Twenty-two
where this came from · who to thank
Where I checked the facts, who to trust before you go, and the people who made this guide possible.
This guide pulls from a lot of places. Park service websites, state park systems, local visitor centers, my own trips, conversations with the people who live in these towns. Most of what's in here I've seen or done myself. The rest I verified against official sources before I wrote it down.
But things change. Fees go up. Roads close. Restaurants shut down. So here's where to double-check the perishable stuff before you leave home.
official agencies
For entrance fees, road closures, ranger programs, current alerts. Always check the alerts page before you drive in.
National parks in this guide
Olympic National Park
Hurricane Ridge, Lake Crescent, Sol Duc, Hoh Rainforest, La Push. The big one.
nps.gov/olym
Mount Rainier National Park
Paradise, Sunrise, Ohanapecosh, Carbon River. No timed entry in 2026.
nps.gov/mora
North Cascades National Park
Diablo Lake, Ross Lake, Stehekin. No entry fee.
nps.gov/noca
Crater Lake National Park
Rim Drive, Wizard Island, Cleetwood Cove. Cleetwood Cove Trail and boat tours closed through 2028 for rehabilitation; reopens summer 2029. Check Rim Drive opening status May-July.
nps.gov/crla
Oregon Caves National Monument
Cave tours, the Chateau lodge. Tours by reservation only.
nps.gov/orca
Federal land managers
U.S. Forest Service
National forests across the PNW, where most non-park hiking lives. Northwest Forest Pass covers most trailheads ($5/day or $30/year).
fs.usda.gov
Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area
Multnomah Falls permits, Historic Highway, all the gorge waterfalls. The permit page lives at readysetgorge.com.
fs.usda.gov/r06/columbiarivergorge
Recreation.gov
Where you book everything federal. National park campgrounds, timed-entry permits, ranger tours, cabins. Book the day reservations open at 7 AM Pacific.
recreation.gov
Bureau of Land Management
For the dispersed camping and the lesser-known recreation sites. Useful for some Idaho stops.
blm.gov
state-level resources
For state park fees, reservation systems, and the official state tourism sites. Each state runs its own system.
Washington
Washington State Parks
Deception Pass, Cape Disappointment, Lake Wenatchee, all the rest. Discover Pass required ($10 day or $45 annual).
parks.wa.gov
Washington State Tourism
Official state tourism site, useful for festivals and events.
stateofwatourism.com
Washington State DOT (WSDOT)
Pass conditions, ferry status, road closures. The mountain passes matter.
wsdot.wa.gov
Washington State Ferries
Seattle-Bainbridge, San Juan Islands, Mukilteo-Clinton. Vehicle reservations only on Anacortes/San Juan Islands and Port Townsend/Coupeville routes; the first phase opens two months before the season. All other routes are first-come, first-served. 3% card fee on tickets since February 2026.
wsdot.com/ferries
Oregon
Oregon State Parks
Silver Falls, Cape Lookout, Champoeg, all the rest. $10 day-use parking at most parks (cash or card at the kiosk). Annual pass $60 resident / $75 non-resident.
stateparks.oregon.gov
Oregon State Parks Reservations
Camping, cabins, yurts. Six months ahead for summer weekends at 6 AM Pacific.
oregonstateparks.reserveamerica.com
Travel Oregon
Official state tourism site. The most thorough state tourism site in the PNW.
traveloregon.com
Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) · TripCheck
Real-time road conditions, cameras, closures. Bookmark this. The Multnomah Falls parking-lot camera is on here.
tripcheck.com
Idaho
Idaho Parks and Recreation
State parks and reservations. Smaller system than WA or OR.
parksandrecreation.idaho.gov
Visit Idaho
Official state tourism site.
visitidaho.org
Idaho Transportation Department · 511
Road conditions, especially for Highway 21 (Stanley) and the Hells Canyon access roads.
511.idaho.gov
local visitor centers
The local visitor centers know things the websites don't. The newest restaurant, the road that just opened, the festival starting next Saturday.
I'm not going to list all 37 area visitor centers here. The pattern is: search "[town name] visitor center" or "[county name] chamber of commerce" and you'll find them. A few that are especially good and worth a stop in person:
Visitor centers worth stopping at
Forks Chamber of Commerce
1411 S Forks Ave. The Forever Twilight in Forks Festival HQ. They sell the festival pin collection, hand out maps, and the staff will tell you where Bella's truck is parked.
Cannon Beach Information Center
207 N Spruce St. Tide tables, parking maps, current Ecola State Park status (it gets washed out a lot).
Cascade Locks Historical Museum & Visitor Center
Distributes free Multnomah Falls timed-entry permits on a first-come walk-up basis. If you didn't book in advance, this is your Plan B.
