Big Creek Trail Length 6.6 mi/10.6 km Access North Shore Road USGS Map Bunch Lake Agency Olympic National Park This route samples a variety of forest types and terrain as it takes the hiker from the lush rain forest on the Quinault River bottoms to the subalpine country of the Queets-Quinault Divide. The trailhead (500 ft/152 m) is located on the North Shore Road, 16.6-mi/26.7 km from the Olympic Highway. On the swampy bottomlands the trail traverses typical rain forest. The undergrowth consists largely of vine maple, salmonberry, devil's club, and huckleberry; in places so thick as to be impenetrable were the way not hacked through. After about a half mile the trail follows Irely Creek to a junction with a side path (1.0 mi/1.6 km; 600 ft/183 m) that leads about 200 yards to Irely Lake. This is a popular spot with fishermen during the summer months. The lake, located in a marshy area, fluctuates in size from the wet to the dry season. A couple of mediocre campsites are located near the north end. Upon leaving the river bottom, the trail climbs as it traverses above Big Creek, a tributary of the Quinault. Here it goes through splendid stands of fir and cedar. The forest is unusually beautiful in places. The trees are tall, close together, and they tower high above an unbroken carpet of sword ferns. Eventually, the trail comes out onto slopes overlooking the canyon of Big Creek, and water is available—at least until midsummer—from numerous little streams that the trail crosses. Because of the dampness, western red cedar is predominant here, and many of the trees are large. The trail leaves Big Creek and follows a large branch that comes in from the north, and then crosses this stream to its west side (4.0 mi/6.4 km; 1330 ft/405 m). Although brooks have been abundant so far, they disappear beyond this point, and the hiker should fill his water bottle here. The route now climbs sharply as the trail switchbacks up a steep spur toward the Queets-Quinault Divide. The forest changes until it is composed almost exclusively of western hemlock and silver fir, which prevail until approximately 3000 ft/914 m. The trail then goes through one of the finest stands of Alaska cedar in Olympic National Park. Most of the trees are big, and the trail goes by the largest-known example of this species—a giant twelve feet in diameter at its buttressed base. The trail then ascends at a gentler grade and crosses little streams—the first sources of water beyond the branch of Big Creek. The first openings in the forest now occur— mostly little glades and meadows surrounded by subalpine trees. One of them is especially interesting because it is flat and about the size and shape of a football field. The trail levels out just beyond it and intersects with the Skyline Trail (6.6 mi/10.6 km; 3200 ft/975 m) near the largest of the Three Lakes. Several campsites are located in this vicinity, and running water can be obtained by going about fifty yards north on the Skyline Trail. The grass-rimmed lakes are located in a swampy meadow, where pale violets bloom among the grasses. This region is a mix of meadowland and subalpine forest. The trail goes by the largest lake, which is bordered by and half-filled with sphagnum moss. This growth is gradually converting the tarn into a bog. Another, much smaller lake lies just to the south on the same level. The third lake, a little tarn, is located on a slightly higher bench. Water lilies grow in all the lakes, blooming in midsummer, when their yellow blossoms accent the somber greens of the conifers. One of the amenities the camper enjoys at Three Lakes is the delightful concert given by the frogs every evening. Thousands of the little fellows blend their voices in a nocturnal serenade, which is usually interrupted at intervals. The chorus sings for a few minutes, then stops abruptly, only to resume the concert, with the final curtain drawn about 9:00 P.M. Lulled to sleep by the croaking, the hiker will awaken the next morning to ultra- quiet—silence broken only by the twitter of birds, or perhaps the humming of bees gathering nectar from the flowers. After mid-August one usually does not hear this "frog music"— perhaps because the nights are too cold for the creatures to assert themselves. Wildflowers are abundant at Three Lakes—particularly beargrass and elephant head, which is found along the shores of the larger lake. When the dwarf huckleberries ripen (usually mid-August through early September), the hiker can spend hours gorging on the delectable fruit. Beyond the lakes the trail climbs steeply, through stands of Alaska cedar, to Three Lakes Shelter (6.9 mi/11.1 km; 3400 ft/1036 m), located in a tiny meadow. When the lupine and beargrass bloom, the slopes above are splashed with patches of blue and white. Why the shelter was built here, just below the divide, is puzzling, because water is not available late in the season. Perhaps the builders felt the area around the lakes was too swampy. At any rate, the shelter is in poor condition, and the National Park Service plans to remove it. On the Queets-Quinault Divide (7.1 mi/11.4 km; 3600 ft/1097 m) the route becomes the Tshletshy Creek Trail. Another path, a remnant of the original Skyline Trail, leads south from this point. On the divide the breezes murmur in the mountain hemlocks, and one can see an array of timbered ridges and mountain spurs. Glimpses of peaks to the north, toward Olympus, lure the wanderer to the Skyline Trail.