The Excessive Divide Path within the Seven Lakes Basin of the Olympic Peninsula is without doubt one of the most coveted climbing and backpacking routes in Washington State.
Stuffed with unimaginable views of jagged Olympic peaks, verdant rainforests, and glistening alpine lakes, this 19-mile loop is usually accomplished as a 1 to 3-night backpacking journey, though some folks do full it as a day hike.
I hosted a Bearfoot Concept group journey on the Excessive Divide Path (additionally referred to as the Seven Lakes Basin Loop) and we spent 4 days tenting and exploring.
We began within the rainforest and ended up within the excessive alpine with clear views of the glaciers on Mount Olympus and unimaginable fall colours.
On this weblog submit, I recap our expertise backpacking the Excessive Divide and Seven Lakes Path and share vital data for anybody who’s contemplating backpacking this iconic Pacific Northwest path.
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Watch my YouTube Video highlighting our backpacking journey on Olympic Nationwide Park’s Excessive Divide Path and Seven Lakes Basin Loop:
VIDEO
The Excessive Divide & Seven Lakes Basin Loop Fundamentals
Distance: 19.1 milesProblem: ToughElevation Change : 5,387 ftTime wanted: 2-4 daysAllow Wanted? Sure, for overnights (extra information beneath)Cross wanted: Olympic Nationwide Park entrance payment or America the Beautiful Annual Pass Canines Allowed? NoFinest time to go: July – September
The Excessive Divide Path is positioned in Olympic National Park on the Olympic Peninsula of Washington.
The path begins on the Sol Duc River trailhead, which is positioned 3.5 hours drive from Seattle (through ferry or via Tacoma).
From there, the path winds its means up via dense, moss-draped forests and previous cascading waterfalls, finally reaching the alpine surroundings of the Excessive Divide, a mountainous ridge providing panoramic views.
The path then skirts the sting of the Seven Lakes Basin, a collection of pristine alpine lakes, earlier than looping again right down to the trailhead. This loop is called the Seven Lakes Basin Loop.
Excessive Divide & Seven Lakes Basin Loop Path Map
Planning Your Excessive Divide Path Backpacking Journey
When to Go
July to September is the preferred time for climbing the Excessive Divide/Seven Lakes Basin Loop.
We hiked in late September when the climate might be iffy with rain, however the fall colours have been definitely worth the danger.
Relying on the yr, snow may typically be discovered on the path till mid-July, plus the early season bugs might be brutal, so we don’t advocate climbing in Could or June.
Permits
A allow is required for spending the night time within the Seven Lakes Basin.
Listed below are a number of ideas for acquiring a Excessive Divide allow:
Permits can be found as much as six months prematurely through recreation.gov . Early registration is HIGHLY beneficial. Reservations for the summer time season, Could fifteenth via October fifteenth, turn out to be obtainable on April fifteenth at 7am PST . Permits are for particular campsites , so you’ll want to guide your whole websites when making your reservation. Select ‘Sol Duc’ when making your reservations
Tenting
In case you’re backpacking the Excessive Divide Path, observe these tenting guidelines:
Tenting is permitted in designated websites solely and it’s essential to camp in keeping with your allow. Campfires usually are not permitted above 3,500 ft . In case you’re tenting in an space that does enable fires, please keep in mind to have a safe campfire that leaves no trace .
Water Availability
Water from streams and lakes is available alongside the path. I like to recommend having a water reservoir in your backpack or carrying a number of soft water bottles .
Be certain that to filter water previous to ingesting.
Bear Canisters
Nationwide Park Service-approved bear canisters are required for storing meals, rubbish & scented objects in Olympic Nationwide Park.
The Wilderness Data Middle in Port Angeles has a restricted variety of bear canisters you’ll be able to borrow if wanted.
Bearfoot Concept Bear Canister Choose
Bear Vault The BV450 is our best choice for the Excessive Divide Path as a result of it simply shops 1-3 days’ price of meals with out being too cumbersome. It’s additionally see-through so that you don’t should go digging for what you need and it’s NPS-Licensed.
