Hike to Sol Duc Falls – Olympic National Park

Olympic National Park has a good share of waterfalls but one of the more impressive waterfalls within Olympic National Park is Sol Duc Falls. Sol Duc Falls is a short, easy hike within the park and should definitely be a part of your Olympic National Park itinerary and road trip. Here’s everything you need to know about hiking to Sol Duc Falls waterfall in Olympic National Park, on Washington State’s Olympic Peninsula.

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Where is Sol Duc Falls?

Sol Duc Falls waterfall is located inside of Olympic National Park. This huge National Park is located on Washington State’s Olympic Peninsula, and is made up of different sections. Sol Duc Falls is located in the (aptly named!) Sol Duc area of the park, which is in the interior of the peninsula and is essentially a rain forest. I’ve shown the map below with the distance from the nearby town of Forks, Washington.

Sol Duc Falls trailhead is about an hour away from Forks. Another nearby town is Port Angeles, and Sol Duc Falls is about an hour away from there too. The Sol Duc area has a few other hikes, as well as a hot springs resort, if you want to stay overnight. We did this as part of a longer day trip — we were staying in Port Angeles.

Essentially, is a bit of a drive from anywhere else in the park – there’s not much else out this way. Even if you’re in the Lake Crescent area, it’s still a 45 minute drive (one way) out to the trailhead. We visited Sol Doc Falls after hiking Marymere Falls in the Lake Crescent area of Olympic National Park

Because Olympic National Park is so huge, there are some places / entrances that are not manned and don’t necessarily require you to have a pass, but the Sol Duc area does require a pass. I highly recommend purchasing an America the Beautiful National Park Pass – it’s $80 and the savings really do add up.

Here’s my post about the America the Beautiful Pass – is it right for you?

Hiking to Sol Duc Falls – Quick Overview

Trail Length: 1.5 miles round trip
Type: Out and back
Amenities: Trailhead has ample parking and pit toilets.
Elevation Gain: 225 feet
Waterfall Height: 48 feet.

The Hike to Sol Duc Falls – Olympic National Park

The trail starts off headed downhill, but it’s not too steep, but it’s steep enough that you’ll notice it when coming back to your car. You’ll hike through mossy woods and tall trees – it’s quite peaceful, but there’s not a lot of points of interest along the trail as you hike, so you probably won’t be doing a lot of stopping for photos along the way.

Watch your footing, as you’ll have to step over tree roots and rocks along the trail.

Once you reach the falls, you’ll find large viewing platforms where you can photograph Sol Duc Falls from various angles. You can’t, however, photograph the waterfall from the base, as I suppose it’s too dangerous.

Sol Duc Falls appears to be a “triple falls” as the water from Sol Duc Creek flows into separate gorges in the rocks. It’s absolutely beautiful and unlike most waterfalls I’ve seen.

You can explore the different viewpoints for the waterfall from the small network of platforms to get different photos of the waterfall. And once you’re finished, simply head back the same way you came!

Where to stay when visiting Sol Duc Falls in Olympic National Park

If you want to stay right in this area, the Sol Duc Hot Springs Resort is only a few miles from the trailhead. Otherwise, Forks or Port Angeles offers a good selection of hotels and motels (with Port Angeles having a much larger selection of lodging, as it is a larger town. Sequim is also a good choice too – it’s not much further from Port Angeles.

Related: Read all my posts about waterfalls on this site here!

Here is a list of places to stay in Forks, Washington, places to stay in Sequim, and a list of places to stay in Port Angeles, Washington.

I have personally stayed at the KOA in Port Angeles and at the EconoLodge in Sequim. (I’ll be honest, I wasn’t that crazy about staying at an Econolodge but there wasn’t much lodging available on that particular trip – but we actually had a decent stay here, so I can recommend it!)

Hiking to Sol Duc Falls – Final Thoughts:

Pros:

• It’s a beautiful, unique waterfall
• Nice hike through the rainforest
• Not too crowded – we were here around the 4th of July holiday around 1pm and easily got a parking spot.
• Short hike that most people can do

Cons:

• Remote area, not too close to anything else, unless you’re staying at the resort. \
• Trail can get very muddy in wet weather, which is common in this area. Remember, it’s a rain forest!

Have you ever hiked to Sol Duc Falls in Olympic National Park? Did you enjoy it? Let me know in the comments!