Thursday, August 29, 2013

The Hoh Rain Forest

First, thank you so much for joining me on this short trip to Washington's Olympic Peninsula.  Today's photos are of the Hoh Rain Forest. It is located on the West side of the Olympic Mountains so it gets all the rain and storms off the Pacific.  Very specific things need to be in place to create a temperate rain forest.  They are all present at the Hoh. It gets 12 feet of rain a year. In contrast, Seattle only gets about 38 inches a year. In July of 2006  a giant spruce came down . A shock was felt at the visitor's center and all the car alarms were set off in the parking lot. Many of the trees are 300 to 500 years old. I hope you enjoy seeing this rare and beautiful place.  Thank goodness it is protected by the national park.  Washington had many old growth forests until lumbering cut most of the trees. Because of forward thinking people, the Hoh will always be there for us to enjoy.









 There were trees as big as this all over the place.  The sweet SBA posed so you can judge how really big these trees are.



 This is called a nurse log.  There were 7 huge trees growing from one log.










The rain forest is populated by many species of animals.  We were lucky enough to see this beautiful deer or young elk, we're not sure which as there is a large elk heard in the forest .  We even saw a warning sign telling you  to avoid the elk as they had become aggressive due to people feeding them.
Again, thanks so much for joining me.

16 comments:

  1. Very cool! Nice job on the pictures.

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  2. Barb, thanks for sharing the beautiful pictures and information. I didn't know Washington had a rain forest. I have to put it on my bucket list to see.

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  3. What a beautiful place - reminiscent of our Pacific Rim Park near Tofino. Let me know if you ever venture to the Island!

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  4. Awesome. The forest in all its glory.

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  5. The forest is fantabulous!
    It's always great to look at your blog and see these wonderful pics.
    Greetings from Germany

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  6. Love the forest its so beautiful. The deer was the icing on the cake:)
    love Annette

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  7. Wow, those are some big trees!
    The Nurselogs are interesting.
    Thanks for sharing.
    Marilyn

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  8. Wow, those trees are huge! Thanks for sharing the great pictures.

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  9. Now that is a cathedral of a forest! Just beautiful! The energy from trees is amazing, I love just placing a hand on one to feel its energy. Thank you for sharing!

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  10. What incredible photos, Barb. I didn't realize Washington had a rain forest...

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  11. OMG!
    Those trees certainly are much bigger than I first thought!
    It is so important that people realize the need for conservation.
    I wish more had been done where I live here in the Hudson river valley. There have always been active voices, but it seems sometimes people are too busy to listen!

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  12. Many years ago I had the chance to visit the Hoh Rain Forest and it was fantastic to see all the old giant trees. Wonderful pictures.

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  13. i really like this article please keep it up. Land Management

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