The Olympic Peninsula
The drive to the Makah Indian Reservation (where Cape Flattery is located) has a lot of nice views overlooking the ocean and mountains
I’ve been doing a fair amount of local traveling because 1) I’m a broke millennial trying to live the dream and 2) there are still so many buzzworthy places that I have yet to visit. So during this so-called shoulder season - I call it shoulder season because even though it is officially Spring, it is not quite officially Spring here in the Pacific Northwest. We’re consistently teased by sunny and warm days but the next could bring constant rain and even hail and snow in some situations. Highways to the most popular points of interests generally don’t even until late May and in some cases, late July (I’m looking at you, Artist Point).
I’ve been camping almost every weekend while trying to squeeze in time to continue to be a better climber. My hopes for this summer is to really maximize my weekends and spend time outdoors. I’m still hoping to hike the Timberline Trail and because I got a dog sometime last October - it was quite important for me to make him comfortable camping with me. Spoiler alert - he’s been great so far!
For this post, I will be going through some of my favorite spots along the Olympic Peninsula. Fun fact: I actually haven’t spent much time in other areas of Olympic National Park and the Olympic National Forest. I find myself consistently returning to the coast. I’m not sure why but I generally do prefer mountains over beaches and the coast. Perhaps it's because I generally look for mountains elsewhere, the Olympics have always been a dedicated destination to get closer to water. But after visiting the Olympic Peninsula several times already (it’s not even summer yet, I’m doing great), I do want to eventually branch out and hike the other areas within the park boundaries.
I realized that while I am trying to give an overview of the Olympic Peninsula, there' is the entire North Coast and huge sections of the South Coast I have yet to explore. But I’m slowly working my way through. If you’re interested in backpacking in the South Coast, here is a post I did back when I did a short overnight to Hole in the Wall. If you’re interested in camping and an easy stroll through an old grown forest with beautiful lake views, here is a post I wrote about hiking around the Quinault area and camping at Kalaloch.
On the right, you’ll find the map with all the places mentioned in this post. I didn’t go to all of these locations all in one trip but I’ve gone to some enough times that I think they’re definitely worth stopping by if you ever find yourself on the west side of the Cascades. However, if you’re feeling ambitious and don’t plan on doing any of the hikes, any location along the coast is totally doable in one or two days if you’re in a time crunch because there is indeed a whole lot to see in the beautiful state of Washington.
I’ve also listed some campsites on the map that I highly recommend. A few of them do take advanced reservations through Recreation.gov whereas others are first-come first-serve. I’ve also done a couple of Airbnbs and backcountry camps as well.
There are a few ways to get closer to the Olympic Peninsula - I don’t have a preferred way. A lot of people enjoy taking the ferry but because some of these trips are somewhat spontaneous, I don’t always get to catch the ferry especially when it’s during peak season and holidays. It also depends on which side of the Olympic Peninsula you’re heading to. For the Forks area which generally gains access to Cape Flattery, Rialto Beach and Kalaloch, I would opt for driving by Port Angeles. This route takes you through the amazing Lake Crescent. The highway hugs the lake and gives you fantastic views of the Olympics and the lake. There are also a few popular hikes in this area which includes Hurricane Ridge and Mount Storm King. If I’m trying to access the Quinault area, which would eventually lead me to the coast, I usually opt for Highway 101 that takes me through smaller towns like Elma and Raymond. Whichever route you take, you’ll be treated with the diverse ecosystem the Olympics have to offer.
Exploring the Pacific Coast - Pacific Beach State Park
For the latest trip to the coast, I actually started on the Pacific Coast. When you’re driving down 101, you will eventually take the exit that takes you through Aberdeen and Hoquaim. Look out for signs that say ‘Washington Beaches’. My stop for the night was Pacific Beach State Park as I had plans to meet up with friends to go clamming in Copalis Beach. Now is the perfect season to check up on the tides and where you can go for shellfishing. We specifically wanted razor clams so we opted for the Pacific Coast. My dad used to take my sister along the Pacific Coast when we visited the Pacific Northwest so it brought back a lot of good memories when traveling with him and my sister back then.
