• Olympic: Three Parks in One

    Olympic

    National Park Washington

There are park alerts in effect.
show Alerts »

  • Olympic Hot Springs Road Closed

    The Elwha Valley's Olympic Hot Springs Road is closed to public entry beyond the Altair Campground during removal of the Glines Canyon Dam. Olympic Hot Springs is not accessible from the Elwha.

  • Elwha River Closures

    Boating is prohibited on the Elwha River between Upper Lake Mills Trail and Altair Campground.

  • Changes to Visitor Services Due to Sequestration

    Due to mandatory, across the board budget cuts, some visitor services at Olympic National Park have changed. See the Plan Your Visit section for more information.

A Rare Haven

brown owl with spotted and streaked markings sits on lichen draped branch of old growth tree

Northern spotted owls, which depend on old growth forest, are listed as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act.

Many wildlife species evolved in a Pacific Northwest where thousands of square miles of lowland forests covered what is now cities, farms, roads, and commercial timberlands. As little as five percent of the original lowland forest may be left. There are few places left for old-growth dependent species. Places like Olympic are essential for their survival and some research indicates even remaining preserved areas may not be large enough to keep some threatened species from declining.

The Old Growth Community
Species like spotted owls, marbled murrelets, northern goshawks, fisher, Cope’s giant salamanders, Vaux’s swifts, and many smaller, less charismatic amphibians, insects, small mammals, and plants are closely associated with these beleaguered islands of habitat. Humans too, have few places to experience the scale and humility these forests offer.

Did You Know?

rocky beach

Olympic National Park protects 73 miles of wild Pacific coast.  Tidepools, sandy beaches and rocky cliffs can all be found here.