen in the water which inhibits the growth of algae. (en.m.wikipedia.org)

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Port Angeles is the largest city on the Olympic Peninsula and is located on the Strait of Juan de Fuca.

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And finally we arrive at Rainbow’s End in Sequim, our home for the next 4 nights.

Located in the rain shadow of the Olympic Mountains in the Dungeness Valley, Sequim is one of the driest cities in western Washington and boasts 300 days of sunshine annually. (Olympic Peninsula Summer Visitors Guide 2019)

A rain shadow is the dry area on the downwind (leeward) side of a mountain. As wind and moist air are drawn upward by the prevailing winds, the air condenses and precipitates as it moves across the top of the windward side. The air then advances over the mountain without much moisture left and creates a drier side called a rain shadow. (en.m.wikipedia.org)