I was at Site 28 - literally minutes from the beach
So cool to see so many people flying their kites
The contrasting dry grass and blue skies are defining features of the Pacific Coast
After spending a short night at the state park, I set my alarm for 5am so I could get to Copalis Beach by 6am. While plans didn’t entirely work out, we did get to beach when it was still low tide. It’s important to only head to the beaches during low tide if you are planning to go razor clamming. The same logic applies to hiking the trails along the coast as sometimes the tides could get so high that spots become uncrossable and you’re forced to either to wait for the tides to retreat or take the overland trail (if there is one). The Wilderness Map provided by the official NPS website for Olympic National Park shows which trails are passable during high tides.
It was my first time at Copalis Beach and it did not disappoint. Despite living in the Seattle area for the past 12 years, I’ve always enjoyed the rugged Oregon Coast a little more. But the Washington beaches provide a different scenery. You don’t see a lot of natural rock formations shooting out in the middle of the ocean. Instead, you get to feel how vast the ocean is because you could be staring out for miles and there’s absolutely nothing. It really forces you to feel small and puts things into perspective.
Razor clamming was a success. This year, the Department of Fish and Wildlife upped the number of how many clams you can keep - that number is 20. Before heading out to the coast, I thought that number would be hard to achieve but it turned out that there were an abundance of razor clams sleeping under the sand on the coast. I went with 2 friends and we were all able to reach the maximum of razor clams we can catch so we ended up with 60 razor clams and man, that was indeed a lot of clams.
Heading up to the North Coast - Cape Flattery
Shortly cooking up some of the razor clams we got and packing up camp, I was planning to just drive home. After all, I had a pretty tiring week prior. Nonetheless, the weather was looking better than normal on the coast. Since the weather was looking pretty promising, I was planning to drive 40 minutes north to Quinault. When I did the Quinault Loop Trail last year, I remember stumbling upon Willaby Campground (managed by the U.S. Forest Service) with access to Lake Quinault, it could potentially be a great day to do some light paddling in my new packraft. Since I had my dog with me, my options were limited when it comes to hiking trails within Olympic National Park. However, while I was making the drive, I was greeted with heavy torrential rain and then eventually came hail and snow. I looked out my car and the Quinault area didn’t look great. Impulsively, I decided to drive to the most northwestern in the U.S. and that would be Cape Flattery. I’ve heard great things about Cape Flattery but since it’s so far out from everything, I normally don’t really have a reason to visit it.
Plus, due to Covid-19, there were a lot of restrictions since it’s within the boundaries of the Makah Indian Tribe. The restrictions were recently lifted and so I thought it would be the perfect time to finally check it off the list. You do need a Northwest Forest Pass when visiting Cape Flattery.
One of the iconic views of Cape Flattery.
From Quinault, the drive was approximately 2 hours and 40 minutes. I’ve done this portion of the 101 numerous times. From visiting Rialto Beach to visiting Kalaloch, the road seemed extra familiar. The day was exceptionally nice though. I was able to see more along the coast than most other times I’ve made this drive. I was trying to be ambitious and thought I could perhaps stop by Ruby Beach. But since I still had almost a 3-hour drive to Cape Flattery and was trying to make good time in case something along the way happens (you can never be too careful), I decided to skip Ruby Beach and headed straight to Cape Flattery.
I always thought the Olympic Peninsula has one of the most diverse ecosystems - there are beaches, rainforests and mountains. It really is an area for people with different interests. And quite literally, it’s where the forest meets the sea. As I slowly drove past the familiar towns, I finally hit the turn to Cape Flattery. Note: There is no cell service on the road into Cape Flattery. I would say you probably won’t get service until you hit Neah Bay, which is the closest town. I wasn’t too worried about it, I’ve been on longer stretches of driving that don’t have cell service. Plus, the views that Seiku and Clallam Bay were enough to keep me engaged and occupied. Instead of stopping at all of the pullouts, I focused on heading to Cape Flattery. Due to the fact that I didn’t do any planning prior to coming here, I wanted to make sure that the trail was doable and there was parking. There was really only one way into this area anyway, so if I really wanted to stop, I could easily just do that on the way out.
The hike from the parking lot to the viewpoints is a short 25 minute walk with minimal elevation gain. There were a lot of signs reminding folks to please stay on the trail. Various viewpoints are easily accessible with rails just in case you’re taking your little one to avoid them from falling off the cliff. The majority of the hike is also paved with boardwalks (I love a good boarded hike for sure). Dogs are also allowed on leash. I went on a Saturday late afternoon and while there were quite a few groups hiking back while I was hiking towards the viewpoints, it never felt too crowded.
Sign indicating how long the hike is
Boardwalks for days!
