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Running trails in Port Angeles, WA
Port Angeles has 10 trails in the directory — 1 on crushed gravel or dirt, 2 loops that return to the trailhead, 2 with a stated distance, 1 shaded, and 7 open 24 hours. 8 of them post opening hours, so you can check the gate before an early start. They're ranked here by rating weighted by review volume, across 14,798 Google reviews. Filter by surface, loop, distance, shade or lighting to get to the run you're actually planning — no made-up difficulty score, just the facts you'd check before driving out.
Olympic National Park
4.8 ★★★★★ 10,692 reviews
922,000-acre park featuring snow-covered mountains, lush rain forests & dramatic Pacific coastline.
Marymere Falls Trailhead
4.8 ★★★★★ 1,993 reviews
Easy 1.8-mile trail through old-growth forest to 2 vista points overlooking a 90-ft waterfall.
Madison Falls Trailhead
4.8 ★★★★★ 1,753 reviews
Park featuring an easy trail to a waterfall and a tranquil river, plus a restroom and picnic tables.
Klahhane Ridge Trail
4.9 ★★★★★ 182 reviews
Hiking area featuring mountains and views, and described by some as amazing.
Verne Samuelson Trail County Park
4.2 ★★★★☆ 29 reviews
Quiet, heavily wooded walking & hiking trail over hilly terrain running alongside a creek.
Living Forest Trailhead
4.9 ★★★★★ 8 reviews
Easy 0.4 mile circuit leading from an old log cabin through a dense, picturesque forest.
Port Angeles Waterfront Trail
3.7 ★★★★☆ 3 reviews
No trails match those filters.
How to pick a trail in Port Angeles
- Match the surface to your legs. Port Angeles gives you a choice: 4 mixed and 1 natural surface. Asphalt and concrete are fast, predictable and runnable year-round but the least forgiving; crushed limestone and dirt take the sting out of high mileage; boardwalk is flat and scenic but slick in the wet. If your shins or knees are complaining, the fix that actually works is varying the surface you run on rather than chasing one "best" one. More mixed trails →
- Loop or out-and-back? 2 trails here are loops, so you finish back at the car with no backtracking — the easiest way to run a set distance without thinking about it. On an out-and-back you turn round at half your target distance, which makes any trail fit any run. The longest stated distance in Port Angeles is Foothills Multi-use Trail Head at 30 mi. 1 trail is long enough for a 5-mile-plus run without repeating yourself.
- Check the hours before a 6am run. 7 trails in Port Angeles are open 24 hours — the rest can sit inside a park that gates at dusk and doesn't unlock until well after sunrise. 8 of the 10 listings carry posted opening hours — worth a look before you set an alarm. 1 is lit, which is what you want for winter evenings.
- Long run? Check water and restrooms first. 8 have trailhead parking and 4 have restrooms in Port Angeles. Anything over an hour and those stop being nice-to-haves — and in summer, shade counts double.
- The small things that decide it. 1 shaded, 2 that runners describe as quiet, 3 dog-friendly, and 4 smooth and wide enough for a stroller or a wheelchair. Busy or quiet isn't a good-or-bad thing here: a busy path is the safer choice for a solo run at dawn, a quiet one is better for intervals.
More on all of this in the trail-running guides.
Browse Port Angeles trails by type
Running trails near Port Angeles
Worth the short drive — the closest towns with trails in the directory.