My last post covered Sol Duc Falls, the “poster child” waterfall in Olympic National Park in Northwest, Washington. Another must-see in the park is the view from Hurricane Ridge.

Hurricane Ridge is stunning. An easy (although winding) 30-minute drive from Port Angeles, Washington, climbs over 5,000 feet to bring you to a breathtaking overlook of the Olympic Mountains.

I recently visited Hurricane Ridge on a photography scouting mission in late June. Unfortunately it was the middle of the day and the lighting was terrible. However, the view from Hurricane Ridge was still amazing and I plan to return next spring or early summer for sunrise photography when there’s more snow on the mountains.

Hurricane Ridge is also a great place for wildflower photography and you can see one example in the photo at the top of this post. We were a bit early for the best wildflower season–that’s usually around mid-July–but there were still some nice flowers to be found in late June.

For wildlife lovers, there are quite a few Black-tailed deer roaming near the National Park Visitor Center and on the trails. This young buck walked past my wife and I on the Hurricane Hill trail and was so close I almost couldn’t get my lens to focus.