Now that I’ve finally caught up with all the blog entries from our 2018 Washington adventure, I’d like to share with you our overall itinerary. I’ve linked up the individual blog posts below if you’d like to find out exactly what we did on that day. I’ve also tried to highlight where the trip can be extended. Starting and ending in Seattle, we basically did a giant counter-clockwise circle around Washington. I’ve put the starting point at Everett, WA because that’s technically where we started from after my Ragnar race and it’s also easier to see the route since the ending point in Seattle is different.

Here’s a high-level overview of the itinerary and where we overnighted. Please note that this itinerary includes affiliate links. Please read our affiliate disclosure.

Day 1 – Arrival, travel to Burlington, WA

However you arrive in Washington, allow enough time to make your way north to Burlington, WA. I spent this night in Everett since I was coming from my Ragnar Northwest Passage race, but you want to be as far north as you can. We stayed at the Hampton Inn in both towns.

Day 2 – North Cascades National Park

Check out the visitor center in Nehalem and do either the Maple Pass Loop trail or the Blue Lake trail. Both of these are technically outside the national park boundary but you will have great views of the North Cascades. Maple Pass Loop goes right up to the park boundary. If you have extra days, consider detouring north to Mount Baker using my 3-day itinerary.

Day 3 – Travel to the Olympic Peninsula via Fidalgo and Whidbey islands

Make your way to the Olympic peninsula via the San Juan islands. We stopped in Widbey for lunch and we made it to Port Angeles with plenty of time for dinner.

Day 4 – Olympic National Park – Hurricane Ridge and Lake Crescent

Head to the Hurricane ridge visitor center and take any of the short trails you like from there. For a late lunch, head to Lake Crescent Lodge.

Day 5 – Victoria, BC

We took this opportunity to take a break from driving. We took the 90-minute ferry to Victoria, BC and enjoyed some city sights . If this doesn’t appeal to you, find something else to do on the Olympic peninsula – there is plenty!

Day 6 – Olympic National park – travel to Lake Quinault with stops at Hoh Rain Forest and Ruby Beach

If you have the stamina to drive longer, consider additional detours to Cape Flattery as well as La Push and its beaches (Rialto, Second). Alternatively, add an extra day. Your overnight stay at Lake Quinault should be reserved 9-12 months ahead of time to grab more reasonably priced rooms.

Day 7 – Travel to Mt. Rainier with a stop at Mt. St. Helens

It’s a long day of driving but a detour to Mt. St. Helens is very much worth it. This picture was taken at the Johnson Ridge observatory, which is unfortunately closed until at least 2026 due to a landslide that took out the road to it.

Day 8 – Mt. Rainier National Park

The Paradise area of the park is the most popular. Skyline trail starts there and it’s one of the most scenic trails I’ve ever been on. Mt Rainier National Park piloted a timed entry for the summer in 2024, and it is likely that a similar scheme will be in place for 2025.

Day 9 – Seattle

We stayed at the Grand Hyatt Seattle and found the location really convenient. I used points to book this, as hotels downtown can be on the pricey side. We did some classically Seattle things like the Space Needle, Pike Place market and a sunset ferry ride.

Day 10 – Morning in Seattle, Departure 🙁 

Do as much as you can on your last day depending on when you plan on departing. Our flight wasn’t until mid-afternoon, so we visited the Seattle Central Library in the morning.