Friday, September 26 - The Hoh Rain Forest

We drove into the Hoh Rain Forest, stopping to buy a Golden Eagle Pass from the ranger that will get us into National Parks for the rest of our lives for the one time $10 fee. The Hoh River, which flows through the Hoh rain Forest, is fed partly by Glacial melt from Mount Olympus - not visible from this point. Judging by the clarity of the water, though, most of its flow must come from rainfall.

The rain forest is beautiful with huge old-growth trees covered with moss. We did some hiking when we got all the way in on the 19 mile road to the Visitor Center. We hiked on the Hall of Mosses Trail (Richard heard someone call it the Hall of Moses Trail). There were huge trees that were so tall that no picture could do justice to them. They were dripping with club moss. Moldering logs were covered with funghi and lichens. There were old fallen trees called nurselogs because new trees sprouted on them, and had to grow stilt-like roots to the ground. There was one fallen tree that we walked along for over two hundred feet. The rain forest was very impressive and some areas were very wet even though it hadn't rained recently.