Human Waste
The Excessive Divide Path and Seven Lakes Basin are designated Wilderness and we need to hold them as pristine as attainable.
Please observe these guidelines and ideas when going #1 and #2:
Sol Duc Park, Coronary heart Lake, Lunch Lake, and Deer Lake campsites have vault bogs. To forestall them from filling up rapidly, please don’t urinate in them and solely use them for going #2. Urinate on rocks or on the path (at the least 200 ft from campsites & water sources) to forestall animals from digging up vegetation. In case you should go #2 on the path and usually are not close to a vault bathroom please follow Leave No Trace bathroom principles .
Excessive Divide Path Packing Listing
For an entire checklist of what to pack in your Excessive Divide & Seven Lakes Basin Loop journey, head over to our 3-Day Backpacking Checklist .
For moist climates just like the Pacific Northwest, you’ll need a number of further items of drugs to remain dry and comfy on the path, particularly for those who hike in late September when air temps are cooler and the possibility of rain is increased.
The factor to recollect is that in wet, humid climates, gear doesn’t dry . So for those who get soaked on day 1, you’re going to be moist your complete journey.
This may be prevented by planning forward and packing a number of further items of drugs.
Listed below are a number of objects particular to this route:
A map : For Olympic Nationwide Park we advocate the National Geographic Olympic National Park map .Neoprene gloves – I truly discovered this from a information in Alaska. If it begins to rain and it’s chilly out, my palms can get numbingly chilly. Neoprene gloves insulate when moist, so they’re an important climbing choice for individuals who get chilly palms.Trash bag – Whereas I’d nonetheless counsel a rain cowl, it’s additionally sensible to line your pack with a trash bag so it protects your gear from the rain. At a minimal, be certain your sleeping bag and night time garments are wrapped up in a trash bag.High quality Rain Gear – that is crucial factor you’ll want when backpacking in Olympic Nationwide Park. Take a look at our submit on the Best Rain Jackets for tips about getting a high quality rain jacket.Additional socks – Usually I hike with 2 pairs of hiking socks , plus one further pair that I hold in my sleeping bag always and solely put on to mattress. When climbing in a moist local weather, I often deliver an additional pair to hike in as effectively, simply in case my socks get further soggy.Digicam safety – in case you are bringing an costly digicam, ensure you deliver one thing to retailer it in. I prefer to deliver such a simple lightweight dry sack that I can throw my digicam in if it begins to rain.
Learn Extra
Backpacking Gear Guides
My Excessive Divide Path Backpacking Journey Report
Day 0
I name this “Day 0” as a result of that is the day we drove 3 hours from Seattle to a campsite close to the trailhead, so we might stand up early the subsequent day to start out the Excessive Divide Path.
In case you go away tremendous early from Seattle, you can skip tenting the night time earlier than.
We stopped for lunch at Crescent Lake, which is a good spot to stretch your legs.
Our group at Crescent Lake
After a cease on the Guests Middle the place we bought the lay of the land, we continued on to the Salmon Cascades within the Sol Duc River, the place boisterous salmon launched themselves up and over waterfalls as they make their method to their spawning grounds.
With loads of daylight left, we reached our night time’s base camp the place we’d be automobile tenting and doing a gear verify earlier than an early night time to mattress.
Getting ready to hit the path tomorrow
Day 1
Within the morning we packed up camp and drove up the highway to the Sol Duc Falls trailhead to start our 3D/2N Excessive Divide backpacking journey.
In the beginning of our trek!
Our first full day on the path was spent largely within the rainforest, with a objective of roughly 7 miles and a pair of,000 ft. of elevation achieve.
There have been big ferns, moss-covered timber, and the sound of the Sol Duc River dashing beneath.
