Olympic Peninsula

A young boy is eager to jump in the water, but the tide is out, so he explores the beach, and finds ... barnacle glasses (along with four clamshells, seaweed that pops, a heron feather). As the tide creeps in, his family builds a raft, has lunch like the gulls, and soon the raft is floating – time to dive in. A perfect day at the beach on the Olympic Peninsula! (Picture book)

“For eight hundred years I have lived here, through wind, the fire and the snow.” Lyrical story of a Douglas fir, watching the salmon return every summer and young owls learning to fly, the river flowing nearby, the wind carrying its song. Gorgeous illustrations capture the enchantment of the Pacific rain forest. (Picture book)

A seed in the forest grows into a fir tree two hundred feet tall. The tree is home to salamanders and bears under the roots, birds and bats, lichen and mosses, pine martens, spotted owls, flying squirrels on its branches, and white butterflies in the upper boughs. Sparkling illustrations. (Picture book)

On the peninsula, kids might see orcas from the shore. Read about a baby orca (she weighs four hundred pounds), as she learns to swim, play with other orcas, hunt for fish, and "talk" with her family. (Picture book)

Get out your binoculars to get a better look at the magnificent bald eagles that live on Dungeness Spit. How eagles fly, what eagles eat (favorite food is rabbits), where eagles nest, how baby eagles protect themselves, and tips for eagle watching. (Picture book)

Beautifully illustrated story of a coho salmon egg that hatches in fall, swims down river to the ocean in the spring, and returns to the creek to lay her own eggs. (Picture book)

Guide to 31 easy hikes in Olympic National Park, ideal for families (most are less than 4 miles round trip). Maps, trail descriptions, trail difficulty, and what you'll see along the way. (Guidebook)