To escape the Texas summer heat, Wimberly based photographer Kara Buse and her husband Bryan took a family road trip to Washington State's Olympic National Park, boasting an impressive one million+ acres of sprawling parkland. Wild coastlines and diverse ecosystems are a hallmark of the park, where both glacier topped mountains and temperate rain forests find a home.
Kara kindly offered her travel itinerary to those in our community looking for a self guided retreat, full of misty beaches with bountiful driftwood, endless evergreen forests, and camp grounds that provide an idyllic setting for morning coffee. The stunning photo journal offers us a glimpse into summer in the Pacific Northwest.
![](https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/2774/9316/files/275-DSCF5732_2_07012eb7-ffe1-4eba-9df4-45d2b7ef9403_1024x1024.jpg?v=1692718764)
Olympic National Park, Port Angeles, Washington State
1st Stop: Kalaloch Lodge and Campground right on the beach.
![](https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/2774/9316/files/23-DSCF5013_1024x1024.jpg?v=1692718791)
2nd Stop: Ruby Beach with more tossed driftwood than you can imagine.
![](https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/2774/9316/files/34-DSCF5055_05f20606-e8df-41a0-aba0-488e75a19463_1024x1024.jpg?v=1692718826)
![](https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/2774/9316/files/66-DSCF5154_1024x1024.jpg?v=1692720749)
3rd Stop: Hoh River right off the road to Hoh Rainforest.
![](https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/2774/9316/files/212-DSCF5520_1024x1024.jpg?v=1692721122)
![](https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/2774/9316/files/129-DSCF5356_1024x1024.jpg?v=1692721224)
4th stop - Outskirts of Hoh Rainforest.
![](https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/2774/9316/files/207-DSCF5504_1024x1024.jpg?v=1692721060)
![](https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/2774/9316/files/235-DSCF5550_1024x1024.jpg?v=1692720523)
5th stop - Port Angeles beach community, we stayed inside a 1995 bus!
![](https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/2774/9316/files/358-DSCF6040_1024x1024.jpg?v=1692720204)
6th stop - Marymere Falls, a short hike from Lake Cresent.
![](https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/2774/9316/files/226-DSCF5537_1024x1024.jpg?v=1692719031)
7th Stop: Picnic on Lake Cresent.
![](https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/2774/9316/files/263-DSCF5703_1024x1024.jpg?v=1692720369)
![](https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/2774/9316/files/364-DSCF6055_2048x2048.jpg?v=1692721491)