On our west coast vacation, we visited Hurricane Ridge at the Olympic National Park. With almost a million acres, the animals there do not fear humans and as we walked to a look out point, a fat fuzzy fellow snuffled along the path undisturbed by our presence. It was a marmot which is the out west name for woodchucks. A few minutes later, three black tailed female deer continued to graze as we passed by them, and a moment later we saw a male with antlers still in velvet. This magnificent land area has been designated a world heritage center due to the diversity of animals and plants – partially due to the temperate rainfall portion which normally receives over 180 inches of precipitation annually. I was especially fascinated by the incredible diversity of lichens this moist, pristine eco-system supports.
Hurricane Ridge
