Jonathan Ley's photos

Olympic Coast

February 2005: Shi Shi Beach

Shi Shi Beach is located just south of Cape Flattery on the north end of the Olympic Peninsula. A 2-3 mile sometimes muddy trail leads to a beautiful and rugged section of coast. Chris & I headed down the trail for a quick overnight trip.
The parking area is located on the Makah Indian Reservation. There is a recreation fee of $7, plus it's $10 for overnight parking at a residence near the trailhead. After we parked, a large, friendly Newfoundland dog started following us, and remained close by for the duration of the trip. Pets aren't allowed on the beach, but since she wasn't really "our" pet, there wasn't much we could do about it. She was a good companion... even if she did drool a bit, and lead to some awkward, "She's not our dog!" moments. She slept nearby our camp, and headed out with us the next morning.

The trail reaches the shore just south of these rock formations. The tide was heading out when we arrived. We spent a good deal of the time exploring the tidal pools up and down the beach. It's always interesting to see how creatures have adapted to life in this thin ecosystem that exists between sea and land.

Eventually, we headed south a few miles toward the point of the arches - seen here in the distance. There were maybe 3-4 other groups of people camped on the beach while we were there, hardly a crowd. We all enjoyed the unseasonably warm and sunny weather.

Every sunset is someone else's sunrise... halfway around the world. I hope they had as splendid a day as we did.

The glow of the sun persisted for some time... giving a warm backdrop to the formations on the point of arches. You can see Chris's (much more detailed) account of this trip on his website here.

February 2003: A tour of the Olympic Coast

		The Olympic coast west of Lake Ozette is a great place to explore Washington's wild coastline. If you get to the coast when the tides are low, there are miles of tide-pools to discover.

		The ocean is a fascinating thing. I had the impression this starfish was backed-into a corner.

		Despite being in one of the rainiest places on earth, during the rainiest time of year, we only encountered short periods of rain. The sun even made a few brief showings.

		In the Lake Ozette area, the coast can only be reached via a few miles of slippery boardwalks strung through the temperate rainforest.

		The deer along the coast are numerous and tame. Sightings of bald eagles and raccoons are also common.

		This is another area of the Olympic coast, "second beach", just south of the town of La Push.

March 2001: A tour of the Olympic Coast

		This deer barely moved as I inched-in for a close-up.

		Tattoosh Island is visible from Cape Flattery a short trail leads to the cape - the most northwest point in the lower 48 states.

		Skunk cabbage was just emerging.

		The tides bring in all sorts of interesting things. This nike shoe was likely one that fell from a container ship a few years prior (an incident that made some local news when it happened). It was a "new" shoe, but had obviously been in the sea for some time - supporting a number of small sea creatures.

		The changes in the look of the coast from low tide to high tide are dramatic.

Where is it?

		The Olympic coast is the northwest pacific coast of Washington state - the western shore of the olympic peninsula.

Before you go...

		If you want to camp in the coastal region of Olympic National Park, familiarize yourself with the National Park regulations. Reservations are required in the summer for the Lake Ozette area. Summer is slightly "greener" and drier, but there are less people & more storms in winter (yes, storms are a "feature" of the coast).

Back to "Other Adventures"