Packrafting the Queets River: A Wilderness Float in Olympic National Park.

Why Packraft the Queets?

The Queets River flows through a picturesque valley in the southwest region of Olympic National Park. While many of the Northwest's hike-accessed rivers have more challenging whitewater, the Queet's riverside trail and class II character make it an accessible adventure for novice packrafters. Set amongst some impressive old-growth and with good opportunities to see elk and bears, the Queets offers a logistically simple way to visit a wild corner of the Olympics.

ROUTE OVERVIEW

The route described in this write-up is an "out-and-back" trip that starts and ends at Queets River Trailhead. This allows for a shuttle-free trip with a 1:1 hike-to-paddle ratio by way of the Queets Valley Trail. Upstream access is also possible, and those interested in a traverse-style trip with a more challenging approach should check out this write-up (represented as a dashed line in the embedded map).

Season and Flows:

Depending on your preference for weather and water levels, the Queets should be runnable year-round. Accessing the Queets Trail requires fording the river on foot, which makes the trail inaccessible to backpackers for all but the summer and early fall months when the water is relatively low. For packrafters, it's an easy ferry in your boat, making the run possible throughout winter and spring, even when the river is running high. We had 8300 cfs, which is a relatively high flow following a heavy November rain. By late summer, the Queets bottoms out around 500 cfs, which is possible but slow and low, requiring some channel hunting. Late spring and early summer offer reliable moderate flows and better weather.

Difficulty: This Queets below Pelton Creek is class II in difficulty, with rapids that primarily consist of small wave trains through braided channels. While there are a few defined rapids with simple maneuvers around mid-stream boulders, the main consideration is the ever-present wood. While an appropriate first wilderness packraft trip for many, paddlers need to be familiar with managing wood hazards. Most of the wood can be avoided by catching shallow eddies on the inside bends to skirt or portage fallen trees that are often hanging into the river from the eroding outside bank. While high flows wash out many of the smaller rapids and don't necessarily increase the difficulty of the run, they do increase the consequence, with more water pushing towards log jams. As such, new packrafters should target this run during medium to low, summer flows.

Portaging a river-wide wood hazard along the gravel bar on the inside bend of a corner.

ROUTE DESCRIPTION

The Ford or Ferry: From the trailhead, it's a short walk down to the gravel bar at the confluence with the Sam's River, where hikers typically can locate a shallow, braided section to ford. I'm always reluctant to unpack, inflate my boat, and begin a hike with wet gear, but then I think about how silly I'd feel if I took a swim while fording the river with a boat in my backpack. While fording is possible with summer flows, take the time to blow up your boat and ferry if you have any doubts. At our flow of 8,000 cfs, the ferry was a simple, cross-current maneuver that would be manageable for any class II paddler considering the Queets.

The Hike: Once on the far bank, you'll be on a signed and maintained trail that follows the river upstream through impressive stands of moss-draped old-growth forest. Around 2.5 miles into the hike, there is a spur trail that makes a short detour (0.2mi) to one of the largest Douglas Firs in the world. At over 15 feet in diameter, it is well worth the stop. The further up the valley you go, the more often you will need to do a little sluething to find the trail. While the trail is in decent shape, there are some spots near eroded banks or where it crosses drainages where the trail has been altered by flooding. There was some helpful flagging that got us back on track on a few occasions. You can check the NPS trail conditions page to see when it was last maintained. While there are several common spots for camping throughout the valley, we found the area near the confluence of Bob Creek to be a great option.

The River: Given the out-and-back nature of the route, river access is possible at most points along the trail. The river flows through a broad valley, amongst braided channels. Travel is swift with eddies as needed, but very few flatwater pools. There are no standout rapids, but a few spots with some midstream boulders to navigate. We did a couple of wood-induced portages in the fall of 2025, but good sightlines, a wide river bed, and the shallow, braided character of the run allow for plenty of time to choose an alternative channel or to grind yourself to a halt along the bank. Your takeout is right where you ferried or forded to start your hike, just below the Sam's River confluence. Those wanting to extend their trip might consider continuing downstream through Sam's Rapid (II+) and onto the lower section.

LOGISTICS

• A backcountry permit is required for any wilderness backpacking in the park and can be issued on rec.gov or by phone. Self-issue permits are no longer available at trailheads.

• We did this trip as a two-day, one-night excursion.

• A night of camping at Queets Campground is a convenient option for starting or ending your trip.