{"id":3505,"date":"2017-07-20T08:10:11","date_gmt":"2017-07-20T14:10:11","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/?p=3505"},"modified":"2019-03-16T10:20:52","modified_gmt":"2019-03-16T16:20:52","slug":"klahowya-campground-the-sol-duc-river-the-battle-with-big-paw-olympic-peninsula-washington-8-21-12","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/?p=3505","title":{"rendered":"Klahowya Campground, the Sol Duc River & the Battle with Big Paw, Olympic Peninsula, Washington (8-21-12)"},"content":{"rendered":"

Day 14 of Lupe’s 2012 Dingo Vacation to the West Coast.<\/em><\/p>\n

Lupe’s day began uneventfully enough.\u00a0 She woke up\u00a0on a soft bed\u00a0at a motel in Tacoma.\u00a0 Before checking out, SPHP gave her a bath.\u00a0 Afterwards, Lupe and SPHP\u00a0spent part of the morning at\u00a0the same\u00a0park where Lupe had played Frisbee the evening before.\u00a0\u00a0Next was a boring stop at a laundromat.\u00a0 When the clothes were all clean, the interesting part of the day began.\u00a0 Lupe, Lanis and SPHP left Tacoma on Hwy 16,\u00a0and headed for the Olympic Peninsula.<\/p>\n

It had been sunny and warm out in Tacoma, but by the time Lupe was crossing the Hood Canal on Hwy 104, the sky was overcast.\u00a0 After a while, a light mist began, but it was intermittent and didn’t amount to much.\u00a0 The Olympic Peninsula is mountainous, but between the clouds and the tall forest that lined both sides of the highway, there wasn’t much to be seen.<\/p>\n

From the Port Angeles vicinity, there were views of the ocean off to the NE.\u00a0 SPHP had been looking forward to taking Hwy 112 W along the N shore of the Olympic Peninsula, but Hwy 112 was closed due to road construction.\u00a0 Instead, Hwy 101\u00a0took Lupe into the N end of Olympic National Park.\u00a0 After Yellowstone and Glacier, Lanis and SPHP now knew better than to bother stopping anywhere in a U.S. National Park.\u00a0 Dingoes just weren’t allowed in the backcountry.<\/p>\n

Lupe, though, knew this place was different.\u00a0 For here,\u00a0in the towering old rain forests of the misty mountains, is the home of a creature from a forgotten age.\u00a0 Seldom spoken of by American Dingoes and Carolina\u00a0Dogs,\u00a0and even then\u00a0just in low\u00a0growls and whines,\u00a0is a\u00a0race of\u00a0ancestral Dingoes known only as Big Paw!\u00a0 U.S. National Park or not, no human has ever been able to find, capture or\u00a0record Big Paw.<\/p>\n

Hwy 101 left Olympic National Park and entered the Olympic National Forest.\u00a0 In the national forest, Lupe would be less restricted.\u00a0 Lanis and SPHP started looking for a place to camp, and soon arrived at the Klahowya campground.\u00a0 Klahowya\u00a0campground was in a forest full of ferns and moss.\u00a0 It had a real jungle look to it.\u00a0 There were plenty of open sites in the campground, too, some of them next to the Sol Duc river.<\/p>\n

\"Lupe's<\/a>
Lupe’s campsite at the Klahowya campground in the Olympic National Forest looked like a real jungle.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Lanis and SPHP selected a site, and set up Lupe’s tiny house.\u00a0 Lupe was still sitting in the Honda Element.\u00a0\u00a0She wasn’t so sure about things.\u00a0 What if Big Paw was lurking somewhere out there?<\/p>\n

\"Lupe<\/a>
Lupe in the safety of Lanis’ Honda Element, but still on the alert for Big Paw!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Eventually, Lupe came out of the Element to inspect the campsite.\u00a0 Klahowya campground\u00a0really was a very impressive place.\u00a0\u00a0Lupe’s tiny house was set up in\u00a0a jungle setting unlike any place Lupe had ever camped before.\u00a0 Lupe, Lanis and SPHP took a short walk through the jungle down to the Sol Duc river.<\/p>\n

