Site was Last modified: September 05 2020.

Madison Falls

Madison Falls, Olympic National Park
Madison Falls, Olympic National Park
Madison Creek in Olympic National Park
Madison Creek, Olympic National Park

Our first stop in Olympic National Park was Madison Falls. The falls in located in the Elwha River section of the park. It is a very short easy hike from the parking lot to the falls on Madison Creek. The trail is paved After the creek passes over the falls, it runs a short way to the Elwha River.

Closeup of Madison Falls
Madison Falls

Lake Mills

Lake Mills from Glines Canyon Dam
Lake Mills from Glines Canyon Dam
Lake Mills
Lake Mills

After we finished exploring the area around the falls, we drove up the Olympic Hot Springs Road to the Glines Canyon Dam and then continued on to the end of the road to get a good view of Lake Mills.

The Glines Canyon Dam is scheduled to be removed as part of the Elwha River restoration project. When the Glines Canyon and Elwha dams are removed, Lake Mills will be gone and the river will become a free flowing stream. This will open 70 miles of prime salmon spawning habitat, much of it in Olympic National Park. The restoration project is expected to take three years. You can find more information about the project at Elwha Restoration.

In 2020 the lake is gone and the area is returning or maybe a better word is becoming the property of the undamed river.

After we explored the area around the falls and the lake, we drove to the Sol Duc Hot Springs where we spent the night.