Enchanted Valley Gear Checklist
Enchanted Valley sits 13 miles up the East Fork Quinault River from the Graves Creek trailhead, and most groups give it two or three nights. The walk is long, wet and muddy, with bears in the meadows at the top, so the gear that matters is a food canister, honest rain protection, shoes that cope with mud and a way to call for help, because nothing connects in the valley. The hikers we read disagree about whether the camps below the valley need canisters, so check the park's rule before you pack.
What shapes your gear on Enchanted Valley
- Distance
- The park gives 13 miles from Graves Creek to the valley and about 1,700 feet of elevation change. Washington Trails Association trip reports list the round trip as 27.8 miles with 3,700 feet of gain, and one blogger logged 30.5 miles over three days after side detours to camp.
From Olympic National Park (NPS): East Fork Quinault River Trail, Washington Trails Association: Enchanted Valley via East Fork Quinault River, trip report of June 9, 2021 and Jarrett Retz
- Camps and toilets
- The listed camps are Pony Bridge, O'Neil Creek, Pyrites Creek and the valley. Pit toilets stand at Pony Bridge, O'Neil Creek and the valley. Everywhere else you bury waste 6 to 8 inches deep and 200 feet from water and camps, and you carry out the paper. One 2019 trip report found no privy at Pyrites Creek.
From Olympic National Park (NPS): East Fork Quinault River Trail and Jarrett Retz
- Water
- The river and its side streams run beside the whole route, so hikers refill as they go. The park says to boil, filter or chemically treat what you drink.
From Olympic National Park (NPS): East Fork Quinault River Trail, Hiking With Yu and Jarrett Retz
- Season and weather
- The park lists May through September as the best season and says the trail above 3,500 feet is snow covered from November to June. One June 2021 report walked in under rain in 7 hours and out in 8, another group that month met a heat wave, and a May 2025 trip had highs in the 50s and 60s with lows from the high 30s to the mid 40s.
From Olympic National Park (NPS): East Fork Quinault River Trail, Washington Trails Association: Enchanted Valley via East Fork Quinault River, trip report of June 9, 2021, Hiking With Yu and Washington Trails Association: Enchanted Valley via East Fork Quinault River, trip report of May 5, 2025
- Phone signal
- There is no signal in the valley, according to a 2021 trip report.
From Hiking With Yu
What the agency requires on Enchanted Valley
An approved bear canister
The park's food storage page requires approved canisters throughout the park's wilderness. At Enchanted Valley the trail page adds that food, garbage, scented items and any drink other than water go inside, and that hanging food or garbage is not allowed there. The park's list of scented items includes toothpaste, deodorant, sunscreen, hand sanitizer and lip balm.
From Olympic National Park (NPS): East Fork Quinault River Trail and Olympic National Park (NPS): Wilderness Food Storage
A way to treat river water
The trail page says to boil, filter or chemically treat drinking water to prevent Giardia.
From Olympic National Park (NPS): East Fork Quinault River Trail
A bag for used toilet paper
The park asks hikers to pack out toilet paper everywhere on this trail, including at camps with a pit toilet nearby.
From Olympic National Park (NPS): East Fork Quinault River Trail
What hikers carry on Enchanted Valley
A bear canister, packed with the scented items
Every group that stayed in the valley carried one. A 2021 trip report walked up on a sleeping bear about 50 feet from camp while going to stash the cans, and a 2025 report saw canisters in use all around the valley camps. The park suggests lining the canister with a sealable bag and keeping it out of the tent and pack when you are away.
A 2018 forum post says the Lake Quinault ranger station lends them free, and a 2019 blogger got his with the permit. The park now says loans are first come, first served and can run out on busy weekends.
From Washington Trails Association: Enchanted Valley via East Fork Quinault River, trip report of June 9, 2021, Washington Trails Association: Enchanted Valley via East Fork Quinault River, trip report of May 5, 2025, Oregon Hikers Forum, Jarrett Retz and Olympic National Park (NPS): Wilderness Food Storage
Full rain gear and layers that are not cotton
A hiker who walked out in pouring rain passed many people in cotton T-shirts with no shell, and guessed they had an uncomfortable night. A 2019 trip report had rain for most of the first day.
From Washington Trails Association: Enchanted Valley via East Fork Quinault River, trip report of June 9, 2021 and Jarrett Retz
Shoes that tolerate mud and wet crossings
The 2021 report calls the lower trail a muddy mess with large blowdowns, and a spring blogger calls it very muddy too. The 2025 hiker rock-hopped the small crossings and kept dry feet in trail runners.
From Washington Trails Association: Enchanted Valley via East Fork Quinault River, trip report of June 9, 2021, The Grah Life and Washington Trails Association: Enchanted Valley via East Fork Quinault River, trip report of May 5, 2025
A satellite messenger
With no signal in the valley, the 2021 Hike With Yu trip strongly recommends a beacon or inReach device.
