Port Angeles and Rialto Beach

We drove into Port Angeles the other day, the goal was to drive out on the Ediz Spit which is a finger of land that juts out into the Strait of Juan de Fuca and is the western edge of the harbor of Port Angeles.  This is a deep water port, ships come in from the ocean to dock, some in for repairs.  It is also the home of Nippon Paper Mill which - if you want to buy it - is for sale.  You drive right through the plant to get to the spit where boaters come to launch their boats, paddle boarders and kayakers come to launch, but definitely not for swimming.  It is also the port for the Coho ferry which goes between Port Angeles and Victoria, British Columbia.  A Coast Guard Station is at the end and you cannot go any farther than the guard house, bummer.

This eagle took off right by us, ha!

We wondered how many containers fall off during the voyage

Okay, why are these rock cairns here?  You definitely can't hike here.

Mt. Baker above tanker

The Coho coming into port, Mt. Baker above freighter in background

On it's way out to sea

Nippon Paper Mill for sale, want to buy it?

And it comes with a ready supply of wood!

So, we stayed sitting on the rocks and driftwood, staring out at the traffic.  We saw cargo freighters coming in, slow way down within a couple miles of the port, waiting for the Puget Sound Pilot Boat to come out and a pilot is taken on board to guide it into the Sound.  Also, freighters coming out and entering the ocean also slow down to drop off their Sound pilot, all done while the vessel is still underway.  I guess, one slip, and oops, into the drink the pilot would go!

Lake Crescent is so blue - it's a glacier lake, beautiful clear day

Hate seeing the left over junk of logging

Uh-oh.  Is that fog ahead?  About 10 miles from the ocean at this point

Lots of fishing boats out, they say the salmon are running.  Was cool to see a freighter outlined by Mt. Baker in the distance.  Stuck around for awhile, saw the Coho come into port and within 20 minutes it was going back out to Canada.  Looking up at the Olympic Mountains, still snow up there - we did not remember snow the last time - they said they had a very wet, snowy winter in the mountains which is good, chance of forest fires are greatly diminished.

Kinda eerie - looking for werewolves

Socked in

Can't see the sea stacks

How could these 2 men just lay there?  I was frozen

And these girls - grrrrr

Dave - solitary figure - coming towards me

Today we drove to La Push (remember the werewolves and vampires??) to see Rialto Beach, part of the Olympic National Park.  Only - it was totally socked in.  More than we have ever seen it.  Cold, dreary, kinda spooky, stuck around for about an hour - looked like it was lifting, walked along the pebble beach and called it quits.  Just too dreary.  Will try it again another day.

Map of the beaches we want to visit - all on the ocean

Stacks at First Beach

Very interesting