Dogs are allowed on this trail but must be kept on lease at all times
Driving back to Seattle
After soaking in the views of the Pacific Ocean, I was ready to finally head back to Seattle. Plus, I knew I wanted to leisurely drive back because on the way to Cape Flattery, I saw a lot of pull out spots that gave me fantastic views overlooking the beaches and coast. And I really took my time stopping ever so often to take pictures. One of my favorite things to do is to take photos of roads and fog (or mist in this case). I find myself always driving on 101 and through Lake Crescent when it’s raining or cloudy. But when I hit up the Olympic Peninsula this time, the weather was definitely in my favor and so I took the opportunity to really capture some of the iconic views in this area.
Since this. was also an unplanned road trip, I didn’t really have the time to stop for hikes on the way. The last time I visited, I wanted to take my dog to do the Spruce Railroad Trail but the East Beach Access Road is still closed as of right now due to a washout. But sometimes just stopping my car and just soaking in the views can be just as fun. My goal isn’t always to hike the best trails out there, sometimes I just want to experience silence. Furthermore, it was a good opportunity for me to also try to improve my photography.
When I finally got tired of driving and take photos, I was ready to buckle up and really head home. I stopped by Port Angeles for some food. I usually do rely on Google Maps to give me the quickest and most direct way to head home if I know I am no longer wanting to make any stops on the way. This time, I opted for the ferry. The last time I took a ferry was probably more than 10 years ago when my parents accompanied me to send me off to college. That was in 2009. I always avoid taking the ferry because I’m not crazy good in planning ahead and sometimes you should definitely make advanced reservations as the ferries could fill up quickly. By the time I left Port Angeles, it was already 9:30pm and from there, it would take about a little more than an hour to drive to the Kingston Ferry Terminal. This worked out for me because I live in North Seattle so instead of driving back home on I-5 South, I only had to drive a few miles to head home once I got off the ferry.
For some reason, I was overthinking how the ferry was going to be. Perhaps because it has been a while since I’ve taken the ferry and since I didn’t even have a license back in the way, I wasn’t sure if we were able to get out of the car or not. What do I do with my dog? Luckily, the trip was short and sweet and I was preoccupied with catching up with some social media stuff. It was already dark out so I wasn’t trying to catch any views. Next time, I am definitely going to try to plan ahead and take the ferry during the day. The ferry ride from Kingston to Seattle was $16 and I took the last ferry of the day (Saturday) and it was at 11:10pm. It wasn’t overly crowded either.
While I was waiting for the ferry to depart, I was feeling a sense of excitement and anticipation. I wasn’t sure if it was because I felt like I was really adulting because a ferry ride was more or less a thing that my dad took me and I used to think he was amazing for being to able to plan everything to meticulously. To be able to feel a sense of that (through a ferry ride) made me feel like I was capable and independent - which has always been an area I struggle with.
Finally got to see the mountains while driving around Lake Crescent and as always, cotton candied skies make me happy
By the time I got home, I was tired - tired as hell. But I would 100% do it again. Sometimes my friends think I'm too ambitious and should really learn to take the time to take breaks. However, I know I’ve been somewhat in a weird funk lately and I needed to look for ‘self-worth’ and whatever that meant, being able to return to a familiar area while simultaneously exploring new locations really helped me with that.
Thanks for tuning in. I realized this post is a little different from the other posts I have which generally caters more to a backpacking trip or a hike. But like I said, it’s currently still a little early for me to comfortably do a lot of the hikes that I plan to do. The way I adventure during shoulder season is a little different from the summertime. But I do hope to eventually bring back those types of posts for you guys. Spending time outside will always have a special meaning for me - whether I’m out there trying to heal or just have a good time, I hope you find a little something out there when visiting the Olympic Peninsula and continue to explore the area like I would.
Resources
Planning a Backpacking Trip (Olympic National Park NPS Website) - gives you a good overview on how to obtain permits and a great wilderness backcountry map to help plan your routes
Wilderness Permits - you can reserve your permits online in advance. Aside from backcountry permits, you will also find reservable campgrounds for peak seasons on this website
The 7 Leave No Trace Principles - whether you’re going on a hike, camping at an established or dispersed campsite or backpacking, it is always crucial to follow the Leave No Trace (LNT) principles.
Shellfishing in Washington - provides information on season dates, where to go, and how to obtain permits
Sailing Schedule for Washington Ferries (WSDOT) - the route I took this time was from Kingston to Seattle