At pretty much all hours of the day and night I can hear the relentless drone of automobilia in the Seattle-area suburb where I live.
Thus, it’s a real treat to visit Quinault, which is little more than a lodge, a gas station and an Olympic National Forest office nestled along the sparsely-populated southern shore of Lake Quinault.
The main nocturnal sound I hear when walking down the two-lane road that runs through Quinault is the gentle rustling of leaves in the dense rainforest. Once in a great while a pair of lonely car lights may wind their way from Highway 101, but they seem like an intruder rather than the king of the realm, as they are back in civilization.
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Some Quinault visitors might complain about light pollution from a few street lamps, but it doesn’t take much walking to find yourself in complete darkness. I find oddly compelling the lights of an old-fashioned country gas station — replete with service bay and old tow truck — that has closed shop for the evening. This being two nights before Christmas, holiday lights grace the front of the Quinault Lodge.
So here we are, paying to experience a few nights away from the relentless drone.
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- Olympic National Park (visiting Quinault)
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