7.27.2009

found place















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.

2 comments:

August Flanagan said...

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

Anonymous said...

These pictures are really cool. I love the stars.

Evan