Newport Visitor Center
555 SW Coast Hwy. Whale watching info, tide pool maps, the lighthouse keepers know who to talk to.
Illinois Valley Visitor Center (Cave Junction)
At the junction of US-199 and Highway 46. The first stop before driving up to Oregon Caves. They'll tell you if the cave tour is selling out today.
Stanley Idaho Chamber of Commerce
Highway 21 in tiny Stanley. Sawtooth conditions, hot springs info, raft trip availability.
trails & conditions
A hike that's perfect in July can be impassable in May. Always check current conditions, not last year's trip report.
Trail resources
Washington Trails Association (WTA)
The single best trail resource for Washington. Recent trip reports from real hikers, updated daily during summer. Tells you whether the snow has melted, whether the bridge is out, whether the mosquitoes are bad. Free.
wta.org
AllTrails
Huge trail database with maps and reviews. The free version is fine for most planning. The paid tier, now called AllTrails Plus ($35.99/year), does offline maps. Recent reviews are gold for finding out about closures.
alltrails.com
Oregon Hikers Field Guide
Volunteer-run Oregon hiking wiki. Older interface but very detailed. Good for the off-the-beaten-path trails AllTrails doesn't cover well.
oregonhikers.org
Outdoor Project
PNW-focused outdoor adventure guide. Good photography, detailed trail and campsite write-ups.
outdoorproject.com
The week before your trip, run through this list:
1. Park alerts page (nps.gov/[parkcode]/planyourvisit/conditions.htm). 2. State park individual page for closures. 3. WTA or AllTrails for the specific trail. 4. TripCheck or WSDOT for road conditions if you're crossing a pass. 5. The hotel or campground confirmation email (read it twice for check-in time and cancellation rules). 6. The weather forecast 3 days out.
Skip this and you'll get there to find a trail washed out, a road closed, or a restaurant that moved. It takes 20 minutes total. Do it.
weather & planning tools
Weather and conditions
National Weather Service · weather.gov
Forecast accuracy is best at the official source. Search by zip code or city.
weather.gov
Mountain forecasts · mountain-forecast.com
Elevation-specific forecasts for individual peaks. Useful for Mt. Rainier, Mt. Hood, the Sawtooths. The summit weather is different from the base.
mountain-forecast.com
Tide tables · tidesandcurrents.noaa.gov
For La Push tide pools, Cape Kiwanda, the Oregon Coast tide pools. Low tide is when the magic happens.
tidesandcurrents.noaa.gov
Wildfire/smoke status · airnow.gov
August-September air quality is no joke in the PNW. Check this before driving into the Cascades during fire season.
airnow.gov
acknowledgments
For loading into the van without complaining (most of the time), for putting up with detours to one more waterfall, for letting me stop at every viewpoint. Chris drove most of the miles in this guide while I took notes and read coordinates aloud. This is his guide as much as it is mine.
And to Lily on her mission in Paris who got to skip most of these trips but still calls home asking about them. You'll get your turn.
To the people who keep showing up on Instagram, who message me about where to stay in Cannon Beach, who send pictures from their own bucket-list trips. This guide exists because you kept asking. Thank you for trusting me with your family vacations.
To every visitor center volunteer who answered our questions, every shop owner who recommended their favorite hike, every park ranger who told us about the trail that wasn't on the map. The best parts of this guide came from conversations, not search results.
Special thanks to the staff at the Miller Tree Inn in Forks for being so welcoming to Twilight families, to Bella Italia in Port Angeles for the mushroom ravioli that's worth a separate trip, to the Forks Chamber of Commerce for keeping the Twilight magic alive year-round.
a real disclaimer
I'm not a travel professional. I'm a mom of six who travels with her family and writes about it. I do my best to get the facts right but I miss things. If you find something wrong, email me at bellebucket@gmail.com and I'll fix it.
Prices and hours change. Every fee, every business hour, every reservation policy in this guide was correct when I checked it. Some of them won't be by the time you read this. Verify before you book.
Some links are affiliate links. A few of the hotel and gear recommendations earn me a small commission if you book through them. I only link things I'd send my own sister to. It doesn't affect what I recommend.
This is not legal, medical, or safety advice. If a trail says it's dangerous or a beach is closed, listen to the people who know the area. Tide pools have real currents. Waterfalls have killed people who got too close. Use sense.
Tribal lands deserve respect. When you visit La Push, you're on Quileute land. When you stop in Neah Bay, you're on Makah land. Buy the permit, follow the rules, support the tribal-owned businesses. You're a guest there.