Note: This is a vanlife road trip so hotels and restaurants are not included in our itinerary. We sleep and cook our meals in our tiny home. I’ve included our campsites inside the national parks.

I’ve been dreaming of exploring the Pacific Northwest (aka PNW) since reading (and watching) Stephanie Meyer’s Twilight book series in 2008. There’s something romantic about the fog, rain, and lush green sceneries of Forks as depicted in the book and movie series. Though already aware that most of the first film’s location set was in Oregon, I was more excited about the Forks Twilight Tour more than anything while preparing for this trip. What we were not prepared for though is how PNW swept us off our feet completely! From the rugged Oregon coast to the rainforests in the Olympic peninsula and the colorful fall meadows in Mount Rainier, PNW is stunning! Highway 101 makes the experience even more interesting as it switches between being an interstate freeway and a city street winding through quaint coastal towns and forests. In fact, the 2500+ miles drive was just as enjoyable as the many trails we’ve taken during this trip!

15 Days Pacific Northwest Road Trip

California - Oregon - Washington - California

Day 1 California: Sacramento to Crescent City

Day 2 California: Jedediah Smith State Park - Stout Grove Trail; Oregon: Samuel Boardman Scenic Corridor, Brookings

Day 3 Oregon: Coquille Lighthouse, Oregon Dunes Day Use, Devil’s Punchbowl, Bandon

Day 4 Oregon: Three Capes Scenic Route, Blue Herron Cheese, Tillamook

Day 5 Oregon: Cannon Beach, Ecola State Park, Nehalem

Day 6 Oregon: Youngs River Falls, Astoria Column, Astoria-Megler Bridge, Astoria; Washington: South Beach Campground

Day 7 Washington: Olympic National Park - Hoh Rainforest, Hall of Mosses Trail, Spruce Nature Trail, Ruby Beach, Willaby Campsite

Day 8 Washington: Forks Twilight Tour, Quileute Indian Reservation

Day 9: Washington: Olympic National Park - Sol Duc Falls, Hurricane Ridge Road; Port Angeles

Day 10 Washington: Port Angeles, Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe, Tacoma Narrows Bridge, Funko HQ in Everett, WA

Day 11 Washington: North Cascades National Park - Sterling Munro Trail, Thunder Knob Trail, Diablo Lake Overview, Goodell Creek Campsite

Day 12 Washington: North Cascades National Park - Washington Pass; Tacoma

Day 13 Washington: Mount Rainier National Park - Paradise Visitor Center, Skyline Trail, Longmire, Cougar Rock Campsite

Day 14 Washington: Mount Rainier National Park - Sunrise Visitor Center, Silver Forest Trail, Patriarchs of the Grove Trail, Reflection Lakes, Myrtle Falls, Sunbeam Falls, Christine Falls

Day 15 Washington: Last Blockbuster Videos Location in Bend; Sacramento-bound

Here are our top 10 trip favorites:

1. Olympic National Park’s Sol Duc Waterfalls Trail (2 miles roundtrip) - short hike through the rainforest with Sol Duc falls at the end of the trail.

2. Olympic National Park’s Hoh Rainforest trail - Hall of Mosses Trail (1.5-mile loop trail) - hike among ferns and moss-covered spruce trees.

3. Forks Twilight Tour - start at the Forks Chamber of Commerce for the map, Bella’s trucks and the City of Forks sign.

4. Mount Rainier’s Paradise Visitor Center - this area has some of the best displays of colorful meadows accentuating the snow-capped Mount Rainier.

5. Mount Rainier’s Skyline Trail (6-mile loop trail) - a relatively easy loop with well-maintained trails with wide views of Mount Rainier and the meadows.

6. Cannon Beach and tide pools at Ecola State Park - take some dramatic photos with the Haystack Rock in the background in Cannon Beach and experience seeing some interesting wildlife at the tide pools in Ecola State Park.

7. Olympic National Park’s South Beach Campground- is a beachside campground. Though we enjoyed camping in the rainforests, watching the sunset over the ocean is hard to beat.

8. Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park’s Stout Grove Trail (1-mile loop trail) - after driving through the giant redwoods in the narrow Howland Hill Road, we set on foot for an up-close experience of these massive trees at Stout Grove Trail.

