Lake Quinault is at the north edge of Grays Harbor County in Washington State. Grays Harbor is shown in red in the Washington State counties map below on this page.

Except for some private lands along the north shore, the north shore of Lake Quinault is in the Olympic National Park and the south shore of the lake is in the Olympic National Forest. The lake is about 12 miles long.

There are a variety of accommodations available on Lake Quinault. The lake and the facilities in the nearby Olympic National Park have been a favorite vacation spot for decades. The Olympic National Park offers hundreds of different day hikes including hiking along the National Park’s Pacific Ocean Beaches.

Getting to Lake Quinault

Lake Quinault is obviously a destination resort area. It is located on the west side of the Olympic Mountains and from Seattle, WA it is about the same distance whether you take the northern route or the southern route to Lake Quinault. The southern route involves taking Interstate-5 to Olympia, about 60 miles, then heading west for 42 miles to Aberdeen on WA-8 then taking US-101 north for 29 miles to Lake Quinault. This route is the shorter of the two at about 130 miles.

The northern route to Lake Quinault is more scenic. It involves a ferry ride either on the Edmonds – Kingston ferry and then the Hood Canal Floating Bridge or the Keystone – Port Townsend ferry from Whidbey Island to get onto US Highway-101 to go around the northern end of the Olympic Peninsula through Sequim, Port Angeles, and Forks before arriving at Lake Quinault. This route is about 200 miles from Seattle to Lake Quinault.

Old Growth Forests

Along the north shore of the lake you will find several stands of old growth forest like those shown in the photo to the right.

On the north shore there are several small resorts and on the south shore just a mile or so from US-101 is the historic Lake Quinault Resort owned by the National Park Service.

Note the person on the path among the trees in the photo on the right. The photo doesn’t do justice to the size of these ancient trees.

Restaurants, Lodging, & Attractions at Lake Quinault

Restaurants
*Salmon House Restaurant* At the Rain Forest Resort Village (see below)	*Dining Room* Lake Quinault Lodge (see below)
Lodging
Lake Quinault Lodge A privately run lodge owned by the National Park Service on Lake Quinault in the Olympic National Park south of Kalaloch. http://www.visitlakequinault.com/	Lake Quinault Resort A private resort on Lake Quinault. http://www.lakequinault.com/
Lochaerie Resort http://www.lochaerie.com/ A private resort within the boundaries of the Olympic National Park on the shores of Lake Quinault. Established in 1926 these rustic cabins, with linens and firewood supplied, have endured the decades.	Rain Forest Resort Village Visit their web site. A private resort on Lake Quinault. RV park, cabins, motel, and a restaurant. This well managed resort is a pleasure to visit.
Information
Olympic National Forest 353 South Shore Road PO Box 9 Quinault, WA 98575 (360) 288-2525 Pacific Ranger District - South

Locharie Resort – This wonderful resort has cabins that were built in the 1920’s and still maintain the 1920’s atmosphere.

The firewood and boats are free when you rent a cabin. All you have to bring is your food and the time to relax. Don’t even think about TV’s and telephones.

Ranger Station – A short road goes off to the left across a field to the Ranger Station. The have local information on hiking and camping.

You must stop here to get back country permits if you plan to do any hiking.

info@northwestplaces.com

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