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  1. Home
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  3. United States
  4. Olympic
Olympic, United States
National ParkUNESCO World HeritageBiosphere Reserve

Olympic

Pacific Northwest (USA)Designated in 19383,733 km²
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The only park in the United States with temperate rainforest, wild coast and alpine glaciers in one place

Area

3,733 km²

Protection category

IUCN II

Parque nacional —

Designated in

1938

It was declared in 1938 by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, partly to protect the Roosevelt elk — named after his predecessor Theodore, who had made the area a national monument in 1909 precisely to save the animal from overhunting. It is all but unique among American parks in bringing together three radically different ecosystems in a single territory: a temperate rainforest (one of the few at mid latitudes anywhere, with up to 3,500 mm of rain a year), more than 100 km of wild Pacific coast, and glaciated peaks above 2,400 metres — all of it reachable within a single day's travel.

Location

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3 dive sites within 300 km are also shown.

Olympic: 76 documented species

Mammals23Birds23Reptiles1Amphibians

Flora and ecosystems

Ecosystems found in the United States, where Olympic lies.

DesertTemperate forestTundra / polarWetland

Experiences in this park

Diving and snorkellingBirdwatching

Nearby dive sites

Where can I dive near here?

97 km away

98 km away

156 km away

Wildlife you can see now

What is worth looking out for this month in the United States?

Now is a good time: Urban bat colony under Congress Avenue Bridge (March to November (peak in summer))

Similar parks

Which other parks are like this one?

Same country: United States

Same country: United States

Same country: United States

Same country: United States

Keep exploring

Based on what we already know about this park.

Share your experience visiting Olympic, or a tip for other travellers.

Region

Pacific Northwest (USA)

Climate

Tropical, Arid / desert, Temperate, Mediterranean, Polar / cold

Best season

It depends on the region

Plan your visit

Best season
It depends on the region
Area
3,733 km²
See location
1
Cartilaginous fish5
Fish7
Asteroidea2
Scyphozoa2
Thaliacea1
Cephalopoda1
Bivalvia1
Malacostraca2
Insecta3
Ascidiacea1
Hydrozoa1
Myxini1
Gastropoda1

Threatened:,,,,,,,,,,,

United States · Pacific Northwest (USA)
what the IUCN categories mean
See on the interactive map→

Puget Sound (giant Pacific octopus)

Neah Bay

HMCS Nanaimo Wreck

Mexican Free-tailed BatLeast Concern

Mexican Free-tailed Bat

Tadarida brasiliensis

National Park

Hot Springs

United States

White-tailed deer · grey squirrel

It depends on the region

See park
Sequoia National Park
National Park

Sequoia National Park

United States

It depends on the region

See park
Acadia
National Park

Acadia

United States

American beaver · moose

It depends on the region

See park
National Park

Kenai Fjords

United States

Humpback Whale · Killer Whale

It depends on the region

See park
DivingPuget Sound (giant Pacific octopus)97 km away
CountryUnited States

AI-generated image: an illustration, not a photograph.

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Turkey VultureLeast Concern

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Northern FlickerLeast Concern

Northern Flicker

Colaptes auratus

Clark's NutcrackerLeast Concern

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Nucifraga columbiana

American BeaverNot Evaluated

American Beaver

Castor canadensis

American KestrelLeast Concern

American Kestrel

Falco sparverius

Three-spined SticklebackLeast Concern

Three-spined Stickleback

Gasterosteus aculeatus

Sunflower Sea StarCritically Endangered

Sunflower Sea Star

Pycnopodia helianthoides

See all 76 species found here
World Heritage
Biosphere Reserve