Olympic National Park, located on Washington's Olympic Peninsula, covers nearly a million acres of diverse ecosystems, including mountains, coastlines, and rainforests. Designated as a national monument in 1909 and later a national park in 1938, it is celebrated for its magnificent scenery and silence, which attracts visitors seeking peace away from urban noise. The park features the "One Square Inch of Silence," recognized as the quietest place in the continental U.S. Such silence serves as an indicator of ecological health, underscoring the importance of preserving quiet spaces in nature.
"So many people come to Olympic looking for quiet," says Matt Mikkelsen, chairperson and executive director of Wilderness Quiet Parks. "It's not a resource we talk about enough ... silence is an indicator of the overall health of an ecosystem."
Along with sheer size, the parkâwhich was first designated a national monument in 1909 before becoming a national park in 1938âis home to a diverse set of ecosystems: glaciated mountains, a rugged Pacific coastline, alpine meadows, and one of North America's few remaining temperate rainforests.
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