Not like out of your mouth kind of spit, but a 5 1/2 mile long natural sand spit that is formed out into the Strait of Juan De Fuca, sometimes only 50 feet wide, sometimes breached by rough seas and high tide, where one side (north) is constantly beaten by waves and constant wind and the other (protected) side is a Wildlife Refuge. We had visited the spit a few days after we got here to Sequim, but it was at dinner time and we only had a few hours to visit. The tide was in that day and we could only safely walk about 1/4 mile along the beach, but up near the beached logs and trees. We wanted to get back here for an afternoon before we left and yesterday was the GO.
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| Nice Display of Dungeness Spit/Cline Spit |
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| New Dungeness Light House 5 1/2 miles away, Freighter, Mt. Baker |
There is the New Dungeness Light House at the end of the spit, if you are lucky enough to hike all the distance out during low tide, you can tour the facility. And you can also get access to the light house by boat but need permit to do so. The light house is no longer affiliated with the Coast Guard and therefore the New Dungeness Light Station Association, a non-profit organization, was formed to continue this wonderful coast keeper. You can also volunteer to spend a week as a Lighthouse Keeper and I would seriously think about doing so in the future. How you would get there for that week is the Association would bring you out with your food/clothes/personal belongings at very low tide in a Suburban or other 4 wheel drive vehicle, typically at first light in the morning. Then you take care of the light house - general maintenance, clean buildings, maintain the lawn and be a tour guide for those that either hike out or come by boat. At the end of the week, the Association comes back to get you to get back to shore. Sounds really cool!!
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| Looking North Towards Canada - start of walk |
We first went to Cline Spit, a small little park located just south of the New Dungeness spit. Saw a couple of crabbers, then drove to Dungeness for a day of hiking. Got there about 11:15 the tide had already reached the low point - and the water was way out. Misty/foggy and could hear the fog horns of freighters but could not see them. Temp was about 60 degrees, light wind, waves were very small, water clear, sunny - just gorgeous. As we reached the viewing point on the way down to the water we saw the light house in the distance with Mt. Baker looming overhead, actually looked like it was floating in air. And two freighters sailing by on their way to Seattle. Very pretty scene.
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| Ghostly Container Ship Heading to Pacific - Close! |
Our intent was just to hike a bit, stop have lunch, then hike back. But I kept saying - let's go a little farther, just a little more. We stopped and took a picture for a group of 4 women from Bainbridge (west of Seattle) who had hiked out to the light house and were on their way back and said that we had one more hour to get to the light house. Too far, and it was 1:45pm by then so we stopped at a beached tree and ate our late lunch. Tide was coming in and the wind had picked up which made our walk back more strenuous - leaning into the wind. Stupid me for insisting let's go farther, just meant we had that much more to go back! All the information about hiking to the light house says to allow 7 hours to get there, tour, and get back. Would need to hike at low tide.
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| Tree Stump Where we Ate Lunch - see Mt. Baker? |
Our walk out was just delightful, but the walk back gruesome. For a couple of reasons: the tide was coming in and the wind had picked up. Our sure footing of wet sand beach had disappeared with the incoming tide and we were walking up on rocks which made our footing uneven, and, my left foot was killing me and I was limping. We had done at least 6 miles by the time we got back to the truck and that's 4 miles too many for my left foot. I felt great that we got that close to the light house and was on the very north side of the Spit where it looked like the freighters were coming right at us! What great memories of yesterday, and our last outing before we head south on Sunday. Beautiful day!!!
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