9. Mount Rainier’s Thunder Knob Trail (3.6 miles roundtrip) - though this trail is mostly uphill, it was a relatively easy hike rewarding us with an aerial view of Diablo Lake.

10. Mount Rainier’s Reflection Lakes - visit early in the morning for the calmest water in the lake to see the Mount Rainier’s mirrored image.

Here are some tips before you go…

• If you’re planning on visiting at least 2 national parks in the next year then I highly recommend getting the annual pass (America the Beautiful) for just $80 a year. One national park entrance costs between $25 and $35.

• Visiting Pacific Northwest in the fall is gorgeous! Mount Rainier was heavily accentuated with the foliage of the meadows around her. We also experienced some rain and fog in Oregon which softened its rugged coast. It was spectacular!

• We took 15 days to explore the coast and the 3 national parks but felt that it was too short. There are many small coastal towns in Oregon that are worth exploring. I recommend taking at least 21 days for this type of road trip.

• PNW’s climate is a reflection of her diverse landscape! Come prepared for the sun, rain, fog and the cool breeze.

• When visiting the PNW, taking a trail through the rainforest is a must! As a beach-gal, I’ve always found rejuvenation near the ocean and never thought of finding solace in the rainforest. The many shades of green and brown with the earthy scent was a refreshing experience.

• North Cascades NP is among the least visited national parks in the country. My only guess is perhaps its northernmost location but seeing the turquoise Diablo Lake makes it all worth the extra miles.

• If you have just 7 days or less, visit either only the Oregon coast or the 3 Washington state national parks.

• My husband and I enjoyed the sceneries while driving even more than the stops we make! I highly recommend driving during day time to sightsee and make random stops for pictures.

• Highway 101 from Northern California to Oregon coast to the state of Washington is filled with many vistas. Be on the lookout for scenic stops and photo ops!

• Most national parks are big and a well-planned itinerary can save you unnecessary driving time.

Day 1 | Sacramento to Crescent City

We started our trip north early and drove for almost 7 hours until reaching Crescent City where we camped for the night. Though we didn’t explore Crescent City as much, our campsite was right next to a beautiful cove.

Day 2 | Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park, Samuel H. Boardman Scenic Corridor

Less than 10 minutes away from our campsite in Crescent City, we took the 10-mile unpaved Howland Hill Road. This is a narrow and windy single-lane road that takes you through the redwoods. RV’s and trailers are not allowed, for a good reason! We’ve had to pull over a few times to make room for oncoming traffic. At the end of the road is the short Stout Grove Trail. Though the Howland Hill Road allows you to experience the redwoods, there is nothing quite like experiencing them on a hike. This trail is less than a mile roundtrip and would make an excellent stop while visiting Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park.

From Jedediah Smith SP, we drove an hour north to the Samuel H. Boardman Scenic Corridor near Brookings, Oregon. This corridor is a scenic 12-mile drive filled with picturesque overviews and hiking trails. We visited the House Rock, Lone Ranch Beach and Arch Rock. We camped for the night in Brookings.

Day 3 | Coquille Lighthouse, Oregon Dunes, Devil’s Punchbowl, Bandon

Newport is about 4.5 hours away from Brookings so we left early at 6 AM to allow us a leisurely pace for the day’s drive. From Brookings, we drove 1.5 hours north on Highway 101 to Bandon where we explored the downtown’s sweet spots and the Coquille Lighthouse. For the sweet tooth, don’t miss out on Coastal Mist Chocolates in Bandon!

After lunch, we drove another 1.5 hours north for a short uphill hike at the Oregon Dunes Day Use area in Gardiner and capping off our day with a visit to the Devil’s Punchbowl before camping in Newport for the night. There are many awesome stops on the Oregon coast and aside from the attractions I’ve listed on our itinerary, we often make random stops on interesting finds.

Day 4 | Three Capes Scenic Loop, Tillamook Creamery, Blue Herron French Cheese

From Newport, we drove an hour north through the scenic 40-mile “Three Capes Scenic Route”. When Oregon uses the label scenic, they really mean it! The drive takes you to a beautiful drive through various farms, meadow and country homes. Though both Cape Lookout and Meares were closed during our visit, we still continued on the 40-mile loop drive to sightsee. There were plenty of picturesque stops along the route!