From the size of the exposed rocky riverbed, it was easy to see that even though there was a fair amount of water in the Sol Duc now, normally it was a much larger river.\u00a0 However,\u00a0a dry spell and the late August season meant the river was quite low.\u00a0\u00a0 Lupe sniffed around in the bushes and young trees growing\u00a0near the rocky riverbed.\u00a0 She was having a good time exploring.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>
The Element parked in the Klahowya CG.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\"Element<\/a><\/p>\n

\"Lupe's<\/a>
Lupe’s tiny house at Klahowya CG.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Lupe<\/a>
Lupe arrives to inspect the campsite.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

After spending a little time down along the Sol Duc river; Lupe, Lanis and SPHP returned to the campsite for a picnic.\u00a0 When the meal was done, Lanis and SPHP thought it might be fun to find a trail.\u00a0 Everyone got back into the Element.\u00a0 Lanis drove back to Hwy 101, and turned W.\u00a0 In just a few miles, there was a\u00a0side road\u00a0to the N that looked promising.<\/p>\n

The side road wound around in the woods.\u00a0\u00a0It emerged\u00a0from the\u00a0forest\u00a0at\u00a0a large\u00a0clearing where there were some old abandoned buildings.\u00a0 The road\u00a0went past the buildings,\u00a0and soon\u00a0ended\u00a0at a trailhead.\u00a0 No other vehicles were there.\u00a0 Lanis parked the Element.\u00a0\u00a0A very wide, level trail led Lupe, Lanis and SPHP into a dense forest.\u00a0 Perhaps 30 – 50 feet down a steep embankment to the right, flowed the Sol Duc river.<\/p>\n

<\/a>
The wide level trail. It turned out this trail was an old roadbed mostly hidden beneath the leaves of the undergrowth on both sides of the apparent trail.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

After a little while, SPHP realized the wide trail was actually an abandoned road.\u00a0 Under the leaves on the trail was a\u00a0layer of\u00a0pavement, occasionally exposed at the edges where the where the old road was starting to crumble away.\u00a0 From the left, small streams trickled down a mountainside.\u00a0\u00a0Lupe, Lanis and SPHP came to a\u00a0single track\u00a0trail that led up the mountain.\u00a0 A sign said it led to Snider Peak<\/a><\/span><\/strong>, elevation 3,055 ft.<\/p>\n

Lupe, Lanis and SPHP took the single track trail, although how far it was to Snider Peak, no one knew.\u00a0 The trail switch-backed up the mountainside until it was out of view of the abandoned road below.\u00a0 Although the trail was in seemingly good condition, no one else at all appeared.\u00a0 Lupe was having fun exploring the forest, but Lanis and SPHP eventually decided Lupe had gone far enough.\u00a0 It was time to return.<\/p>\n

Back down at the old abandoned road, it was still early enough out so Lupe, Lanis and SPHP continued farther along the abandoned road instead of returning to the Element.\u00a0 Through the trees\u00a0were glimpses of the Sol Duc river down the embankment on the right, which\u00a0was\u00a0steeper and higher here than before.\u00a0 The river was now 50 – 100 feet below the road.<\/p>\n

The river curved away from the old road,\u00a0and the road\u00a0began to climb through an\u00a0exceptionally shady and gloomy portion of the\u00a0forest.\u00a0 At the top of the rise, the road leveled out at the edge of a clearing.\u00a0 On the opposite side of the clearing was a decaying old mobile home, and some dilapidated outbuildings.\u00a0\u00a0No one was around, but a flag was flying –\u00a0a black flag\u00a0with the skull and crossbones on it.\u00a0 Lupe had come to a pirate hideout!<\/p>\n

