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- Oct 08, 2013
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Mount Olympus — Dispelling the Myth
Most people think of mountains as being frigid, icy places. When I tell people that I’m a guide, they usually say something along the lines of, “Wow, so you do all that stuff with, like, ice picks and stuff? You’re hardcore! Aren’t you scared you’ll fall off the mountain?”
![](https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2FBlue_ice_Olympus.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=300&s=33ba78717f6d2ef71b06872166567ca7 300w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2FBlue_ice_Olympus.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=500&s=33ba0e45daa470acfc65030fd476cdf4 500w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2FBlue_ice_Olympus.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=700&s=100b16cce80e1aa035f6013fe37f03ea 700w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2FBlue_ice_Olympus.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=800&s=3fe51e18f7dae2e3aae0711bfca96ee8 800w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2FBlue_ice_Olympus.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=1000&s=d7c4077a14a6401fa1aaf1672d7fbae9 1000w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2FBlue_ice_Olympus.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=1200&s=23381b434a94cc250278f2a3de98f83c 1024w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2FBlue_ice_Olympus.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=1400&s=e9e53392bfff70aaf46dc3cdd17fc199 1024w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2FBlue_ice_Olympus.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=1600&s=77a01cb46e63c4e97e8870bdedd0744e 1024w)
Blue Glacier. MM Photo Collection
Nope, not really. If you’re reading this, you’ve probably been on a mountain, so you know that it is actually quite a pleasant experience. Some more than others, I’ll admit. But if it wasn’t enjoyable, I wouldn’t have a job, and Mountain Madness wouldn’t exist — or it would have a name more like Foothill Folly or Forest Foolishness.
![](https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fhoh_trail.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=300&s=680750f2fd91eb7c3b82a114facc2450 300w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fhoh_trail.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=500&s=344888a17616b2c8d3c0e938ab376bbf 500w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fhoh_trail.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=700&s=932835db557ee5e3e48f4ae872ee358c 700w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fhoh_trail.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=800&s=142ca782ffc37287de378ca8140e6912 800w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fhoh_trail.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=1000&s=658ee60d934a81db92a605fc58df9b5c 1000w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fhoh_trail.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=1200&s=c755dfa6bfeaceec1f0434dc70be88e8 1024w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fhoh_trail.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=1400&s=a722815976fd2199ece6533455459764 1024w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fhoh_trail.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=1600&s=70bc573e81e63a4523e885f760ab054a 1024w)
Hoh Rainforest Trail. MM Photo Collection
One of my favorite mountains to guide is Mount Olympus. It is a great introduction to climbing for very fit beginners. You get a little taste of everything: a big glacier, a little steep snow, a little rock climbing, and a long approach on the most beautiful trail in the state. The Olympic National Park is a temperate rainforest with more shades of green than you even knew existed, and home to some of the largest old-growth trees in the country. And it’s the setting for Twilight, but most of us try to ignore that.
![](https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2FHoh_river.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=300&s=6564325a80fca920e45992eaf50ec7be 300w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2FHoh_river.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=500&s=a8ef78b6f409e2eec770796096e2f0f5 500w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2FHoh_river.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=700&s=b2e4c9b09d418df494943b9daeb8d8e1 687w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2FHoh_river.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=800&s=1d3334d8751641766221d6ef230c4cd5 687w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2FHoh_river.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=1000&s=ab2ac336571fb9350f7034c07b83c8e8 687w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2FHoh_river.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=1200&s=ccc30daec95f50ce554b9bf703a1e095 687w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2FHoh_river.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=1400&s=ff32eac0bd38a19c9f36c147e450347a 687w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2FHoh_river.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=1600&s=032b6573347321102eff25206fdb4bdc 687w)
Hoh River. MM Photo Collection
What makes this trail unique, other than its beauty? Well, for one thing, it is 18 miles long. Hence the “very fit” part. But it is also one of the most well-maintained trails that I know. There is no scrambling up tree roots, rock hopping across creeks, or carefully picking your way through scree. Half of the trail is what I would call “flat” although many clients have protested that my frame of reference is a little bit different than the average person’s. Regardless of my biased definition of “flat”, you gain less than 1,000 feet in the first 10 miles.
