Different Trails

OLYMPIC NATIONAL PARK (Day 18 - part 1)

The weather wasn't very conducive to continuing to explore the forest, so I headed to the coast instead. Wet sand seemed better than sopping mud and moss.

I stopped briefly at the salmon cascades. Young salmon swim down this river to the ocean, then 2 - 7 years later, they swim back up, looking for a good place to spawn. Unfortunately due to over-fishing (both in the river and the ocean), it's rather rare to actually see any fish here nowadays.

I set up my tent at the Mora campground then explored a few beaches.

My first stop was Rialto Beach, where the Quillayute River flows into the sea. I first walked south, down to the small bay surrounded by islands, then a stretch back up north.

Map of the area

The Quillayute River

Little James Island... and the small bay

A couple of seals bobbed about.

Looking down toward James Island

Heading back north past Little James Island... with Cake Rock in the background

Dahdayla Island... and some sea stacks. Sea stacks are the ghosts of former headlands.

Ellen Creek flowed into the sea.

Enormous logs littered the entire beach!

A sea otter waits for a beachcomber to pass, then makes a dash from the forest to the ocean.

Safe!

I drove into the small town of La Push and walked along the breaker separating the Quillayute River from First Beach.

James Island wth the ocean to the left and the river to the right

Little James Island... and the river

I followed La Push Road south and stopped at the trail leading down to Second Beach.

The 3/4-mile trail leading down to the beach

At the end of the trail, a large pile of logs covered a small stream that flowed out over the sand into the sea. The beach stretched for about a mile before being blocked at each end by heads. The entire coast is a series of small bays and heads (or points). Some are impassable while others can only be gotten around during low tide.