Seven Lakes Basin

Elevation: 4,000 feet (1,200 m)

Seven Lakes Basin is a basin in Olympic National Park. The trail to the basin is 19 miles (31 km) round trip. The loop trail starts by following the Sol Duc River near Sol Duc Hot Springs and eventually heads south and begins a rapid elevation gain. The trail winds out of the rain forest and eventually ends at the High Divide, a long steep ridge that runs along the south side of the basin, where there are prime views of Mt. Olympus to the south and the Sol Duc valley to the north. To the east lie glacial fields.

While the basin itself has a barren, lunar landscape it is surrounded by alpine meadows lush with wildflowers and blueberries. Despite the name, Seven Lakes Basin, there are actually eight small lakes in the area. The lakes are Soleduck, Long, Lunch, Morgenroth, No Name, Clear, Round, and Lake No. 8. The largest of these lakes is Soleduck and the smallest is Morgenroth. Other lakes are encountered along the way which are not considered part of Seven Lakes Basin. These lakes are Heart Lake and Deer Lake. Heart Lake gets its name from its very distinct heart like shape. Black Bear and Olympic Elk are common in this area, especially when the blueberries are in full bloom.