Mount Walker

After having about two days' worth of energy drained out of us in just one day from walking our crazy dog amongst other dogs out to Cape Flattery, we decided that a day of relative rest would be welcomed. For me, this means sitting in the car for hours. After going to Dungeness and eating at The 3 Crabs, we headed out to our only other main destination of the day - the Mount Walker Viewpoint.

Nothing is ever quick and easy when I'm involved. This may be obvious from the length of some of these posts, it may be obvious because you know me, or it may be news to you. In this case, I didn't realize quite how far the viewpoint was from Dungeness (where we ate lunch) nor did I realize that there would be few options for gas between the two points or anywhere close to Mt. Walker for that matter. We had more than a quarter tank, so I figured it wouldn't be a big deal. After 4 1/2 miles uphill (on a steep incline) with the four wheel drive and air conditioning on, the quarter tank quickly disappeared. Luckily this time it worked out fine (unlike the last July 4th weekend trip that included a couple hours on the side of I-5 just north of the Washington/Oregon border). Point of the story, make sure you have plenty of gas whenever you venture into the forest so that you can focus on things like the view at the top rather than whether or not you'll be able to make it to the next gas station.

The viewpoint from Mt. Walker would have been much more impressive had it not been for everything else we saw up to this point. It was still well worth the drive. The view is nearly 360 degrees between two separate viewpoints on the north and south sides of the mountain. Do the north side first and save the best for last. The north side looks toward the Strait of Juan de Fuca and the Olympic Peninsula. The south side has views of Mt. Rainier, the Puget Sound and even a pretty clear view of all of downtown Seattle. I don't have pictures to show this due to the clouds and (probably) smog, but it was there. I have a feeling the number of days with perfect conditions for seeing great views are very limited. This is the Pacific Northwest afterall. Even days that are beautiful typically have some haze.

The drive up is steep, gravel, washboarded and narrow. I wouldn't recommend it to anyone that doesn't feel comfortable driving in these conditions, although I would think any car with the right driver would be just fine. Just make sure you have gas. You could also park at the bottom and hike your way up (there is a trail off the road). I, for one, don't like walking when the car can take me there. I'd rather save my energy for walking when it will get me somewhere the car won't.

Here are the specifics:
Fee: None
Pets: Pets are welcome.
Facilities: Vault toilets and picnic tables available.
Camping: No
Season: Year round, but pick a sunny day for best views
Coordinates: 47.788435,-122.903398 (Unverified)
Governmental Agency Land: Olympic National Forest
Nearest town: Quilcene, Washington (9.6 miles)
Nearest 10,000+ city: Silverdale, Washington (49.7 miles)
County: Jefferson, Washington
My rating (out of 6): 4
More Information: Olympic National Forest

My Current Location: Home, Portland, Oregon

View to the south (Mt. Rainier & Seattle)


View to the north (Strait of Juan de Fuca, Olympic Peninsula)