The Power of the River

The removal of the two Elwha River dams is moving ahead at a fast pace.   Faster than expected.

This is a project i am very excited about.   It was proposed around the time i moved to Washington 21 years ago (actually they first started talking about it only a year after the first dam was built 90+ years ago!) and i have followed it's tortured course through last year when they actually started the removal process.  It's exciting that this wonderful river in the National Park will be restored.



Gene and i decided it would be fun to go out to see it first hand -- and to do a little hiking.  I took the ferry Sunday evening and slept on Gene's couch so we got an early start.  We had a great breakfast at the Oak Table in Sequim; it lived up to my memories.

All day Gene and i were joking about the self centered way that many travelers use the word 'explore'.  You hear people say: "I flew to Europe and explored Prauge."   No you didn't!   It was there laid out for you and people had been there for 1,000 years.   You can't explore any place you can fly to.  You saw it, you learned about it, perhaps if you are lucky you experienced it but you didn't explore it!  We wanted to see the dams and the new riverbed exposed behind it...   wanted to learn something.  And we wanted to spend some time in the forest.

Our first stop was the Elwha Dam.  There is a short pleasant walk to an overlook to see progress on the dam.

Reclaimed site of lower Elwha dam May 14, 2012

A year and a half ago my cousins Ann & Pete & i walked across the top of this dam.  Now it's completely gone!  Upstream from the dam site the river is reclaiming the land that has been underwater for 90 years.  It has re-exposed the location of the creation myth of the Elwha people!

Sediment from drained Lake Adlwell 2012-05-14 (c) Mark Canizaro

There is a huge amount of sediment built up, over 30 feet deep in places, that should have washed out to sea over the years.  The river is cutting through that like it would through a delta, cleaning out the clogged river bed, draining that sediment and rebuilding beaches and harbors and ecosystems in the Salish Sea at it's mouth in the process.  It's fascinating.  The Seattle Times 'Field Notes' had a good description of it.

Aerial photo by Tom Roorda, of Northwestern Territories, Inc. the surveyors for the dam removal. From National Park Service website.

From there, we drove into the park and paid our fee, although the ranger station was closed.  I've been in the park through this entrance quite a few times.  It was surprising to see that the road, and trail to Olympic Hot Springs is closed for 2 to 4 years.  The hot springs must be very serene right now since it is a several day backpacking trip to get there.  The good news is that when they are finished with the work on the dam, they are going to rebuild the crumbling pavement of a long closed road to the hot springs into a genuine hiking trail! 

At the gate closing off that road, we went left and took the road on the other side of the valley, along the other side of the fake lake created by the second dam, the Glines Canyon dam.  We only got a few peek-a-boo views of this dam because they are still in the process of tearing it down.  The jackhammer didn't work (or rather, it broke) so they are now setting off explosives.

The Whiskey Bend road goes through the woods along the reservoir.  They water level is still dropping but that same moonscape that we saw behind the lower dam was becoming visible up here too.

I was scared on the very narrow steep gravel road.  I had some flashbacks to the crash i was in 8 years ago, when a terrible driver flipped the car we were in right off the mountain road and half way down the slope after bouncing upside down.  I held my breath a few times, but there was nothing like that this time, Gene is a very, very good driver.

We booted up at the trailhead and set out on a wonderful trail through the thick forest.  The Elwha, one of 15 major river systems on the Olympic Peninsula is the third of 7 major climatic zones.  It's the border between the heavy temperate rainforest of the west and the continental pine forests of the "dry" east side.  Still it was heavy with ferns and moss, salal and big cedars.  Which i love.  It was strange hiking in dry weather.  That's unusual for me, especially in the Olympics.

After a couple of miles we dropped down off the ridge, in a short, very steep descent to the river.  These raging mountain rivers are a favorite of mine. They are so powerful, so beautiful.   The Elwha, which comes down out of the high mountains fairly straight, encounters a major uplifted basalt ridge a couple of thousand feet high (which we were on) and turns left and flows along the edge of the ridge for a couple of miles.  At the point we descended it was finally able to punch through the ridge and form a canyon.   There is a very sharp turn in the river (rare for water don't you know) as it cuts through a narrow deep gap called Goblin Gates.

We sat there for quite some time taking it in, listening to the roaring water and watching a couple of ducks which seemed to enjoy extreme sports.  They would swim out into the strong whirlpool, getting knocked around a bit, and then dive.  Perhaps they were finding good food under the turbulence, but it sure looked to us like they were just having fun.

The Elwha here is a torrent of milky blue glacial water.  It's fantastic.  Sitting next to it is amazing.  This is a stunning place. There is a beautiful little meadow across the river from where we were which would be a fantastic place to camp.  I've hiked the other side of this valley 3 dozen times, or more, but i never knew this was here, and so easy to get to.  After 45 minutes or so we doubled back towards the woods, and down on to the rock bar alongside the river.  We took off our boots and dangled our toes in the icy water.  It felt good.

I didn't want to leave, i stood for a long time before climbing back into the forest. I found the spiritual power of the river almost overwhelming.

The trail paralleled the river for a little bit, but then turned up the steep slope again.  We were walking a loop and had to get back to the start, so what came down (us), had to go back up the steep trail.  One step at a time.  Hiking in the hot sunny weather is much more difficult than in the cool rainy weather, but i had put the in extra preparation it demands and other than the expected mild discomfort and tiring quicker it wasn't a problem.

We hiked a 5 mile loop total, which was a perfect length for me, especially in the heat, as i'm quite out of shape.  It was just enough to feel like i'd worked hard, but not enough that i couldn't walk the next day.  It was far enough in to the forest to experience some truly wonderful places, knowing that there is more further on for next time.

Here's a map of our route.  Soon this map will be out of date as Lake Mills is slowly draining.

As always click on the pictures to see a bigger image.

We enjoyed experiencing the Elwha river, the canyon and the forest.  We didn't explore it, clearly many boots had preceded ours.  The experience however, feels very much our own.



The restoration project is fascinating.  Here are some links for further information.
Elwha dams webcams!
Dam Removal overview
National Park Dam Removal blog (great photos!)
Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe
Wikipedia Elwha Dam Removal

Bureau of Reclamation Elwha Dam Removal project
a photo of the Glines Canyon Dam under construction
Elwha watershed map