Upper Lena Lake — Olympic Peninsula

Date Hiked: August 31-September 1

After so many overnight backpacking trips in the Cascade Mountains, it was time to return to my childhood stomping grounds: the Olympic National Park. Lower Lena Lake is a very popular hike with easy, non-permitted access to campsites right next to the lake. We traveled an extra four miles into the national park to Upper Lena Lake (backcountry permits required and no dogs allowed).

The road to the trailhead is all paved, but there are a few deep holes that crept up on me and I had to slam on my breaks. I wish these were marked with spray paint! We arrived at the trailhead around 10am and the parking lot had many of open spots. We snagged one right next to the trailhead.

Day 1: The trail up to Lower Lena Lake was uneventful. The leaves had not yet started to change colors, but if you hiked it now I am sure the vine maples are beautiful! WTA was doing some work on the upper bridge when we came down on day two (for more information on WTA work parties, click here). I saw some toilet paper and a dog-poop bag on the side of the trail...please pick up after yourself/your dog and Leave No Trace!

Lower Lena Lake overlook

We stopped for a snack at the Lower Lena Lake overlook before continuing on to the Upper Lena Lake trail. For the first three miles, the trail weaves along the river without obstruction and the elevation gain is very gradual and pleasant. There are a couple of wet/muddy spots from side streams but none are difficult to cross.

Trail to Upper Lena Lake before the steep ascent

Some are also great spots to top off your water bottles because once you start the climb, there are no good places to filter until the lake (the usual streams are dried up or too muddy/shallow). Bugs were not a problem until these wetter sections—not so much mosquitoes, but other bugs taking flight as we walked. I wore a bug net on my head just to keep them out of my nose.

Ascending to Upper Lena Lake starts right after the river crossing, which has a big log bridge which is easy to cross. This uphill climb is not for the faint of heart or the unfit. There are multiple large trees down over the trail, but it is pretty obvious where hikers have been getting around, under, or over them. For a few sections, you have to hike through shallow streams or mud. Higher up, we came to a fork where a tree fell right where the legit trail goes straight up. Many hikers went right (including us, thinking it was the real trail), but it peters out to a brushy deer trail and eventually gets back to the main trail. Coming back down we took the real trail and it was much shorter, just filled with large boulders and the fallen tree.

One thing that definitely helped with this steady, brutal incline were the ripe berries all along the trail. We stopped frequently to eat blueberries, huckleberries, and salmonberries.

Our campsite, #3

We finally reached the lake around 3pm and stayed at campsite #3, on the edge of the lake. I wish the campsites were numbered on the map at the entrance to the lake basin. The bugs were pretty annoying—initially just horseflies, but the mosquitoes came soon after we went swimming. There was only one other pair of guys camping at the lake, so it was very peaceful—not many people want to make the steep climb with a backpacking pack on! The mosquitoes really came out in the evening so we retreated to the tent to eat dinner and play card games.

Hiking out Day 2 with bug nets on

Day 2: We slept in because the mosquitoes were waiting for us outside.... We did not spend too much time hanging around before hiking out just because they were annoying. Bug head nets came in handy, plus long-sleeve, baggy clothing. The two fellas that spent the night nearer the entrance to the lake said they did not have too much of a bug problem, so it is possible that being farther away from the lake with the breeze helped!

We left camp at around 10am. Hiking down was not as difficult as I thought it would be. Poles helped immensely both up and down. We reached Lower Lena Lake around 1pm and had lunch, and made it back to the car around 3pm.

Parry's Catchfly (Silene parryi)

Purple Subalpine Daisy (Erigeron peregrinus)

I definitely want to do this hike again in fall, when it is not so buggy. Upper Lena Lake is incredibly beautiful and we did not get to explore as much as I wanted to due to the bugs. Things I recommend: poles, bug nets/bug repellent, waterproof shoes, baggy clothes, water filter for topping off, and a light pack!