Upper Gray Wolf River to Gray Wolf Pass, Cameron Pass, Cameron Creek & Three Forks — Monday, Aug. 17, 2026

Three night trip from Deer Park Trailhead in the Olympics. My garmin clocked this at about 42 miles and 13,000 ft elevation gain (and loss...). Camped at Falls Shelter, Dose Meadows and Three Forks.

Overall the trail is a great way to get into the Olympics and get out of the air quality as well as closures of the cascades. This truly felt like middle of nowhere and I saw very few people each day after going about a mile from the trailhead. My trip was midweek, but considering the amount of campsites in various nooks at the marked camping areas I cannot see it being an issue finding a spot to camp on weekend trips.

The trail is in good condition and easy to follow but very overgrown from the sides in many areas, and a lot of downed trees, especially along Cameron Creek. That combined with "Mailbox peak" style uphills and downhills make this a real leg burner of a trail. Do not forget your poles for this one. There's a lot of single log creek crossings so if you have fear of heights like me, be ready for that, as well as some vertigo on the descent from Cameron Pass. 

Water is not an issue on this loop (since I didn't do the Roaring Winds ridge walk) - all streams marked on map were flowing at at least some degree. Only patch of snow I passed was off of the trail at Cameron Pass. Almost no flowers left - everything is super dry looking - I'd love to have been on this trail during peak wildflower or fall color times. There were some huckleberries present, but honestly all of them were rather dried out out and hard. :( The views at the passes and openings do not disappoint through - glaciers and endless peaks for days. Cameron pass isn't great for a break, but I sat near the top of Gray Wolf Pass for an hour enjoying the view. 

I didn't see any bears, but did have an amazing giant owl visiting my site at Falls Shelter and a huge amount of marmot friends at Dose Meadows.

Make sure to drive up to the viewpoint at Deer Park after the hike - truly magnificent view.