After the “Three Capes Scenic Route”, we headed to my favorite grocery brand ice cream, Tillamook Creamery. I was happy like a child in an ice cream shop, literally! There is a factory viewing platform inside the creamery where you can see the staff working as well as a gift shop and cafe. Less than 10 minutes from the creamery is Blue Herron French Cheese and Winery where we capped our day off with flights of wine and mimosas. We both really enjoyed the flight paired with a variation of Tillamook and Blue Herron cheeses. There were also a few farm animals you can interact with, the donkey and peacock were particularly friendly. Blue Herron allows self-contained RVs to camp for 2 nights which was perfect for us after a few drinks.

Day 5 | Cannon Beach, Ecola State Park, Nehalem

From Tillamook, we continued our trip north to Cannon Beach where we spent an hour strolling and taking pictures of the Haystack Rock. We made lunch and took a short trail at Ecola State Point. Later in the afternoon, we explored the tide pools at Indian Beach to see awesome sea creatures. Tide-pooling is a popular activity to do on the Oregon coast. During low tide, sea creatures living on the rocks are exposed. Just take caution because the rocks can be slippery. Also, be respectful of the corals and sea animals when tide pooling. We saw crabs, mussels, sea flowers and corals among others.

Day 6 | Astoria: Youngs River Falls, Astoria Column, Astoria-Megler Bridge; Washington: South Beach Campsite

Astoria is less than an hour away from Cannon Beach. Our first stop on the itinerary was the house set for the classic movie “The Goonies”. Upon arriving, we realized that the house is privately-owned and at the top of a small hill on a private road. Out of respect for the residents, we decided not to visit and take pictures. You can still see a portion of the house from the bottom.

Among the top things to do when in Astoria is a visit to the Astoria Column, a tower overlooking the Columbia River and the bridges. Unfortunately, the tower itself was closed during our visit, however, the park is open. They charge an annual entrance fee of $5 at the gate. When we first arrived, it was foggy shrouding the views but eventually cleared up after an hour.

Just about 20 minutes away from Astoria is the 50-foot-plunge Youngs River Falls located on Youngs River. This waterfall has been featured in a few films namely Free Willy 2 and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 3. From the parking lot, there is a short 0.3 miles trail to get to the waterfalls. After lunch at Youngs River Falls, we sadly said goodbye to Oregon and crossed the Astoria-Megler Bridge to get to Washington.

Six days to explore the Oregon Coast is not enough time. When I was planning our itinerary, I didn’t factor in the charming small towns between attractions that are worth visiting. We will likely spend 10 days just exploring the coastal towns on our next visit.

We planned on spending the night in Astoria but decided to start heading towards Olympic National Park. After a 3-hour drive, we were able to get a campsite at the South Beach Campground in Olympic National Park. This lovely campground by the beach is first come first serve and are not available for online reservation. I would’ve loved to camp here for the rest of our Olympic NP visit but I had already reserved our stay at a different campsite.

Day 7 | Olympic National Park - Hoh Rainforest, Hall of Mosses Trail, Spruce Nature Trail, Ruby Beach, Willaby Campsite

Our campsite (Willaby Campground) for the next 3 days is located in the southern part of the Olympic National Park. I planned our itinerary to minimize the amount of driving based on our campsite location. On the 1st day, we explored the central part of Olympic NP. From the Hoh Rainforest Visitor Center, there are many trails to take for all levels. We took the Hall of Mosses Trail (0.8 miles loop) and Spruce Nature Trail (1.2 miles loop) conveniently located next to each other. This was our first rainforest experience and we were both pleasantly surprised! Luckily the trails are short and we don’t have to maintain a pace because I was stopping to take pictures every few steps! I loved seeing different shades of green and brown among the ferns, mosses, spruce and cedar trees! The fresh musky and earthy scent added to the whole rainforest experience! It was exhilarating! If you only have a few hours to spend in Olympic National Park, I would place the Hoh Rainforest on my must-do! We made lunch and explored Ruby Beach for the rest of the afternoon before heading back to Quinault Rainforest to our campsite.

