Trip Planner: USA / Washington State / Olympic National Park / Hoh River Trail

Hoh River Trail, Olympic National Park

4.9

#7 of 10 in Trails in Olympic National Park

Hiking Trail · Hidden Gem · Nature / Park

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The Hoh River is a river in the U.S. state of Washington, located on the Olympic Peninsula. About 56mi long, the Hoh River originates at the Hoh Glacier on Mount Olympus and flows west through the Olympic Mountains of Olympic National Park and Olympic National Forest, then through the foothills in a broad valley, emptying into the Pacific Ocean at the Hoh Indian Reservation. The final portion of the Hoh River's course marks the boundary between the coastal segment of Olympic National Park and Olympic National Forest, the Hoh Indian Reservation.
The Hoh's drainage basin is 299sqmi. Its discharge, or streamflow, has considerable seasonal variation, with summer streamflow averaging about one-third that of winter flows.
The Hoh is a glacial river fed by glaciers on Mount Olympus, such as the Blue Glacier. The glaciers grind rock into a fine glacial flour which turns the Hoh River a milky slate blue color. The river valley is generally broad and relatively flat, causing the glacial sediments to settle out, creating extensive gravel bars, river meanders, and the many side channels characteristic of a braided river. Discover how to plan a Olympic National Park trip in just a few steps with Klarna Trips's itinerary builder.

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Hoh River Trail reviews

TripAdvisor traveler rating

19 reviews

Google

4.8

By rajsviewfinder

Getting into hog rainforest is crazy . Long wait times . Once u get in, it’s an amazing place . We walked through him river trail . Very peaceful and nice roads . Not sure if smaller kids with...

Getting into hog rainforest is crazy . Long wait times . Once u get in, it’s an amazing place . We walked through him river trail . Very peaceful and nice roads . Not sure if smaller kids with... more »
By DoloresJacoby

The winding Hoh River is fantastic, whether driving or hiking, you see the most beautiful vistas. The trail was not too challenging with great spots to rest along the river. We saw elk along the way..... more

The winding Hoh River is fantastic, whether driving or hiking, you see the most beautiful vistas. The trail was not too challenging with great spots to rest along the river. We saw elk along the way..... more »
By RoubaixRider51

There are loop trails closer to the visitor center that most people use while visiting the Hoh Rain Forest. This trail is an out-and-back hike along the river but, if you can handle a longer hike...

There are loop trails closer to the visitor center that most people use while visiting the Hoh Rain Forest. This trail is an out-and-back hike along the river but, if you can handle a longer hike... more »

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Google

By Sable Bridenstine

Breathtakingly beautiful place to hike! I saw lots of wildlife and enjoyed the scenery. My only complaint is that the trail sometimes had fallen trees in the way or collapsed foot bridges. Nothing too major but enough to be an obstacle. I'm sure they'll fix it in the coming months, though. Some water crossings were a bit challenging.

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By Austin Wicht

Super nice trail with excellent debris removal and smooth pathways. We backpacked in 50lbs packs 9.2 miles in to the ranger station at night with headlamps and didn’t stumble too much on rocks or roots or logs. Our group of 6 got lost once for about 30-45 minutes at a stream crossing that wasn’t very well marked so we left a pink ribbon and bright yellow towel across the stream of where the trail continued to help others.

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By David McIntosh

Went on a nice weather Saturday in August. They meter incoming traffic so if you don’t get in early enough you could be waiting in traffic for hour or more. I got in before 9 am and avoided the crowds for the most part. I recommend what I did which is to get early and go directly for Hoh river trail. Trail is mostly flat but has some scrambling over log.

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By Raj S

Getting into hog rainforest is crazy . Long wait times . Once u get in, it’s an amazing place . We walked through him river trail . Very peaceful and nice roads . Not sure if smaller kids with strollers are possible . It’s actually a very long trail , but you can walk a mile or two and come back . There is a space where you can walk through and see the River . It gets a bit slippery and needs extreme caution . We liked it overall . Nice walk and good trail experience..

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By ViperX9 gaming

All I have to they is wow, this hike was amazing, great for backpacking, the glacier was just the most exillerating part of this 5 day trip that I took. The trails are Farley easy up untill you get past 5 mile island then the terrain starts to really gain in elevation. If your going for a day expect you'll probably not make it all the way up to the glacier unless you are running, but if your going for am overnight, you are in for a treat, but bring a water filter becouse you are going to need it. Also if you are going for backpacking and planning on hiking up to elk lake, you need to get a special permit to camp there so be aware

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