Hurricane Ridge, Olympic National Park, Washington, USA

Hurricane Ridge in the Olympic National Park, Washington, USA, is named for the often-powerful winds that blow across the Olympic Mountain Range’s backbone (panorama)

 
Hurricane Ridge is a mountainous area in Olympic National Park in northwestern Washington State, about an hour’s drive from Port Angeles on the Olympic Peninsula on the Strait of Juan de Fuca. At an elevation of 5,242 feet (1,598 meters), Hurricane Ridge can be accessed year-round. In the summer there are hiking trails, although in early July we found several trails closed due to snow on the trails. The trails offer spectacular views (see photographs, below). In the winter, downhill skiing is offered at the family oriented hurricane Ridge Ski and Snowboard Area
 

Looking east with the Strait of Juan de Fuca barely visible on the left (north) side of the photograph

 
The Olympic Peninsula contains coast, forest, and mountain ecosystems that combine to create a spectacular wilderness area. The Olympic Peninsula is home to eight Native American tribes that developed complex hunter-gatherer societies and continue to keep their traditions alive. European explorers who ventured here in the late 1700s heralded the way for homesteaders. The Olympics were set aside as a national monument in 1909 and further protected as Olympic National Park in 1938. Today the park is internationally recognized as a Biosphere Reserve and World Heritage Site, testimony to the rich resources of the region.
 

Rolling hills in front of the mountain ridge of snow-capped peaks

Purple wild lupine on one of the hiking trails on Hurricane Ridge

A view from one of the hiking trail summits at Hurricane Ridge

Snow-capped peaks nicely framed by the tall conifers on Hurricane Ridge

One of several deer roaming the meadows

The lupines in the meadow provided quite a contrast with the snow-capped peaks above the timberline at Hurricane Ridge