Monday, August 4, 2014

No Puffins, No Whales, No View

 

While most of the group packed up and made their way towards Port Angeles, Jim and I wanted one last look at the Pacific coast, so we headed about 40 miles northwest to Clallam Bay. We stopped at Sam’s RV Park, got settled in a site, had lunch, then took the Subaru for a ride.

An adequate place to spend a night but there aren’t a lot of choices in this area. $25 with full hookups, and no trees!

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Highway 112 is a very scenic drive along the Strait of Juan de Fuca. Our memory was faulty about Juan de Fuca the explorer, but Jim found this article and it’s possible he never even existed. Don’t believe everything you learn in school.

We headed west to Neah Bay and made several stops to look at the coast and the fishing villages along the way.

Sekium.

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Neah Bay.

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Strait of Juan de Fuca shoreline.

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That is beautiful British Columbia on the other side of the strait. It was too foggy to see much so we knew it didn’t bode well for our visit to the cape.

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We then followed the signs to the Cape Flattery trail, a large parking lot full of people and cars. No fog there so we were hopeful.

Cape Flattery Map

It was a nice 3/4 mile hike to the northwesternmost (is that really a word?)point in the contiguous states.

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We made it! But so did the fog, swirling around us like cotton candy.

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Jim took a few pictures but couldn’t tolerate the group of teenage boys that joined us so he went back. I stayed with hopes that the fog would move away even for a few minutes but it never did. I searched through the binoculars for puffins and whales but saw nothing but seagulls. In spite of the fog it was a beautiful spot and I am still glad we went.

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Check for future posts on Kimbopolo and Take to the Highway, as it was a sunny day when the rest of the gang visited the cape. I look forward to seeing their photos. They assured us there is an island with a lighthouse out there somewhere. And they even saw a puffin! Some days you get lucky.

I really would have liked to hike the three mile Shi Shi trail to what is supposed to be one of the most remote beaches in the country, but Jim is having a flare-up of Achilles tendonitis and with the fog we wouldn’t have been able to see much on the beach anyway, so we headed back home.  I took the opportunity to wash the car, then walked a couple blocks to the Clallam Bay Split Community Park on the Straight. There is a mile of beach that is accessed by a nice footbridge across the Clallam River.

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Today we rejoin the gang in the Olympic mountains.

12 comments:

  1. I am missing my daily dose of Lazy Daze Laughs...

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  2. $25 is an excellent price for along that coast.

    The fog adds so much mystery to that area. Awesome photos.

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  3. The fog swirled around you like cotton candy - how poetic! You're still having less fog than we did.

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  4. Further down that beach is rocky and has the best beach combing ever!

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  5. Fog has its own special beauty. And you took some great photos.

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  6. Some beautiful scenes out there on the edge. Thanks for sharing.

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  7. You make the fog look pretty. Well, at least you have a clean car? The bridge and the beach look especially nice.

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  8. Nice to see a bit of that area despite the fog. We are considering taking a day trip out to the coast to do the Ozette Triangle hike...have to plan around the tides, the weather and the driving time though. It's at least 3 hours drive one way from here!

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  9. That is a very sad little campsite, but with good access to all that beautiful coastline I don't think one is spending much time at camp. Fog is a mixed bag - while it blocks the lighthouse and bay, it certainly makes for it's own magic and peacefulness (unless maybe when a pack of teenage boys is included). Although we've finally dipped out of the triple digits for a few days, I would love some cool, damp fog :-)

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  10. Really glad to see all these pictures of the coast including the fog. Really sorry no puffins though. $25 sounds like a good price for FHU almost anywhere.

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  11. Oh, that coast calls me. I loved every inch of it. My daughter met us in Seattle and we went over to Victoria on Vancouver Island where we had the most wonderful whale watching trip. We got between three pods of Orcas. Wonderful.

    I loved being in the fog--cast a mysterious feeling on everything. Then, when it lifted...incredible sights.

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  12. I forgot to say I'm sorry to hear about Jim's achilles tendon. I know how painful that is.

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