Doomboomer's New Itinerary

Discover your Northwest here...

Port Ludlow is a residential and recreational community at the west end of the Hood Canal Floating Bridge. Near Paradise Bay, Mats Mats Bay, South Point and Shine, Port Ludlow has been a thriving town since the mid-1800s.    Visitors can relax in lounge chairs by the bay, ride bikes, walk to the waterfalls, hike the Timberton Trail loop, go sailing or play golf on a 18-hole course recognized as one of the most beautiful courses in the world.  For seafood lovers, there are nearby clam and oyster beds.

Watcher's View #6

Watchers View #4: 

To the west, follow Hwy.

Bird Watchers View #1:

Surrounded by rain forest valleys and within minutes of the rugged Pacific Coast, Forks is a friendly little town full of recreation opportunities. Within an hour of Forks, one can be strolling a rain forest trail, kayaking a tidal estuary, surfing a wilderness beach, soaking in natural hot spring waters or canoeing a clear blue glacier-carved lake.

From Coast to Forest

Shipwreck Point Beach, between Sekiu and Neah Bay,  is a State Natural Resource Conservation Area, which includes outstanding examples of native ecosystems and scenic landscapes.

Along the Northwest Coast of the Olympic Peninsula, bird watchers will find a medley of unique and interesting birds. Nesting and playing along the shores are many local and migratory species of birds, such as oystercatchers, phalaropes, marbled murrelets, and several unique species of gulls. 

A healthy population of bald eagles reside beside the coastal estuaries along Highway 112. The coves and inlets along the shoreline also provide essential habitat for shorebirds and roosting gulls.

This drive-to beach is a beautiful spot to enjoy the surf and watch shorebirds, eagles and seals. The 1-1/4 mile trek north to “Hole-in-the-Wall” begins here.

Shine Tidelands State Park is a 13-acre seasonal day-use park with 5,000 feet of tideland along Bywater Bay. At high tide, there is little beach available to the visitor. Shine Tidelands State Park is at the west end of the Hood Canal Bridge. It is also popular for wildlife and bird viewing.

Summer: 8 a.m. to dusk. Winter: 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

State Parks Information Phone: 360-902-8844 Web Site: www.parks.wa.gov

Travelers will find the northwest entrance to Olympic National Park’s 57 miles of coastal wilderness at Lake Ozette.* (From Hwy 112 past Clallam Bay, turn southwest onto the Hoko-Ozette Road, follow 21 miles to the Ozette Ranger Station.) Three miles of plank-and-stair trail lead the hiker to Cape Alava, with rocky shores and reefs to explore at low tide. Cape Alava is near the site of an ancient Makah village partially buried in a mudslide over 500 years ago. Artifacts recovered from this site can be viewed at the Makah Museum in Neah Bay.

Perhaps the most dramatic beach in Washington State.

Shi Shi Beach is located west of Neah Bay. Shi Shi (pronounced shy-shy) was named "best nature beach" by the Travel Channel. It's a day trip you'll remember. Shi Shi is an unspoiled beach and is reached by driving 66 miles from Port Angeles, through ClallamBay-Sekiu and on through Neah Bay, then followed by a 3.3-mile hike. The trip is well worth the time and one can enjoy the scenic beauty of Hwy 112.

Take time to discover and explore the miniature world of tide pools on the Olympic Peninsula's Pacific coastal and Strait of Juan de Fuca beaches. As breezes blow away the morning mist, you'll discover dozens of fascinating tide pools with sea stars and urchins and other critters scurring about in the tide pools.

Scenic ocean shores with easy access are found in the Kalaloch (pronounced clay-lock) area, 15 miles south of the Rain Forest Road on Hwy 101. Beach Trail 4 is a pebble beach with dramatic surf (beware of the strong undertow), tidal pools and is a popular place to dip for smelt (schools of small fish that spawn in the surf in warm, calm weather and can be caught with a large net). Picturesque Ruby Beach with a meandering creek, dramatic sea stacks, and drift logs is named for its sometimes garnet-colored sand. A gold mining operation was located here in the early 1900’s.

At 5.5 miles in length, the Dungeness Spit is the world's longest naturally occurring sandspit and home to the Dungeness National Wildlife Refuge. The refuge is a sanctuary for over 250 species of birds, 41 species of land mammals and eight species of water mammals. Its trails and picnic areas offer breathtaking views of the beaches, Dungeness harbor and the Strait of Juan de Fuca.

Clallam Bay Spit and Community Beach County Park is a 33 acre park jointley managed with Washington State Parks.  The Park is located where the nutrient-rich water of the Clallam River empties into the Strait of Juan de Fuca, providing a constant food source for shore and marine birds.  Eagles and osprey can be seen feeding on the beach; viewing marine mammals is an added bonus.  The dynamic hydrology interaction taking place between the Clallam River and the tides provide an opportunity to witness drastic changes to the landscape each time you visit.

The Moments in Time Nature Trail is an easy 0.5-mile trail that meanders through the woods and along the shoreline of Lake Crescent offering a variety of environments from breathtaking views of Lake Crescent and Pyramid Mountain to tiny fern and wildflower meadows to lush woods with towering evergreens and spectacular mosses and fungi. Appropriate for the entire family, it begins just off the parking area of the Storm King Ranger Station on Lake Crescent in the Olympic National Park.