![](https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fsteep_snow.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=300&s=3c044ef617908bb030000430158221ec 300w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fsteep_snow.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=500&s=83d8d3dab7c89ba88eaa501d96a5ca7c 500w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fsteep_snow.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=700&s=11a45ceb72c29a23508f8f60513b2701 700w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fsteep_snow.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=800&s=0407eaf3559e6df20a70843459741bf1 800w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fsteep_snow.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=1000&s=ce4338b02e1e81a646ef4fb55d02ebe9 1000w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fsteep_snow.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=1200&s=23f370d832d5ab3655ded9ebe867b8b3 1024w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fsteep_snow.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=1400&s=0be89575225b18b929d912c9a988e87f 1024w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fsteep_snow.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=1600&s=0362d0257f8e83592d34f280594c9c55 1024w)
Steep snow on the way up to the summit. John Cooledge photo
Then it starts going uphill. And you have a heavy pack, and it’s probably hot out, so you’ve gotten pretty sweaty by this point. Plus you are two days into the trip, which means two days of sweat, dust, and bug spray have accumulated on your body. You’re probably thinking right now that I’m not making climbing sound pleasant at all. Bear with me, it gets better.
![](https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fjumping_off_log.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=300&s=ab94a47f80ec26c09da36404180f0eda 300w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fjumping_off_log.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=500&s=d15a6150a9149eaab0a2b868720a5fb3 500w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fjumping_off_log.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=700&s=fef1846eacd10afd416d65fbf01ddf77 700w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fjumping_off_log.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=800&s=3c8ef9c541bd3ee92ee19071b2fdc853 800w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fjumping_off_log.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=1000&s=7341f4d6847c563226102355bcb5088a 1000w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fjumping_off_log.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=1200&s=28fd0dd845efcbe9bfa89576db0ef5e7 1024w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fjumping_off_log.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=1400&s=323f14073ef295f0e201aeb3c2b3d88c 1024w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fjumping_off_log.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=1600&s=49e2115fe3d2904e24bb5d2eb877757e 1024w)
Doing backflips into the lake. John Cooledge photo
About 15 miles into the hike, you reach Elk Lake. By this point, most people are ready for a long break as they brace themselves for the steeper, hotter section of trail immediately ahead. Lucky for us, there is Elk Lake. Now, most lakes can be kinda scuzzy by the shore — murky water, mud that goes up to your knees, weeds that wrap around your ankles, rocks and sticks that try to trip you and send you headlong into said mud and weeds (and crawdads and frogs and…). But if you scramble down a faint trail and thrash through a few bushes, you reach a fallen tree. Like many of the trees in the Olympics, it was a giant tree, the kind you couldn’t come close to wrapping your arms around. This tree fell directly out into the lake, providing a pleasant woody path away from the shore and down into the deep clear water. You can slowly walk your way into the water, or hop off to the side for a quick dunk. Voila, you have both showered AND done laundry.
![](https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fon_the_top.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=300&s=95f7f4c2ef7b3841712f08e32e665300 300w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fon_the_top.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=500&s=6ac82f75d662ee21c8c770fe9ddc932d 500w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fon_the_top.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=700&s=c33b444aa46bb24114b627f1ad8367d3 700w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fon_the_top.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=800&s=f801ab9db13e7b04c3ced953e36a2935 800w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fon_the_top.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=1000&s=011872f7c616ef9151c011e19068c67c 1000w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fon_the_top.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=1200&s=9e604174f870e422cccf89fdb7e7a4f1 1024w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fon_the_top.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=1400&s=c8ae08e04d0c19cdfa66c3ef7a304341 1024w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fon_the_top.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=1600&s=3e333546682eaaf2c235e8b21b79700a 1024w)
On the summit. John Cooledge photo
Climbing mountains is still hardcore, even if you aren’t at risk of falling off the mountain into a bottomless abyss as you clutch your ‘ice picks’ and yell “Nooooo…” (or whatever it is that people imagine climbing is all about). But it’s not all ice and misery up there.
~ MM Guide Viviane deBros