Here are some of my favorite places in the Pacific NW: Olympic Penninsula Hurricane Ridge Lake Crescent Shi-Shi Beach La Push and Riato Beach Hoh River Valley Solduck Hot Springs Hurricane Ridge is a few miles south of Port Angeles and a good place to start for some hikes into the interior. Great views of the Strait of Juan de Fuca and Mt. Baker if you only have time for a short stop. Lake Crescent has campgrounds and lodges and is nestled among impressive mountains. Shi-Shi Beach is a world- famous stretch of ocean wilderness beach. You access it from Neah Bay Indian Reservation [Access currently is prohibited but may be open soon]. La Push has campgrounds and cabins and lots of wild beach front. Stay at the Ocean View cabins to get out of the rain [they are cheap]. The Hoh River valley has a temperate zone rain forest. You can start here on a hike that will take you eventually to the Blue Glacier on Mt. Olympus. The fastest way to get to the Olympic Penninsula from Seattle is to drive north of Seattle on Interstate 5, getting off at the Edmonds- Kingston ferry exit. The ferry takes you across the water to Kingston and after a short drive, you cross over the Hood Canal [which is actually not a canal but a natural body of water--don't blame me, talk to Captain Vancouver]. The canal is spanned by a floating bridge. You then follow the highway till it meets up with Route 101, taking you to Port Angeles and through the Penninsula. I recommend Solduck Hot Springs, even though you have to pay. It is a nice, clean set up. The other hot springs -- Olympic Hot Springs, are too shallow, dirty and attract bored teen agers from Port Angeles. The Mountaineers print classic guides to the Olympics and Mt. Rainier. I think the tittles are something like 100 Hikes in the Olympics and 50 Hikes in Mt. Rainier. Their toll-free number is 800-553-4453. Mt. Rainier Crowded but perhaps a must see. The flower fields at Paradise are at their peak in late July and early August. You have never seen such lush flower fields of alpine splendor. This must be what Heaven looks like, I said to myself the first time I witnessed it. Also in the park is an old stand of cedars and Douglas fir [Island of the Patriarchs], a neat old lodge at Paradise and the Wonderland Trail, 90 miles of hiking that circles Mt. Rainier. Mt. St. Helens It looks like New York after World War Three--miles and miles of unbelievable destruction. At one place all the trees have been blown down in the same direction. It looks like the gods decided to run their combs across the hillside. But don't view it from I-5. The best way to see Mt. St. Helens is to take Highway 12 east from Interstate 5. Turn right at the little town of Randle and follow the signs to Windy Pass. The road is okay for a while, but later turns into a one-lane traffic jam. However, the view of the devestation is worth the aggrivation. When you go to St. Helens, plan for being there most of the day. There are some good campgrounds at Iron Creek, just off the road from Randle. North Cascades North and east of Seattle along the Canadian border, the Cascade Mountains spread out into a climber's and hiker's paradise. I don't know much about climbing, but the hiking is great and less crowded than near Seattle. The mountains remind me of the Alps, they are jagged and majestic. Highway 20 up the Skagit River valley is the best way to get there. You'll see some impressive hyro projects and may even wish to spend time hiking along Ross Lake. Jack Kerouac's fire lookout atop Mt. Hozemean is still there [see _The Dhrama Bums_.] The Pacific Crest Trail crosses the highway and leads you south through the mountains to Stehekin, a village at the end of Lake Chelan accessable only by foot, ferry boat or seaplane. Lots of great hikes in the area, and Lake Chelan is breathtaking as it wends its way between solid mountains. Farther away from Seattle, I would recommend the following wilderness areas to explore: Selway-Bitterroot in Idaho/Montana One of the largest in the Lower 48 and one of the least crowded. Some spectacular hot springs are tucked away only four miles from the Wilderness Gateway trail head off Higway 12 in Idaho. The trails are in good shape and there are some real nice mountain lakes with good fishing (Old Man Lake, Florence Lake). The mountains are nothing special, but that's why it isn't so crowded. The Montana side features trailheads on the west side of the Bitterroot Valley (one of God's chosen spots). There's a neat trailhead at Twin Lakes that you get to by driving up a ridge. So when you start your hike with a full pack, you are actually hiking >downhill< for the first day or so. A great feeling and a real twist on the usual first day out. Anaconda/Pintlar Wilderness This is on the other side of the Bitterroot Valley in Montana, opposite the Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness. It's small and even more deserted. We hiked for five days without seeing another soul. There's a trailhead near Sula just north of the Idaho border that we took. It was a gentle 12-mile incline to the high country and the lakes. One special twist here is that much of the hiking is on the Continental Divide. I could go on, but you get the idea... Tom Griffin Internet:griffin@u.washington.edu