Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

When it comes to historic lodges in the Pacific Northwest, Lake Crescent is among the best.



Nearly 100 years old, but kept up with the times, the Olympic National Park destination boasts a holy trinity of lodge life: beautiful views, good amenities and recreational opportunities galore.

This is the kind of place where you can hike nearby trails, kayak the lake, kick back in the sun, watch sunset from the restaurant, and relax in the lounge with a drink from the bar. It’s not a bad way to live.

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Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

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The lodge was originally built in 1915 as Singer’s Tavern, a seven-room establishment with a series of cottages outside. People came in by ferry, at first, and then by the newly-constructed Olympic Highway. In 1937, the lodge hosted President Franklin D. Roosevelt, the year before he designated Olympic as a national park. In the 1940s, the lodge expanded significantly, and in 1951 its owners sold the property to the National Park Service, which still owns the place.

Today, the Lake Crescent Lodge is marketed primarily as a romantic getaway. When I visited in May, the demographic of the guests was almost entirely younger and older couples, with a few families as well. This is, admittedly, something of an awkward place for a lone traveler.



I arrived in the early afternoon, a few hours early for the 4 p.m. check-in. With time to kill, I eased into a lakeside Adirondack chair with a book, the sun warm on my face, the breeze making soft ripples in the turquoise lake. The energy around the property was light and happy. People sat and relaxed, walked out on the dock, paddled out onto the lake and chatted quietly. The living, truly, was easy.

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Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

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While the best recreation is found in the national park – on the trails, lakes and coastline nearby – the lodge offers a few recreational opportunities on the grounds as well. But while a game of croquet on the lawn sounds lovely, you can’t beat a kayak or canoe trip on the lake. If you didn’t bring your own boat – I sure didn’t – you can rent one for $20 an hour from the front desk, and take a short trip along the beautiful southern shore.

When I finally checked in to my second-floor lodge room, I was greeted to a beautiful view of Lake Crescent, and the forested hills that surround it. I threw the windows open wide, flopped down on the bed and soaked it in. Yes, the bathrooms were communal. Sure, the walls were thin. But for that view, I would put up with a lot.

As the sun began to set, I went downstairs to grab a bite from the lodge restaurant, a glass-over-white-tablecloth kind of place. The food is your standard American fare: seafood, steak, chicken, salad. I ordered the fish and chips, which was good, though overpriced – a reasonable expectation in a national park. The restaurant was empty at breakfast and lunch, but it was absolutely packed for dinner, when a long line of couples began to form in the lounge. Rather than wait for a table to open, this lone traveler opted to eat at the bar.

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Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

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As couples continued to file in from their daily adventures in Olympic, I ordered a cocktail and chatted with the bartender. Most of the staff, he told me, have worked at several of these national park destinations, hopping around the country from one to the next. That experience seemed to allow them to work with the unique ebb and flow of a park-owned lodge. While many seemed overworked, everybody there was friendly, contributing to a sense of ease and well-being at the lodge.

Perfect lodge life is in the eye of the beholder, to be sure, but I found a quiet and beautiful time on Lake Crescent – a wonderful place to rest your feet, in the midst of the gorgeous wilderness found in Olympic National Park.

--Jamie Hale | jhale@oregonian.com | @HaleJamesB

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Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

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Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

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Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

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Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

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Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

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Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

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Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

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Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

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