Dosewallips River Road

Craig Romano | Author

Hike Overview

Distance: 13.4 miles roundtrip

Elevation Gain: 1300 feet High Point: 1600 feet

Difficulty: moderate Snow free: year round

Trailhead Pass Needed: None,

GPS waypoints: Trailhead: N47 44.508 W123 02.902

Dosewallips Campground: N47 44.249 W123 09.991

Features: Historic CCC road, kid-friendly, dog friendly, waterfalls, rhododendron, walk-in campgrounds.

Trailhead directions: From Shelton, drive north on US 101 for 41 miles turning left (one mile beyond state park) onto the Dosewallips Road. (From Quilcene, drive south on US 101 for 11.0 miles to Brinnon turning right at Milepost 306 onto the Dosewallips Road). Then continue for 8.5 miles to trailhead at the site of a washout.. It might be necessary to park here—or if passable, continue another 1.2 miles to trailhead (elev. 600 feet) Trailhead facilities: none

Built by the Civilian Conservation Corp (CCC) in the 1930s, the Dosewallips River Road follows the crashing waterway up a narrow canyon to a placid bench graced by towering firs and showy rhododendrons. One of only two road accesses to Olympic National Park from the east; the “Dose” road leads to a river side campground, ranger station and trailhead for several trails traveling deeper into the Olympic wilderness. In 2002 the river, swollen and raging from heavy rainfall, swept away a huge stretch of the road placing its fate into limbo. You’ll probably never be able to drive this stretch of road again. But you can explore it by foot or by bicycle and enjoy and admire the beauty and power of the wild Dosewallips River.

Hit the Trail

Before 2002, the Dosewallips Road provided car access to two wonderful river side campgrounds and several trails leading deep into the Olympic National Park wilderness. A couple of easy hikes could be made too from road’s end.

When the raging river washed out a chunk of road in the Olympic National Forest, it soon became apparent that repairing the road would not be an easy task. The narrow valley, unstable slopes and shifting river would require some serious funding and permitting to reopen the road.

And while initially, pubic officials and many recreationists were supportive of reopening the road, other recreationists and several environmental groups supported permanently converting the road to trail.

More than 20 years later the road’s fate remains in limbo and appears it will probably never be reopened to vehicles again. On the other hand a full conversion to trail has never taken place either. An obvious place to start would be to actually build an official trailhead with facilities and perhaps even a car campground to replace the two that were lost. Complicating things further was that the remaining open stretch of road leading up to the main washout was left to deteriorate. A side creek has washed out a section of the road making the walk to the old Dosewallips Campground even farther.

Nevertheless, beyond the washouts the road remains in decent shape for hiking,

running or mountain biking. And while stretches can feel like a slog through forest and away from the river, there are sections that are pretty with views of the crashing river—including a breathtaking waterfall.

You can catch some nice glimpses of towering peaks along the way, too. And with a bicycle you can cover the old road stretch to the old campground and then continue hiking on wilderness trails if you want to get deeper and farther into the wilderness.

Start walking the road west, passing a rocky washed out section. Pass the trailhead for the brutally tough way to Tunnel Creek. After 1.2 flat miles come to the large 2002 washout that wiped out a huge hunk of road. The alders began colonizing that patch of disturbed slope 20 years ago.Head right on a slide bypass trail that was built by the WTA.

Steeply climb 100-plus feet on the bank above the slide. Descend 100' reaching the road bed after 0.4 mile. Then start walking up the road along the churning river. Notice how fast vegetation has reclaimed the road bed. The road soon pulls away from the river and comes to a junction at 2.5 miles. The road-trail to the left leads to the Olympic National Forest Service’s old Elkhorn Campground. You can camp here without a permit.

The Dose road trail continues right and resumes climbing. The river is now far below in a canyon out of sight, but it can be heard crashing and churning in the distance. After passing beneath some ledges and crossing a cascading creek, enter the scorched remains of a forest from a 2009 lightning-caused fire. At just over 5 miles enter Olympic National Park.

Next cross Constance Creek before coming to the Lake Constance Trail, one of the toughest trails in the Olympics. The road then continues climbing, passing a big overhanging boulder along the way. After a short descent the road skirts beneath a big ledge before coming to the hike’s highlight—a dramatic 100' plus waterfall. Now steeply climb aside the raging cascade admiring its hydrological force—especially during autumn and winter rains.

Beyond the cataract the road takes on a much gentler course entering a hanging valley. The river flows gently here too, now emitting soothing sounds. At 6.7 miles reach the old Dosewallips Campground— where you can also camp without a permit. Set in a grassy flat shaded by big maples and frequented by docile deer, this is a great spot to spend the night, take a lunch break, or just sit and contemplate the surrounding beauty.

If you still have some energy left you can continue hiking on the 1.1 mile Dosewallips Terrace Nature Trail Loop or continue up the rhododendron-lined Dosewallips Trail (dogs prohibited on both trails) for a short distance. If you are planning on backpacking beyond, be sure to secure your wilderness (overnight) permit beforehand. Otherwise start heading back. If you biked in, enjoy a fairly long stretch of downhill cruising!

Land Agency Contact: Olympic National Forest, Hood Canal Ranger District, Quilcene, (360) 7652200, http://www.fs.usda.gov/olympic; and Olympic National Park, Wilderness Information Center, (360) 565-3100, www.nps.gov/olym

Recommended Guidebook: Day Hiking Olympic Peninsula 2nd edition (Romano, Mountaineers Books).