Day 8 | Forks Twilight Tour

The inspiration behind our Pacific Northwest road trip was my decade-long dream of touring the small town of Forks from the Twilight book series. Growing up on an island in the warm and tropical Philippines, I’ve grown to enjoy the cool weather. Since reading Twilight in 2008, I’ve been dreaming of experiencing the often foggy, rainy, damp and cool Pacific Northwest. Can you imagine how giddy I was during the self-guided tour?! My poor husband has to deal with my child-like exuberance the whole day!

Here are the stops we made for the Twilight Forks tour:

• Forks Chamber of Commerce for the self-guided tour map, City of Forks sign, Bella’s truck for both the book and movie versions.

• The Swan Residence

• Dr. Carlisle Cullen’s parking spot at the community hospital.

• Forks High School

• Forks City Hall and Police Station where Chief Swan works

• Miller Tree Bread and Breakfast, the inspiration for the Cullen’s house in the books.

• Cullen-Quileute treaty line.

• Jacob Black’s house with his bike parked outside.

• Rialto Beach, across La Push Beach which was closed during our visit.

• Bella Italia Restaurant in Port Angeles

Day 9 | Sol Duc Waterfalls, Hurricane Ridge Road, Port Angeles

On our last day in Olympic National Park, we sadly drove through the well-lined giant spruce trees on Highway 101 for the last time. I’ve grown fond of the ferns and mosses in the rainforest. From our campsite in Quinault Rainforest, we drove 2.5 hours to the Sol Duc Falls trailhead on the northern tip of the Olympic NP. I was already feeling sad about leaving our rainforest campsite but to our surprise, the Sol Duc Waterfalls trail took us through another beautiful rainforest! In fact, I enjoyed the sceneries at the Sol Duc Falls rainforest trail more than Hoh Forest.

From Sol Duc Falls, we drove 1.5 hours to get to Hurricane Ridge Road in Port Angeles. Although this road is only 17 miles long, it took us roughly 45 minutes to get to the top through the windy road. The peak of Hurricane Ridge Road vista has some of the best views of the Olympic National Park but it was heavily foggy during our visit. With my newly-developed fear of heights, the drive down was terrifying for me on the cliff-side areas. The rest of the day was spent exploring Port Angeles where we camped for the night.

Day 10 | Port Angeles, Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe, Tacoma Narrows Bridge, Funko HQ at Everett

From Port Angeles, my plan was to start driving south to Tacoma to spend the night before heading to Mount Rainier National Park the following day. On our way there, we stumbled upon the Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe and decided to spend a few hours exploring the area. Aside from the Native Art Gallery, there were also interesting totem pole designs based on S’Klallam legends. Behind the visitor center are picnic amenities with excellent views of the harbor. I highly recommend visiting the Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe when visiting Port Angeles. In fact, this inspired me to explore more of the Native Indian history, culture and reservation for our next visit.

Later on, we found out that the Funko Headquarters was nearby so we made changes to our itinerary and drove to Everett, WA. My husband has recently been collecting Funko Pops and this was his trip highlight! On the way to Everett, we passed through the Tacoma Narrows Bridge which has always fascinated me from the stories I’ve read in the past. Before arriving at the Funko HQ, we made a short lunch stop in Seattle, which we’ve already visited in the past and decided not to explore further.

Day 11 | North Cascades National Park - Sterling Munro Trail, Thunder Knob Trail, Diablo Lake Overlook, Goodell Creek Campground

Everett, WA is just 1.5 hours away from North Cascades National Park so we took a detour from our pre-planned itinerary and explore this park for 2 days. North Cascades NP is one of the least visited national parks in the country and I’m assuming because of its northernmost location. I’m glad though that we went out of our way to visit because it was well worth the effort. The turquoise Diablo Lake is beautiful and we’ve had one of the best hikes at the Thunder Knob Trail. They closed out all online reservations for the campgrounds so the first thing we did upon arriving was secure our campsite. We were lucky to get one of the few sites that have access to the Skagit River.

After setting up and reserving our campsite, we took the short (300 feet) Sterling Munro Trail showcasing the rugged peak of the Pickets Mountain Range. From here, we drove to the closed-for-the-season Colonial Creek Campground to park and walked towards the trailhead. Thunder Knob trail is a 4-mile roundtrip hike gaining close to 700-feet elevation. Most of the trail is uphill but nothing too difficult. We were rewarded with views of the beautiful Diablo Lake. After the hike, we made lunch at the Diablo Lake Overlook.