From Hiking With Yu
A filter or tablets, and less water than usual
The river runs clear beside nearly every camp, a 2019 blogger found filtering easy, and Hike With Yu says you can carry less water because refills are always close.
From Olympic National Park (NPS): East Fork Quinault River Trail, Jarrett Retz and Hiking With Yu
A tent, or a hammock for the forested camps
At Pyrites Creek most people used tents, yet a hammock worked there and at O'Neil Creek in 2019. The valley itself is open meadow with fewer trees, so a hammock is harder to hang there.
From Jarrett Retz, The Grah Life and Hiking With Yu
A warm layer for nights
The May 2025 trip saw lows from the high 30s to the mid 40s, and Hike With Yu notes the snowmelt river chills the air beside it.
From Washington Trails Association: Enchanted Valley via East Fork Quinault River, trip report of May 5, 2025 and Hiking With Yu
A length of cord for the bear wires
One spring blogger says the O'Neil Creek and Pyrites Creek camps have bear wire but suggests paracord in case a line is broken. A 2019 hiker also found bear wire at both camps.
This is for the lower camps only. The park says hanging food is not allowed at Enchanted Valley.
From The Grah Life, Jarrett Retz and Olympic National Park (NPS): East Fork Quinault River Trail
Bug protection for early summer
Hike With Yu met plenty of bugs on a late June trip, while the early May 2025 hiker said the bugs were not too bad.
From Hiking With Yu and Washington Trails Association: Enchanted Valley via East Fork Quinault River, trip report of May 5, 2025
12 people can go on one permit. Split this list between them so nobody carries two stoves.
Plan a trip hereWhat hikers regret or leave behind on Enchanted Valley
Machetes and other trail-clearing tools
A 2021 hiker found ferns and foliage hacked back for miles along the trail and asks hikers to leave machetes at home and let the professionals do trail work.
No day pack for the valley
A 2019 group hauled full packs on a trip that ended up as a long day to the valley and back to O'Neil Creek, and wished they had brought day packs like some hikers they saw.
From Jarrett Retz
Cotton and a missing shell
The 2021 hiker saw this combination on people hiking out in heavy rain and said it makes for a miserable night.
Extra water weight
Because refills are close at nearly every camp, Hike With Yu says you can get away with carrying less water than on a dry route.
From Hiking With Yu
Gear questions for Enchanted Valley
Do you need a bear canister at Enchanted Valley?
Yes at the valley itself. The park says all food, garbage and scented items go in an approved canister there and that hanging them is prohibited. The park's food storage page also requires canisters throughout the park's wilderness.
From Olympic National Park (NPS): East Fork Quinault River Trail and Olympic National Park (NPS): Wilderness Food Storage
Can you hang food at the camps on the way to Enchanted Valley?
Sources disagree. One spring blogger says hang bags are allowed at O'Neil Creek and Pyrites Creek, where bear wire hangs, and a 2019 blogger carried vaults but said they were not required below the valley. The park's food storage page says canisters are required throughout its wilderness, so follow the park's page.
From The Grah Life, Jarrett Retz and Olympic National Park (NPS): Wilderness Food Storage
Is there cell service at Enchanted Valley?
No. A 2021 trip report found no signal in the valley and recommends bringing a beacon or inReach device.
From Hiking With Yu
How long does it take to hike to Enchanted Valley?
The park gives 13 miles from Graves Creek. A June 2021 group took 7 hours to walk in and 8 hours to walk out in rain, and a 2019 group split the walk into two long days with a stop at Pyrites Creek.
From Olympic National Park (NPS): East Fork Quinault River Trail, Washington Trails Association: Enchanted Valley via East Fork Quinault River, trip report of June 9, 2021 and Jarrett Retz
Does hand sanitizer go in the bear canister at Enchanted Valley?
The park lists hand sanitizer among the scented items that must be stored with the food. A 2025 trip report found the trailhead dispenser broken and says to bring your own, so pack it with the rest of the scented items.
From Olympic National Park (NPS): Wilderness Food Storage and Washington Trails Association: Enchanted Valley via East Fork Quinault River, trip report of May 5, 2025
Sources
- East Fork Quinault River Trail · Olympic National Park (NPS) · Agency
- Wilderness Food Storage · Olympic National Park (NPS) · Agency
- Enchanted Valley via East Fork Quinault River, trip report of June 9, 2021 · Washington Trails Association, Jettpack · Trip report
- Enchanted Valley via East Fork Quinault River, trip report of May 5, 2025 · Washington Trails Association, PPPNW · Trip report
- Backpacking to the Enchanted Valley - Olympic National Park · Jarrett Retz, Jarrett Retz · Blog
- Backpacking the Olympics: Enchanted Valley · Hiking With Yu, Yu Chen Hou · Blog
- Enchanted Valley Backpacking · The Grah Life · Blog
- Enchanted Valley; Olympic National Park · Oregon Hikers Forum, abramj17 · Forum thread