bart & i ventured out for a night at shi shi beach in the olympic national park this weekend; i now feel like an official seattle resident. after a much longer drive (route) out there, we arrived at the trailhead about 4pm on saturday. i suggest taking a three day weekend for all of you; between the ferry schedule, stopping for permits & bear canisters, obtaining a makah permit & driving the windy 112 - you'd be surprised how long the 160 mile venture actually takes.
the hike from our car to the campsite was just under 3 miles - .6 miles to the trailhead & 1.7 into the beach. the hike was fairly flat, but muddy with a steep (but short) descent to the beach. before seeing the ocean you find yourself in a tunnel of trees that seems a bit haunting, needles & dead branches line a long walkway parallel to the beach. the beach was fogged in almost completely but we were optimistic. our neighbors led us to a prime driftwood location after we set up the tent & we started a fire. dinner was quick & was finished off with a beautiful sunset breaking the fog. all along the beach you could see campers gravitating to the shore as this was the first sunset in days. bart & i spent some time running around & admiring the now exposed scenery.
we woke up early morning & spent hours discovering the tide pools. knowing that the drive would be a lot of the day, we packed everything up around 1 & headed back to the car. the drive was beautiful & fueled by a fat smitty burger & shake. we got home a bit later than planned, but were happy to have made the journey.
Sounds fantastic! Great pics too. It reminds me of Toleak Point which must be fairly close by given the similarity in the scenery. I would check that one out on your next trip to the peninsula
ReplyDeleteThese pictures are really cool. I love the stars.
ReplyDeleteEvan