Mineralfarmer's New Itinerary

An annual event featuring the North Olympic Peninsula’s finest chefs, local wineries and world-class harvest.  Live music, art exhibit, and silent auction.  Benefits the Y-ARTS community art program.

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.

Location

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.

Location

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.

Location

Among the only protected temperate rain forests in the Northern Hemisphere, the Hoh Rain Forest is a not-to-be-missed attraction on the West Side of the Olympic Peninsula. Moisture-laden air from the Pacific brings an average of 140 inches of annual rainfall to the Hoh Valley,(record of 190 inches) in addition to condensed mist that contributes another 30 inches. Nineteen miles inland from Hwy 101 you’ll find the Hoh Rain Forest Visitor Center.

Location

As you near Neah Bay, look for tufted puffin nesting on the sea stacks from spring to early summer, and common murres perched on Tatoosh Island. Look in the water for bobbing sooty shearwaters. During the spring thousands of migrating hawks, including red-tail and sharp-shinned hawks, kettle over Cape Flattery before flying across the Strait to Vancouver Island. Occasionally, large flocks of 200 to 300 sandhill cranes entertain lucky observers with their graceful formations and mysterious trilling.

Location