High Divide Seven Lakes Basin, & Second Beach, 2024

Sep 14

The High Divide Trail in the Seven Lakes Basin of Olympic National Park is on national must-do backpacking lists, as a short trail offering great views and plenty of wildlife. I was lucky enough to get a permit for this highly coveted trip in September, after my summer kayaking trips. I had planned to do the trip with a friend, but she had to back out at the last minute, so I was once again hiking solo. In order to extend the short trip given the long drive, I decided to spend an additional night at Second Beach, just a bit south of where I had finished the North Coast Trail trip. There was rain in the forecast, but that was to be expected in the Olympic rain forest.

Location of High Divide Trail in Washington state

The High Divide trail (in magenta and gray) on map. Part of my track wasn’t captured on Day 1.

I drove up from the San Francisco Bay area over about 2 days, arriving at the Sol Duc campground, where I had a reservation, around 4:30 in the afternoon. It was raining as I arrived, so I chose to car camp. The campground was not crowded and was beautiful in the rain, nestled in evergreen trees that dampened the sound. In deference to my friend’s work schedule and permit availability, this trip was scheduled on a very popular trail on the weekend, so I didn’t expect solitude, even in the rain.

Day 1: Sol Duc Trailhead to Lunch Lake: ~8 mi* / 12.9 km

The morning was damp and foggy and I was surprised how dark it was inside the cover of the forest, even at the beginning of the trail. On this trip, nearly all the elevation change was in the first day. I came to Sol Duc Falls within the first mile, and stopped for some photos.

Sol Duc Falls: It seemed higher than its 48 feet, and the flow was lower this fall than it is in the spring.

The forest was verdant and green in the rain, indeed a giant rain forest with towering trees. The trail ascending to the south was well maintained and a bit rocky.

There were lots of mushrooms pushing their way up through the loam.

I passed the Canyon Creek area and soon climbed to Deer Lake, quite peaceful in the quiet rain.

As I began ascending to the east, a hiker coming down the trail toward me quietly mentioned that there was a black bear on hillside above me, who was busy eating and didn’t seem to want to have anything to do with us. I continued up and soon came to his lunch room on the hillside. He/she was busy eating and only looked up occasionally. Sadly, I expect all the blueberries were gone, this late in the season. I quietly took some photos and left him in peace, and mentioned his presence to some other hikers I met descending the trail a few minutes later. They had never seen a bear and were excited at the possibility.

This was truly a beautiful hiking trail, every step of the way. As I reached the ridge, the climbing eased and I ambled east through the forest. Soon I came to the fork to Lunch Lake, and began the descent downward on the wet rocks and trail. In spite of the gray skies and lingering fog, there was a beautiful view of the nearby basin below - indeed made more magical by the misty clouds.

Lunch Lake through the fog

Lunch & Round Lake

Round Lake

The light rain stopped about 15 minutes before my arrival at Lunch Lake: perfect! At the base I spied the campsite map of Lunch Lake, and hustled to find a nice spot. A primo group site on the far north side that overlooked a ridge was taken by a nice group of folks, but they were very kind about sharing their magnificent view of the basin to the north. I found a nice, private spot at the far end of the first left fork. Although the lower location offered nice privacy, it made it colder, as I was to discover the next morning! I had plenty of time to do the usual camp chores and wander around the lake. The campsites offered fairly nice privacy from each other, which was a real plus.

Campsite map at Lunch Lake

My tent from my eating location. ABC's of tent location: don't camp below a drop-off if it's cold!

The gray, foggy skies persisted.

Day 2: Lunch Lake to Sol Duc Crossing: 6 mi** / 9.6 km

It was quite cold during the night, likely enhanced by cool air layers settling from the small ridge above. I didn’t sleep well, so took the opportunity to sleep later the next morning, knowing I had all day for a short distance. There was frost on my bear canister in the morning, and the hot chocolate was definitely welcome! It was a beautiful day as the sun rose, and it looked like the rain was gone. Two buck deer chose a location near my eating area to bed down for a sunbath.

I set off after breakfast to hike to Sol Duc Crossing, on the northeast side. Lunch Lake was beautiful in the morning sun. Rather than hiking back the way I came to the High Divide Trail, I took another established trail across and up the basin, trading views from the top for opportunities to visit more lakes and possibly see more wildlife. After stopping at a few small lakes, I began angling back up the trail to the High Divide Trail, where there were still plenty of views to be enjoyed!