I felt much safer throughout the night after moving from the other spot. After taking down my little set up I stopped at the grocery store to pick up a few items before heading back towards Cape Flattery. After a gorgeous drive up the coast of the Salish Sea, I made it to the trailhead for the Cape Flattery trail. It was a short trail a little over a mile out and back. Along this trail, there were wooden boardwalks that looked weathered and warm down perfectly. Branches used as railings and wooden decks for overlooks to view the great cliff coastline. I stopped and looked at the water at the second to last lookout on the trail and couldn’t stop watching as the dark blue water swelled above the giant rocks that were poking out from the surface and then skink feet below the edge until another chorus of waves swelled up again. Seaweed coated the rocks that stood a foot above the water and glistened after the waves washed over them. I spotted two bald eagles hanging out on the largest rock formation in the distance. I then moved to the last outlook on the trail and it had an even better view of the whole coast, an island with the Cape Flattery Lighthouse, and the Canadian shore across the sea. It was a really amazing view. I hung out watching the waves and fishing boats move in the distance. At one point I saw a seal and was so surprised to see marine life that I audibly gasped. And when it popped up to the surface a second time I gasped again! I was so excited to see it. I stayed for a while hoping to see it again and after a few minutes, three seals appeared! They swam across a portion of the view and it was so cool. I was so glad I got to see some wildlife. I hiked back to my van and ate a little hurried lunch since I wasn’t that hungry but was heading to another area to hike.
I started the hike to Shi Shi Beach, which would be the last stop of my trip along the Pacific coast, which was crazy it was already that time. The hike was around 4 miles out and back. This forest had really skinny trees that seemed like they were all close together. The ground wasn’t crowded with ferns and it seemed lighter because of it. More weathered and worn wooden boardwalks, and a cool bridge that came to a point in the middle. This hike had quite a few really muddy spots and at one point I stopped and contemplated going back. But it looked like I was pretty close to the beach so I kept going. I’m glad I did because less than 10 minutes later I was taking the switchbacks to get down to the beach. It was another gorgeous beach with interesting rock formations on both ends. I found a big log and sat to eat a snack. For a long while I just watched the waves fall onto the beach, pushing and pulling a piece of driftwood that would get caught on the sand, and then recede back only to be carried with the next wave on its way to fall on the shore. I walked a part of the beach that seemed like it would have tide pools but there weren’t many. I started to go back to the trail when a group of three asked if I wanted to go check out a shipwreck with them. I went along with them and we climbed up and over the point that broke up this beach from the one next to it and went over the point of the next beach too. After some maneuvering over big rocks, the rusted-out frame of what once was a ship stood on the sand. These people were fun to talk to and they all lived on an Island between Washington and Canada. Two of them worked on a produce farm and one was going to start a veterinary program in London this upcoming year. Instead of going back the way we came, we scaled the steep hill up the beach to meet up with the trail again. The climb went through ferns and tall brush but the ground was soft and gave us grip to get up the big hill. We walked along fallen logs so that we could be taller than the brush to find the trail and after some navigating through the off-beaten path we found the muddy trail. One of them was an artist that paints and makes pottery so it was really interesting to hear about their work. We took a little shortcut, with a path already made, and made it back to the trailhead. We said our goodbyes and exchanged some contact info and I was back on the road. It was exciting to meet more people and socialize a bit. I stopped in Clallam Bay to search for a spot for the night and make some plans for the next couple of days. I found a pull-off on the road a little past Lake Crescent where I spent the night. It was noisy from the road but it worked. I made nachos for dinner and they turned out really good. It was a good day.
Comentários