After seeing this waterfall, we then turned around and went back down the main road. Our first little walk was to see the so-called World's Largest Sitka Spruce. This was a very short, flat walk off of the main road.
This Sitka Spruce has a circumference of 58 feet and 11 inches, a height of 191 feet, a spread of 96 feet, and total of 922 AFA (American Forest Association) points. It is estimated to be about 1,000 years old.
We then went further down the road and hiked to Cascade Falls. There were a few slightly steep moments, but this was an easy hike for Sam to do. (He only grumbled a little!) We hiked to-and-from this waterfall on a loop trail, which was less than a mile altogether.
If you look really closely, you can see me and Sam standing on a bridge over the falls.
Our last little nature walk was the Rain Forest Nature Trail Loop, which was only half a mile in length. It was fun to visit this nature trail; the nearby Ho Rainforest is the only rainforest in North America (since it receives 150 inches of rainfall per year).
There were signs about the rainforest wildlife and ecosystem along the trail. (Sam took this picture of J.) I learned from one of the signs that a dead (or dying) tree which has lost its branches, yet still stands up, is called a snag.
Sam also took this picture of me and J through a hollow log.
There were a lot of trees in this area which had fallen down, so we saw a lot of interesting tree trunks and roots up close. This is just an image of one root system that I thought was particularly interesting. We read on one sign that the trees have relatively shallow root systems because there is so much rainfall. As a result, many trees get knocked over by the wind.
We had a fun time hiking in this area near Lake Quinault. I would love to go back another time and explore trails in the Ho Rainforest itself.
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