A beach walk on a winter day on the beach at Kalaloch can be wet and windy, or you can get lucky and have a sunny day and mild weather. But there’s always stuff to see.
Beach Walk
Dungeness Spit
Dungeness Spit State Park is located just north of Sequim on the north coast of the Olympic Peninsula. The lighthouse at the end of the spit is an 8 mile walk (one way) … and the signage warns to make sure you are aware of the time and tides. At high tide you may be forced to work your way through a maze of driftwood, slowing your progress dramatically. If the weather is clear, the views can be spectacular … including looking towards Hurricane Ridge in Olympic National Park.
Beach at Kalaloch
Kalaloch is in Olympic National Park. It includes a lodge and rental cabins, which are available year round. If you stay in the small lodge, one of the fancier rooms includes newspaper clippings from when First Lady Laura Bush stayed over.
Of course, the crowds are much thicker in the summer … and the weather is more chancy in the winter … well, I guess it’s more predictable: it’s likely to be raining. But with luck, you can get sunny weather in the middle of winter. The coast here is remote. There’s not a large city for a couple hundred miles.
Looking Downwind
This is a small public beach that sits right in the middle of downtown Port Townsend. There is a small square with tables for people to sit and eat pizza or drink coffee (the two closest options and both of which are excellent). If you click on the photo for the larger version, you will see a board in the lower right corner with the words: “Tell the Truth”. A good recommendation.
Can The Fishes See It Snowing?
I was downtown along the waterfront several days before Christmas and saw this scene. It reminded me of the phrase in Dylan Thomas’s A Child’s Christmas in Wales, where a small boy ponders: “Can the fishes see it snowing?”
Sadly, it wasn’t actually snowing at the time, and two days later it was all gone. I think it’s nice to have snow at Christmas, as long as it isn’t so much to disrupt the festivities.
But a Happy New Years to all … here’s to a better 2023. One with less mindless killing, for one.