Lanis and SPHP didn’t think it wise to tangle with pirates, and retreated back through the gloomy forest down the wide trail to the bend in the Sol Duc river.\u00a0 There was no sign of pursuing pirates, but the hair on Lupe’s haunches was up.\u00a0 She was staring down the abandoned road ahead.\u00a0 On the side of the trail opposite the river, up on the mountainside, a dark form was moving at high speed through the trees – and coming closer.<\/p>\n

Lupe growled deeply.\u00a0 Suddenly, out of the forest and onto the abandoned road ahead, leaped the approaching menace.<\/p>\n

It was huge, as tall as either Lanis or SPHP!\u00a0 Its long, shaggy fur was mostly dark gray with silver streaks, but where Lupe sports a beautiful white vest on her chest, the creature had a vest of ebony.\u00a0 A huge curly tail arched high over its back.\u00a0 The creature’s large soft ears were flattened against its head.\u00a0 Its gray eyes glowed with a\u00a0distinctly reddish hue.\u00a0 Saliva dripped from its fangs and gigantic pink tongue.\u00a0 Big Paw!<\/p>\n

With a low, snarling growl, Big Paw bounded to the attack!\u00a0 There was no escape.\u00a0 Lanis and SPHP faced certain doom.\u00a0 A brown and white flash streaked toward Big Paw.\u00a0 It was Lupe, barking wildly!\u00a0 Big Paw paused to consider this noisy, tiny Carolina Dog for only a moment.\u00a0 Big Paw lunged at Lupe, but she was too fast.<\/p>\n

Lupe circled around and around Big Paw, biting his heels and harassing him.\u00a0 Big Paw snapped at her again and again.\u00a0 At times Lupe dashed into the trees to get away, with Big Paw hot on her tail.\u00a0 Lupe barely escaped.\u00a0 Once, Big Paw was so close, his slavering jaws snapped shut on the upper end of her tail, ripping her fur there away.<\/p>\n

Lupe darted between the trees like lightning.\u00a0 Big Paw crashed into several of them trying to catch her.\u00a0 Finally, Big Paw hit one of the trees so hard, it leaned and then\u00a0plummeted down to the Sol Duc river below.\u00a0 As its roots tore away from under the old abandoned road, a big chunk of the road gave way.\u00a0 It too, went crashing down into the Sol Duc river.\u00a0 Lupe and Big Paw almost\u00a0fell with it, but both managed to scramble back away from\u00a0the crumbling bank.<\/p>\n

Lupe was panting hard.\u00a0 She had put up a valiant fight, but Big Paw was too fast and strong.\u00a0 Only Lupe’s agility was saving her, but her energy was fading with each daring escape from Big Paw’s jaws.\u00a0 Finally Big Paw had her cornered.\u00a0 He snarled and lunged, but Lupe lunged first.\u00a0 Her fangs sank into Big Paw’s neck.\u00a0 She clamped her jaws shut, and hung on tightly.<\/p>\n

Blood streaked Big Paw’s fur.\u00a0 He howled with rage and pain.\u00a0 Big Paw shook his head violently, but the little Carolina Dog dangling from his neck refused to let go.\u00a0 Big Paw couldn’t shake himself free of Lupe!<\/p>\n

Big Paw took off into the forest, retreating back up Snider Peak, howling in pain the entire time.\u00a0 Lupe hung on.\u00a0 For how long she didn’t know.\u00a0 It seemed like an eternity, but may have been for just a minute or two, if that.\u00a0 Big Paw\u00a0made a mighty leap over a giant old tree trunk laying horizontal on the forest floor.\u00a0 As he did, Lupe crashed into the tree trunk, smashed between Big Paw and giant tree.\u00a0 She lost her grip and fell dazed to the ground.<\/p>\n

