Lake Crescent Lodge, Olympic National Park, Washington

As mentioned earlier, this was February. Lake Crescent Lodge was not fully open. Not even close. But you can reserve a cabin...and you should. The drive alone is worth the trip. Swiss Alps? Olympic National Park has it all.

The peninsula is like a puzzle with the national park, forest, reservation and private land interconnected. We left Lake Quinault Lodge following Highway 101 towards the Pacific. We could have taken days for this trip, but I had to get to Port Angeles and Olympic National Park Headquarters to do research at the museum. Instead of stopping along the beach, we cut inland at Ruby Beach, drove through the Olympic National Forest to Port Angeles. By the time we headed back to Lake Crescent, it was mid-afternoon. Mist hung over the lake and the two-lane road clung to the shoreline. Mountain peaks rose straight from the shoreline. As we headed along the southern edge of the lake, we were the only car. Snow began to fall as the light dropped behind the mountains. I turned onto Barnes Road along the creek and followed the signs to the lodge. A meadow unfolded before us introducing us to a simple two-story, shingle Arts and Craft style lodge and cabins. It seemed that not only were we the lone guests, but the only people within miles.

We had made reservations for one of the Roosevelt Fireplace Cottages, the only accommodations open during our visit. The manager knew when we were coming, and had left instructions to pick up our key. The two-bedroom, knotty pine paneled cottage faced the lake. A huge picture window framed the view. It was cold, so I loaded the fireplace with kindling and logs, and, viola, lighted the fire without opening the flue. The windows were open to let out the smoke, the fire was burning nicely, but it looked like it could be a long night. The cabin had snacks and breakfast makings there, but the restaurant was closed. My friend, Deborah, had packed food and wine, so we made due with a picnic. After we ate, I got my flashlight and walked around the grounds anxious for the next day and discovering what had changed at the lodge since my last visit over twenty years ago. The ground was crunchy cold and the moon was out. I made my way to the dock, and looked across the lake. Steely cold grey of the lake and mountains merged into one. What a place, what a history. I could hardly wait for morning to shed new light on this place.

What morning brought was snow, and more snow. The manager met us and we began walking through the lodge. I had spent a good amount of time looking at historic photos of the 1915 lodge, and without guests in baseball hats and sweatshirts, it could well have been the those days when guests arrived via boat with the ladies in billowing skirts and the gentlemen dressed in coats and ties. The main lobby had changed little with much of the original furniture, patined wood paneling and original light fixtures and the huge Roosevelt elk head still holding court over the lodge. There is a cocktail lounge partitioned off in a corner. An odd arrangement, but it looks to work just fine. The multi-paned dining room that once held views of Mrs. Singer's gardens has been turned into a gift shop, and the dining room moved to a large room added in the 1950s with lake views. The crown jewel of the main level is the glassed in front sunporch full of wicker furniture and when the warm weather comes, baskets of geraniums. A corner stairway leads to restored second floor guest rooms with shared bath.

Here are my tips for staying at Lake Crescent Lodge:

• Stay in the Singer Tavern Cabins if you can. They were rebuilt just like the originals after it was decided that the old buildings simply could not be restored. I usually hate this, but these are charming and you can opt for one or two rooms.
• If you like things true to history, the five upstairs rooms are tiny and fun with a shared central bath.
• Families will enjoy the one or two bedroom Roosevelt Fireplace Cottages with fireplaces. Open the flues.
• The motel units offer lots of rooms, but not the charm of the Singer, main lodge or Roosevelt cottages.
• If you go off season when the restaurant is closed, bring plenty of food and drink. There is nothing close by.
• Enjoy the historic gardens, then take hikes. This is a terrific base for exploring the park.
• Swim in the lake if it is summer.
• The restaurant attracts guests and locals to the lodge, so make a reservation. This is second hand info, but I trust the sources.
• Walk over to the 1914 Rosemary Inn grounds. This historic "camp" is now run by the Olympic Park Institute. The tiny cabins are unique and fabulous.
• For more on the lodge, check out Great Lodges of the National Parks, Volume Two.

These photos were taken by Christine Barnes and do not appear in her books. (Not bad?)

Lake Quinault Lodge, Olympic Peninsula, Washigton

I was thinking about my last trip to Lake Quinault Lodge and Lake Crescent Lodge on Washington's Olympic Peninsula. It was February, cold and snowy here in Central Oregon...not when most tourists head to the Olympic National Park. But for me, the off season is perfect for doing research, interviewing folks and getting a good sense of place without the crowds. No crowds was an under statement. I talked my friend, Deborah, into coming along. We headed over Mt. Hood outside of Portland (forgoing a stop at the fabulous Timberline Lodge, more on that later) then made our way to Olympia on I-5, cut over to Aberdeen taking Highway 101 through Humptulips to the tiny town of Quinault. Snow gave way to rain and lushy, mushy greenery that only exists in nooks of rain forest in the US. Trees so big you want to bow down to them, and thick carpets of moss like sponges and green hair hanging from the armpit-like limbs of ancient sitka and big leaf maples. Then there is the ghostly white lichen that dusts the red alder bark, and the mushrooms and the fog hanging over mountains and lakes and rivers and the Pacific ocean and water....water falling from nearly ever-present clouds then gushing and cutting river beds in a furious race to the lakes and ocean. And even with all of this, it is soulfully silent.

