Hiking in Mount Olympus, Washington: trails, map and practical info

Mount Olympus is the tallest and most prominent mountain in the Olympic Mountains of western Washington state. Located on the Olympic Peninsula, it is the central feature of Olympic National Park. Mount Olympus is the highest summit of the Olympic Mountains; however, peaks such as Mount Constance, on the eastern margin of the range, are more visible from the Seattle metropolitan area. With notable local relief, Mount Olympus ascends over 2,100 m (6,900 ft) from the 293 m (961 ft) elevation confluence of the Hoh River with Glacier Creek in only 8.8 km (5.5 mi). Mount Olympus has 2,386 m (7,828 ft) of prominence, ranking 5th in the state of Washington. Due to heavy winter snowfalls, Mount Olympus supports large glaciers, despite its modest elevation and relatively low latitude. These glaciers include Blue, Hoh, Humes, Jeffers, Hubert, Black Glacier, and White, the longest of which is the Hoh Glacier at 3.06 miles (4.93 km). The largest is Blue with a volume of 0.14 cubic miles (0.57 km3) and area of 2.05 square miles (5.31 km2). The local Native American name for the peak is Sunh-a-do, and upon sighting in 1774 by the Spanish explorer Juan Pérez, the mountain was named Cerro Nevado de Santa Rosalía ("Snowy Peak of Saint Rosalia"). This is said to be the first time a European named a geographic feature in what is now Washington state. In 1788, on July 4, the British explorer John Meares gave the mountain its present name. On 2 March 1909 Mount Olympus National Monument is proclaimed by President Theodore Roosevelt. On 28 June 1938 it was designated a national park by President Franklin D. Roosevelt. In 1976 the Olympic National Park became an International Biosphere Reserve. In 1981 it was designated a World Heritage Site. In 1988 Congress designated 95% of the park as the Olympic Wilderness.