Hike of the Week: Obstruction Peak

Wildflowers and snowfields paint the barren slopes of the Obstruction Highlands

Obstruction Peak

Only the horizon obstructs the views



by Craig Romano
photo by Craig Romano
produced by Michael Fagin

July 8, 2005

Quick FactsLocation: Hurricane Ridge Area- Olympic National Park
Land Agency: National Park Service
Roundtrip: 6.0 miles
Cumulative Elevation gain: 600 feet
Access: From Port Angeles, follow Race Street to the Heart O’ the Hills Parkway (Hurricane Ridge Road). Proceed 18 miles on this road to the Hurricane Ridge Visitors Center. Turn left (east) onto the gravel Obstruction Point Road. Follow for 7.5 miles to its end and trailhead.
Notes: Park fee collected: $10 for 7 day pass, $30 for annual pass, or $50 for National Park Pass, good in all national parks. Dogs prohibited on trail.
Green Trails Map: Mt Angeles, Wash- No. 135

At the extreme eastern edge of Hurricane Ridge lies Obstruction Peak. The road from the Hurricane Ridge Visitors Center ends just beneath the barren 6,450-ft sentinel. To venture farther-to lofty peaks, sprawling alpine meadows, sublime valleys, and wind-blown ridges, one must don hiking boots. For although the road is obstructed at this point, trails are not and hikers are free to continue on into the vast Olympic wilderness. Perhaps Portal Point not Obstruction Point would have been a more appropriate name for road’s end.
Three fine trails depart from Obstruction Point. Two form a scenic loop that drops into the lake-graced Badger and Grand Valleys. The other runs a high ridge to Deer Park. They’re great hikes. But if you’d like to share the excitement of the both of them combined, then consider a hike to the Obstruction Peak Highlands. Utilizing the Grand Pass Trail and an unnamed scramble path, this hike will take you among the clouds for it never drops below 6,000 feet.
Head south on the Grand Pass Trail across a barren tableland of windswept meadows and sun-baked talus slopes. The way is all above treeline, and although the landscape looks devoid of life-look closer. Tenacious alpine plants like cinquefoil, phlox and saxifrage cling to shallow pockets of soil. In mid-summer their yellows and purples brighten the grey slopes.
Rounding a 6,425-foot highpoint the trail drops a little to the west to reveal a sweeping view of the unbroken forests of the Lillian River Valley. Regaining the lost elevation, the trail passes through a small pass just to the south of a 6,536-foot highpoint. From here the Grand Pass Trail drops 1500-feet to Grand Lake. But you won’t-instead locate the faint path that continues south along the open ridge. The trail isn’t marked, but it’s fairly obvious.
Follow this primitive path over a small knoll. Drop into a notch, climb back up, and come to a halt at a 6,580-foot peak along the ridge (Don’t go farther-it’s a climber’s path). Now drop your pack and catch your breath. Brace yourself for the view. Directly below, twinkling in the sun are Grand and Moose Lakes. Rugged Grand Pass is just to the south. A fortress of craggy peaks and far-reaching ribbons of emerald forest surround you. There’s absolutely nothing here to obstruct this grand view.