Community Forums

athompson18 · 06-29-2015, 12:50 PM

Hello! We are about to embark on our very first RV adventure through Olympic National Park in WA, and also Trout Lake area for my cousin's wedding. We're total newbies, and are renting, but one of the things we want to do a lot of is hike. Does anyone know if you can park RVs at the trailheads? Not overnight or anything, just for maybe max 8 hours while we're on the trail. We're renting a 25 footer truck chassis model.
Much obliged for any tips or info!! And any recommendations, we're certainly in the market for them!

SilverBob · 06-29-2015, 01:57 PM

We've never been to Olympic National Park, but we've hiked all over the Sierras, including in Yosemite and King's Canyon NPs. Trailhead parking varies widely. Most places have a big enough area to park a 25' Class C, but some will not. In the real popular locations, even the biggest lots get full and congested to the point that maneuvering an unfamiliar motorhome through them can be tough. I've found that Google Earth is good for researching parking lot sizes and accessibility.

Check the park's website, and shoot an email to the "contact" address and ask your question there. 25" isn't really that big, so I'm guessing you'll be OK in most places.

twogypsies · 06-29-2015, 02:40 PM

Parking at trailheads is normally not for RVs. A 25' might be doable. As suggested, try to contact the park where that trail is located.

Also, if you've hiked a lot you know that there are usually signs at trailheads to lock everything up good and no valuables out in the open. A RV would be a very good target for a breakin. Be careful. Good luck!

lanerd · 06-29-2015, 03:05 PM

We were just at Olympic Nat Park and drove our toad up to Hurricane Ridge. The road is just fine for that size Class C and even tho I don't remember seeing any up there in the parking lot, it should not be a problem. From Hurricane Ridge there are several trail heads that you could take. At the beginning of the road, there is an Olympic Nat Park Visitor's Center. It too has RV parking and I'm sure they could answer all your questions.

For rv park, I highly recommend Gilgal rv park in Sequim...just a short drive from Port Angeles and Port Townsend and the town has a Costco, Super Walmart, and lots of good restaurants.

Ron

beaverfever · 06-29-2015, 03:23 PM

i would suggest you use google earth to look at trail heads you are interested in and multiply the cars there by 10
. 2 years ago we did the Olympic peninsula loop and used our towed to get around. even with it some parking areas were full and this was in may before the schools were out.

OLYLEN · 06-30-2015, 06:34 PM

You will need a pass to park at the sites. Google earth in a good resource. There are many hikes that start at Campgrounds and I know of several that are tight and a few a good sized A would have no problem. Best to decide on hikes and just make a phone call to ranger station to confirm.

LEN

Superslif · 07-02-2015, 09:11 AM

Google maps or Google Earth are good resources. I'll use Google "Street View" to see how tight a road might be for my 26' tt. If the road the trailhead is on is a Google Street View one you can rotate the view to see what the parking lot looks like. Being 25' your really only 5' longer then a full size pick up.