Over the last 2 weeks I have managed trips to both North Cascades and Olympic National Parks.

Both were magnificent, and I had good luck with light.

If you would like to visit any of these places and want a tour / photography guide, check out this link.

My most common spot to visit on the Washington coast is Point of the Arches in Olympic National Park.

Its not a difficult hike from the north. You will need to get a tribal permit to visit the Neah Bay Makah Tribe, as the parking is on their territory, but the hike to Shi Shi beach is about 1.5 miles on an awfully muddy trail in the forest, and then once you’re on the sand, about that again, down the beach, to camp in front of the sea stack at Point of the Arches. so a total of 3  – 3.5 miles or so from the car.

The difference between afternoon and morning light along the same stretch of sand is amazing.

The night sky was amazing, its always amazing out there!

My most recent trip was to Easy Pass in the North Cascades National Park. The only thing easy about Easy Pass is getting there. The trailhead is right on Highway 20 (North Cascades Highway). Its all well marked and easy to find. There is now a suspension bridge over Granite Creek, so that’s easy, too. But it is really a brutal hike, miles of steep talus all wonderfully designed to be out in the sun almost no matter the time of day you hike. We chose early, hitting the trail at 7am.

We waited out the sun and the bugs, no easy feat! and basked in the glow of late afternoon light.

Happy Birthday to North Cascades National Park, 50th Birthday! Here is a wonderful new book about the formation of the park. Crown Jewel Wilderness, by Lauren Danner.

North Cascades and Olympic National Parks both afford wonderful opportunities to experience true wilderness. I hope you can pay them a visit!