North Fork Sol Duc Trail - 12.1 Miles Round-Trip

The North Fork Sol Duc Trail is located 8.1 miles south of US 101 on Sol Duc Hot Springs Road in Olympic National Park. This minimally maintained but easy to follow trail fords the North Fork Sol Duc River and continues upstream through an archetypal old growth forest.

Trail Map | Photo Gallery

The challenging ford at .75 miles and a trail that goes nowhere in particular - it simply fades after 9 miles on an unmaintained route - keep crowds light on this highly compelling river trek.

Trail maintenance in the summer-fall of 2013 has greatly improved travel conditions leading to the North Fork Sol Duc backcountry shelter (9 miles). Potentially precarious fords notwithstanding, these improvements enable exploration of seldom seen backcountry areas.

Hikers will enjoy ancient forests, abundant wildlife and a remote setting on the North Fork Sol Duc Trail:

The trail climbs steadily through uniformly tall fir and hemlock to a crest (.5 miles : 1,804'), where it drops sharply through a gulch to the south bank of the river (.75 miles : 1,585').

A fork just before the bank leads (right) to a view of upstream rapids, but these are not passable; veer left to the cross point. The trail is not immediately visible on the far side, but apparent once over.

Study the river closely before entering. Once across, follow the bank upstream - a footpath will soon emerge. The trail enters a maple-studded bottomland and edges back to an open bank along the river (1.0 miles : 1,638'). Red columbine dot this level stretch on the water's edge.

The trail oscillates between the river and enveloping intervals of vine maple and brush (1.4 miles). It's faint and oft-obstructed, but intuitively followed with the river offering preeminent guidance.

At 1.75 miles (1,720') the trail climbs away from the river into a luxuriant old growth forest, where conditions improve along higher, drier slopes (2.0 miles : 1,805').

Immense fir and hemlock line the undulating, soft-surface trail. Well-spaced trees and a sparse understory create good viewing lanes for wildlife.

The forest floor is a spongy mat of moss, liverworts and decaying matter that facilitates off-trail exploration. Frequent river access points offer good views of the far bank.

The trail passes a backcountry campsite on the river (3.05 miles : 1,827') before switchbacks lead away and straighten out through towering rows of fir (3.5 miles : 1,885').

A faint path switchbacks up and left around a fallen log at 5.35 miles (2,325'), perhaps the only navigational curve ball in the upper forest (the trail lies just behind it but is veiled by debris).

Travel moderates back to a rapid on the river, a sensible turnaround point for day hikers (6.05 miles : 2,472'). This point marks the first of several consecutive, potentially challenging fords required to reach the backcountry shelter.