Just below a mile in, we took a brief detour to Sol Duc Falls , which for most folk visiting the Park, is a vacation spot in itself.
A lot of the path this present day was a gradual incline. We crossed the river a number of occasions on actually cool log bridges, finally reaching a collection of switchbacks that dropped us off proper at our first Group Camp.
In Olympic Nationwide Park, all the campsites on the Excessive Divide Path are permitted, so it’s essential to keep at your designated campground.
On the Group Campgrounds, we had house to unfold out and, get this…. a clear bathroom for doing our #2 enterprise. I’ve to say, not having to dig a hole was a complete luxurious by our requirements.
We have been additionally subsequent to a close-by meadow that bought stunning afternoon solar, which allowed us to dry off any gear that was damp from the night time earlier than.
Our group campsite for Night time 1
Day 2
This was everybody’s favourite day on the path. After breakfast and packing up camp, we kicked off climbing at 9:30.
We had just a little extra climbing to do to achieve the Excessive Divide Path and shortly we transitioned out of the forest to above the treeline.
Our hike passed off in late September and I wasn’t certain what sort of fall colours we’d see on the path.
On the primary day within the rainforest, it was all inexperienced. However as we began to realize elevation and transition to alpine vegetation, the shorter vegetation and understory exploded in crimson, orange, and yellow, making a vibrant and attention-grabbing panorama.
That is additionally the place we noticed our first two black bears.
We’d see two extra later within the day, simply choosing away at berries on the hillside. It was clear they’d completely no real interest in us, which made our encounters a stand-out expertise from the journey.
After passing Coronary heart Lake, we made our last push to the ridgeline, in any other case generally known as the Excessive Divide and the Seven Lakes Basin.
This was actually the second we have been ready for.
It was nonetheless dry however the clouds have been beginning to roll in and we weren’t certain whether or not we have been going to get these views of Mount Olympus that make the Excessive Divide such an iconic Pacific Northwest Hike.
As quickly as we bought up on the Excessive Divide, Mount Olympus and a number of other glaciers got here to gentle sandwiched between clouds within the sky and low hangers that blanketed the Hoh Valley.
As we continued on, the views weren’t nearly Mount Olympus. On the north aspect of the ridge, we peered down into Seven Lakes Basin, a rocky bowl with seven colourful alpine lakes.
We spent a number of miles on the Excessive Divide with continuous views and simply as we turned again down in direction of Sol Duc, the fog thickened. Our timing couldn’t have been extra good.
The paranormal fog clogged our views on the way in which right down to our Group Camp at Deer Lake, however the fall colours made up for it.
That night, we had a much-needed stretch session, chowed down on a tasty home made pasta, and sat round and instructed tales with sizzling drinks till the rain began to fall.
Day 3
It rained all night time, nevertheless it wouldn’t be a correct Pacific Northwest backpacking journey with no little bit of rain.
Fortunately we have been all prepared with the right backpacking gear . We additionally all lined our backpacks with trash baggage for further waterproof safety.
Breakfast and low have been fast, then we donned our rain gear and hit the path.
Like Day 1, we have been again within the rainforest, however immediately we had a simple 4 miles again to the parking zone.
Regardless of the rain, we nonetheless had a blast on the path.
We revisited Sol Duc Falls one final time as we approached the parking zone for one final group photograph earlier than celebrating on the trailhead.
As soon as we have been again within the van, we head over to Sol Duc Scorching Springs for decent showers.
For many who have been hopping on a aircraft that night time, it was a welcome alternative to wash up. Simply make certain to deliver a clear, dry pair of garments and any toiletries.
We had one final picnic lunch earlier than making the three-hour drive again to Seattle.
And that’s our information to backpacking the Excessive Divide Path & Seven Lakes Basin Loop in Olympic Nationwide Park!
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Have you ever hiked the Excessive Divide Path or Seven Lakes Basin Loop in Washington? Is it in your bucket checklist? What questions do you continue to have? Depart a remark beneath!
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