We arrived after a wind storm that had made matchsticks of acres of national forest. Gigantic trees simply whittled down to size. Amidst this, Lake Quinault Lodge (upper left photo), a shingle covered hotel designed by a great man, Robert Reamer, who battled his own demons, recovered his health and his family and created memorable buildings here, in Yellowstone National Park and in Seattle.

But this blog is about staying in the lodges, experiencing the places and the land around them. For the history, there are my books. For now, I will give you what didn't get into print. I love every lodge I visit, so that business in my profile about being objective is a tough one for me. I love them because no one has torn them down. And as is the case here, someone has more or less taken care of the place. It isn't perfect and I am disappointed when I walk in and see leather couches instead of the original wicker furniture, odd table and floor lamps and tacky accessories. But the great room...oh, it is great with a roaring fire in the brick fireplace, floor to ceiling small-paned windows, the original chandeliers, and painted posts and beams and wood paneling untouched by anything but time.. We check in. They have put us in the 1980s era annex. I'm a historian, writing a history book, scouting for the PBS television series that will follow. I ask for a second floor room in the historic main lodge. It is a smallish room with two double beds and a tiny bathroom. (These rooms have been redecorated since my visit---whew!---but it was comfortable with good beds, warm bedding, etc..) The stairway creaks, the windows stick a bit, and I love it. The second floor rooms, the Boathouse Annex and a few rooms off the great room are original to the 1926 structure. If you want something fancier, the Fireplace Rooms are lovely, spacious and have, you guessed it, fireplaces.

Let's see: the restaurant. The best part of the restaurant, housed in a large area once a porch, is the help. Nice doesn't cover it. These folks are local, and to be local and live here year-round says a lot about their character. Sturdy people who seem to like their isolation but are still incredibly friendly. This is at he rainiest place in the rainiest forest in the Lower 48, but no one here seems to notice. It seems that most of the help has been here for decades and their parents before them and their grandparents before them. So the dinner was good, not great, but tasty and reasonably priced. The lodge concessionaire is Aramark...a huge operation who stills makes things seem pretty personable here. President Franklin Roosevelt dined at the lodge in 1937, and the entire town and every town he went through turned out to welcome him. Hundreds crammed into the lodge and then bar, and the school kids dressed up like Indians (it was 1937) and sang. And, of course, it rained buckets. It was a very big deal, and photographs of this and other historic moments fill the walls. You can ask for the Roosevelt table to get the nostalgia going. If you're staying for more than a weekend, check out a couple of other eateries in the village.

After dinner, we did what any sane traveler would do: played Scrabble and read in front of the fire. Entertainment came when a group of college-age guests ran from the sauna across the manicured lawn and plugged into Lake Quinault. Their own polar plunge.

The next day we hired a guide through the lodge to take us on a nature tour via Jeep. Nice touch since there was a steady drizzle. If you're a wanna-be naturalist, this is the way to go. Our former national park ranger took us into the national forest, around the lake through a slice of the national park, stopped at little known sights and his favorite tree...a big leaf maple that should be a landmark in and of itself. He said few know of this fabulous tree, but low and behold, it is a regular stop (read about it elsewhere; and we thought we were special!). You can take the same outing yourself following South Shore Road up to the East Fork of the Quinault River, back to North Shore Road along the other side of Lake Quinault. I'd do this trip, then get on foot for some hiking in the Quinault National Recreation Trail System to Big Cedar Tree, along Gatton Creek or anything that strikes your fancy. Maps are available at the front desk. One thing to remember: do not take the moss as a souvenir. There are actually poachers who haul this stuff away for florists and landscapers to use. Illegal, of course. Let it be.

If you don't opt for a winter trip (always wear a rain jackets and rubber boots), spring brings a plethora of rhododendrons so spectacular it just takes your breath away. And summer: there is kayaking, fishing, swimming...the usual water sports in a circa 1950s setting. Instead of kids dressed as Indians, there are wonderful programs by members of the Quinault Tribe held on the lodge grounds.

This place was so darn special we hated to pack up and head out. We left Lake Quinault Lodge and a bunch of memories, ready to return in the summer. Lake Crescent Lodge awaited us.

My tips:

• Book a room in the main lodge if you're a history buff. Go for the Fireplace Rooms if you want more space. The newer Lakeside units are hidden away a bit, but modern and nice.
• A good family option is the The Boathouse annex, originally built to be Lake Quinault Lodge after the first lodge burned. It was way too small, so Reamer was hired to design this first class lodge. A bit on the funky side, but it has its own porch, and pets are welcome.
• Hire a guide. Roger Blain was knowledegable and fun.
• Get out on the lake if weather permits. There are canoes for guests along with seasonal boat tours.
• Sit in the great hall and read in front the the fire. Perhaps a copy of Great Lodges of the National Parks, Volume Two will fill the bill.
• No TV and little internet access. This is a good thing. Play board games and throw horseshoes.

This copyright photo was taken by Fred Pflughoft and appears in Great Lodges of the National Parks, Volume Two