Near its upper end the Sol Duc Road approaches a trailhead serving the area's signature waterfall and a hot-springs resort. The valley narrows and the river steepens and grows louder as it nears the trailhead. This is the upper turnaround point of the spur before the route returns to Highway 101.
You're nearly to the end of the road. Up ahead the valley narrows and the forest crowds right down to the pavement, and somewhere close by the Sol Duck River is gathering itself for the show it puts on at the falls. The whole drive has been building to this, the river getting louder, the trees getting bigger, the air getting wetter. Just a couple more miles. Stay with me. The best part of the Sol Duck is waiting right at the top.
Photo: Niagara66 · CC BY-SA 4.0
