Olympic National Park is one of my favorite parks because of the unique foliage that you witness walking through the rainforest. It's the only rainforest in the lower 48 states. I asked the ranger what the rainfall requirement was for the rainforest. She said there was no real cutoff, but about 140 inches or more was the general rule. Apparently, there are other requirements such as the presence of certain species of moss and the Sitka Spruce.
I think in 2007, I was completely blown away by the rainforest because it was so dramatically different from any forest on the east coast and it was the first west coast dense forest I had seen.. However, walking through the rainforest this time reminded me of the Redwood forest in Northern California. It wasn't as shocking this time because I had just been in the Redwood forest, but it is still impressive in a different way. The trees are covered with moss, and the nurse logs provide the only viable area for new trees to grow. If you do go to Olympic National Park, I'd spend at least 3 days there and take in Crescent Lake, the Hoh rainforest, and some of the other sites. The drive time from one side of the park to the other is over 3 hours, so camping on opposite sides of the park is probably a good idea.
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