Day 12 | North Cascades NP - Washington Pass; Tacoma

We planned on taking the Rainy Lake Trail but the sunny Sunday brought in crowds with cars parked miles away from the trailhead. To skip the crowd, we drove farther north to the Washington Pass Overlook and took the short loop trail showcasing the towering granite peaks nearby. From here, we drove 3.5 hours back to Tacoma to camp for the night. Mount Rainier only has first-come-first-serve campsites this time of the season and it might be hard to find a campsite if we arrived late in the afternoon so we decided to stay in Tacoma for the night. Though short, our North Cascades visit has been a blast!

Day 13 | Mount Rainier NP - Paradise Meadows, Visitor Center, Longmire, Cougar Rock Campground

Just as we did at the North Cascades NP, we drove early to Mount Rainier NP to reserve a campsite for the next 3 days. After setting up and reserving our site at Cougar Rock Campground, we drove to Henry M. Jackson Memorial Visitor Center in Paradise. We hiked a portion of the Skyline Trail and drove the one-way Nisqually Paradise Road. Unlike the lush green mosses and ferns of the Olympic National Park, Mount Rainier greeted us with her ice-capped peak and colorful meadows. The fall was in full swing and it was beautiful! Sights of Mount Rainier are inescapable as we drove around the park often accentuated with pockets of vibrantly colored meadows. Paradise is probably the best place to see the fall colors in the park!

If you only have 1 day to spend in Mount Rainier NP, the Paradise area would be the best place to visit. It has some of the best views of the meadows and Mout Rainier year round!

Day 14 | Mount Rainier NP - Sunrise Visitor Center, Silver Forest Trail, Reflection Lakes, Grove of the Patriarch, Christine Falls, Myrtle Falls Trail, Skyline Trail

We started our day early and drove 1.5 hours north to the Sunrise Visitor Center stopping in Reflection Lakes to take pictures of the serene water. The drive up was stunning as you get closer to the peak of Mount Rainer. Between Highway 123 and 410 are plenty of amazing photo ops not just of Mount Rainier peak but also the often-colorful mountainsides. From the visitor center, we took a short hike at the Silver Forest Trail for some excellent mountain peak views. After the first hike, we drove back down for another short trail, the Grove of the Patriarch. Some of the oldest and biggest trees in the cascades are found on this trail after crossing a suspension bridge. The Grove of the Patriarch trail loops around massive douglas fir and red cedars.

For lunch, we went back to Paradise to enjoy our meal with spectacular views. A few hours later, I’ve decided to take the Myrtle Falls trail and Skyline trail solo. I make it a point to have some alone time considering we live in such a small space together. The Myrtle Falls/ Skyline trail is perfect for solo hiking because it’s generally crowded and with plenty of open spaces. Before heading back to our campsite for the night, we made 3 waterfalls stops along the way: Falls Creek Falls, Sunbeam Falls, Christine Falls. We capped off our last national park day in Washingon with a campfire and a beer!

Day 15 | Bend, Oregon

We planned on stopping by Tamolitch Falls and Clear Lakes as we were heading to Bend but decided to skip it feeling tired from the hikes we’ve taken the past 2 weeks. There are plenty of things to see between Mount Rainier and Bend such as Mount Saint Helens, Crater Lakes and Mount Hood. Unfortunately, we had to get back to California within the next 2 days for some errands. On the last day of our PNW trip, we visited the last surviving Blockbuster Videos location. It was an interesting visit and felt familiar yet distant. My husband bought a few souvenirs from the shop.

Pacific Northwest completely took us by surprise! Though I’ve seen pictures while researching our itinerary, the experiences and bond we’ve shared during this trip is something I couldn’t have imagined. The Oregon coast is awe-inspiring with its rugged coastal terrain and unforgiving water. The Olympic National Park with its rainforest brought rejuvenation, the kind I never thought I needed. The turquoise water of Diablo Lake in North Cascades NP is mesmerizing, peaceful. Lastly, Mount Rainier in the fall stole my heart with her vibrant colors and incredible peak! What a lovely experience!

I hope you found some inspiration and tips for your own Pacific Northwest itinerary! There’s so much to see for all kinds of interest! I’d love to see your PNW travels by tagging me on Instagram @sweetsavorygrace. Cheers!