When Lupe woke up, Big Paw was gone.\u00a0 She was alone in the terrifying forest.\u00a0 Big Paw might return hunting her at any moment!\u00a0 Suddenly, she heard voices rising faintly up the mountainside.\u00a0 Lanis and SPHP were calling her, and looking for her.\u00a0 Lupe staggered to her paws, and took off running down the mountain.<\/p>\n

Soon\u00a0Lupe was back with Lanis and SPHP.\u00a0 Both shouted with joy at seeing her alive.\u00a0 They petted her, and hugged her, and kept congratulating her on her most stupendous victory ever in all of American Dingo or Carolina Dog history!\u00a0 SPHP promised her endless treats, steak and ice cream.\u00a0 Lanis said he had captured her entire battle with Big Paw on film.\u00a0 She was going to be rich and famous!<\/p>\n

\"Hmm?<\/a>
Hmm? Did I doze off? Was I dreaming? Uh, yeah guys, you just go ahead and sleep in the tiny house without me. Think I want to stay here in the Honda Element tonight. Mind locking the doors for me, Lanis, before you turn in? In fact, leave me the keys if you would, please! And maybe pull the blankie back over my head before you go?<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

It doesn’t happen often in that\u00a0distant land of mist, but on the night of the\u00a0full moon, when\u00a0the wind is right and blows the clouds clear away from the mountains, as\u00a0the\u00a0pale light filters through the ancient rain forest, if you go to\u00a0the old abandoned road\u00a0above the bank of the Sol Duc river, and\u00a0follow it to the start of the single track trail to Snider Peak, then\u00a0there the\u00a0Dingoes say, you can still hear Big Paw howling with rage\u00a0far up the mountain.<\/em><\/p>\n

And, if you continue on in the moonlight, on the abandoned old road, you will come to a wide open view of a curve in the Sol Duc river where the road and forested bank caved in during the Battle of Big Paw.\u00a0 But unless you are looking for trouble, don’t continue on the road up to the pirate hideout, or worse yet, go up the single track trail to Snider Peak.<\/em><\/p>\n

And, if you ever\u00a0meet Lupe, the American Dingo, you will know why the fur on the top of the tip of her curly tail is missing to this day.\"Klahowya<\/a><\/em>Links:<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Next Adventure<\/span><\/a>\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 Prior Adventure<\/span><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Want more Lupe adventures?\u00a0\u00a0Choose\u00a0from\u00a0Lupe’s 2012 West Coast Adventure Index<\/strong><\/span><\/a>, Dingo Tales Index<\/a><\/strong><\/span> or Master Adventure Index<\/a><\/strong><\/span>.\u00a0\u00a0Or subscribe free\u00a0to\u00a0new Lupe adventures<\/span><\/a><\/strong><\/span><\/em><\/span>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Day 14 of Lupe’s 2012 Dingo Vacation to the West Coast. Lupe’s day began uneventfully enough.\u00a0 She woke up\u00a0on a soft bed\u00a0at a motel in Tacoma.\u00a0 Before checking out, SPHP gave her a bath.\u00a0 Afterwards, Lupe and SPHP\u00a0spent part of the morning at\u00a0the same\u00a0park where Lupe had played Frisbee the evening before.\u00a0\u00a0Next was a boring … Continue reading Klahowya Campground, the Sol Duc River & the Battle with Big Paw, Olympic Peninsula, Washington (8-21-12)<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3495,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[429,47],"tags":[105,512,106,50,26,509,104,510,511,501],"class_list":["post-3505","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-2012-west-coast","category-dingo-tales","tag-american-dingo","tag-big-paw","tag-carolina-dog","tag-dingo-tales","tag-dingo-vacations","tag-klahowya-campground","tag-lupe","tag-olympic-national-forest","tag-olympic-peninsula","tag-washington"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/adventuresoflupe.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/P1030728.jpg?fit=1651%2C1238&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3505","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3505"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3505\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":20770,"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3505\/revisions\/20770"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/3495"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3505"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3505"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3505"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}