HAPPY LAKE RIDGE TRAIL

Length 10.0 mi/16.1 km
Access Elwha River Road
USGS Maps Lake Sutherland: Mount Carrie; Lake Crescent
Agency Olympic National Park

Happy Lake Ridge Trail begins on the Boulder Creek section of the Elwha 
River Road, 8.6 mi /13.8 km from US 101, and climbs to Happy Lake Ridge.

The path then follows the divide in a westerly direction, ending near 
Boulder Like. The country traversed is somewhat drier than one would 
expect, probably because the Bailey Range from the full effect of winter 
storms shelters it.

The trailhead (1750 ft/533 m) is located in a stand of fir. Madrones 
and vine maples are scattered among the conifers, and the ground cover 
consists of thick growths of salal, Oregon grape, manzanita, kinnikinnick, 
and red huckleberry'. Other plants include vanilla leaf, rattlesnake 
plantain, pipsisscwa, lupine, and twisted stalk, with its orange berries.

A side path (0.2 mi/0.3 km) leads to the first of two places where water 
can be obtained between the road and Happy Lake. The route then contours 
a steep slope, and openings permit one to look across the valley of Boulder 
Creek to Mount Carrie and its glaciers, which rise above the timbered 
foothills. As the trail climbs higher, the route steepens and the undergrowth 
becomes sparse. The trunks of the firs have been blackened by fire, and a 
few western white pines mingle among them. A tiny stream (2.6 mi/4.2 km), 
one of the rivulets forming the headwaters of Deep Creek, is the last 
source of water until one reaches Happy Like.

The route now crosses grassy glades dotted with old, rough-barked firs. 
A bunch of switchbacks then climb a fairly open slope; although huckleberry 
brush becomes predominant near the crest of Happy take Ridge 
(3.0 mi/4.8 km; 4500 ft/1372m).

At this point the trail turns westward and traverses along the ridge. 
One can see to the left and right, respectively, the valleys of Boulder 
Creek and Hughes Creek. As it follows the narrow divide, the path levels 
out at times descending a bit, and Mount Olympus and Mount Carrie appear 
to rise side by side in the distance. The Elwha Valley lies to the 
southeast, with Mount Anderson beyond. The trees include silver and sub 
alpine fir, mountain hemlock, and Alaska cedar, with a growth of juniper 
upon the ground. The meadows nearby are made colorful by wildflowers, 
particularly daisies, thistles, and bear grass.

The trail drops to the northern side, where it traverses dense stands 
of mountain hemlock and a silver forest-a grove of fire-killed trees-where 
thick brush has sprung up, chiefly mountain ash, azalea, and huckleberry. 
Two peaks stand to the north and the view to the northeast includes the 
lower Elwha, Port Angeles, Ediz Hook, and the Strait of Juan de Fuca, with 
Mount Baker on the horizon. As the path climbs higher, little meadows 
alternate with sub alpine forest. The trail then enters a large meadow, 
where a transverse north-south ridge-the divide between Hughes Creek and 
Barnes Creek-connects Happy Lake Ridge with Baldy Ridge. An old sign 
(5.0 mi/8.0 km) indicates this is the summit or the highest point on the 
trail. Actually the summit is the mile-high saddle where the north-south 
ridge contacts Happy Lake Ridge.

At this point a spur trail descends through meadowland and groves of mountain 
hemlock to Happy Lake (0.5 mi/0.8 km from the junction; 4875 ft/1486 m). 
The tarn, which contains Eastern brook trout, is more or less round, ringed 
by trees, and edged along the north and south shores by patches of meadow. 
A campsite is located at the lake's south end.

Beyond the saddle the trail follows Happy Lake Ridge as it curves to the 
southwest, alternately traversing meadowland and sub alpine forest. Like 
most ridge trails in the Olympics, the path climbs up and down, with views 
of valleys on both sides: to the left, or south, the gash made by Boulder 
Creek; to the right, or north, the tributaries of Barnes Creek as well as 
ridges and the Strait of Juan de Fuca. The trail then goes through another 
silver forest, where the undergrowth is heavy.

The route intersects the Aurora Divide Trail (7.5 mi/12.1 km; 5000 ft/1524 m), 
where the northern end of Crystal Ridge joins Happy Lake Ridge. Beyond this 
junction the trail abandons its namesake ridge and follows the northern spur 
of Crystal Ridge, which wraps around the headwaters of Crystal Creek like a 
horseshoe. (The long-abandoned Crystal Ridge Trail ascends the ridge directly 
from the Boulder Creek Campground near Olympic Hot Springs.) The route goes 
through fairly open country, and then crosses to the south side of the crest, 
where it enters still another silver forest.

As the trail follows Crystal Ridge, it alternately traverses meadowland and 
dense sub alpine forest. Here one often hears the wind murmuring in the trees. 
The view to the cast looks down the valley of Boulder Creek. 

Like an airplane coming in to land, the trail now begins a long, steady descent 
toward Boulder Lake, which sparkles in the distance. The trail ends at a 
junction (10.0 mi/16.1 km; 4400 ft/1341 m) with the Boulder Lake Trail, just 
north of the lake.