Olympic Peninsula

We’re at the beach! But not the lie in the sun, build sand castles kind of beach we have in the East. The beaches of the Olympic peninsula in Washington State have other things to offer: views of Canada, views of snow-capped mountains, smooth, rounded stones of many sizes and colors, starfish, seals, and long, billowy kelp. We have spent the last four days listening to the surf while gazing up at mountains. This area is spectacular!

Tuesday morning we walked along Dungeness Spit, which at five miles long, is the largest natural sand hook in the nation.

On the walk, I spotted two bright red starfish that had washed up on shore.

Thinking they were dead, I gently put one in a baggie intending to bring it home. A passer-by informed me it was not dead, so I placed it back where I found it (secretly hoping on my trip back I’d have enough nerve to take it anyway). Alas, only one was there on our return trip, and we assume another beachcomber decided to take it, since it was too far from the surf to be swept out to sea. I picked up the one remaining, and posed it for a photo op:) before making sure it was safely back in the water.

I did pocked some beautiful turquoise-colored stones, though, to put in my birdbath at home.

There are charming towns out here, and it seems each is known for something in particular: Coupeville for its mussels, Quilcene for its oysters, and Sequim (pronounced skwĭm) for its lavender. Sequim gets less than 20 inches of rain per year, and it has an ideal microclimate for growing lavender. Since it is known as the “Lavender Capital of North America”, I did some Christmas shopping and purchased some lovely scented homemade soaps. Bill decided the scent was not so lovely, so they were banished to an outside compartment of the motorhome.

Today we took a 9 mile walk that included 3 miles of walking on the shore of the Pacific Ocean. How different is it from our good ol' Ocean City at home! It was quite foggy, so we couldn't see the islands in the distance nor the seals we heard barking.

Tonight we are camping in Sekiu, Washington. Again, we have are right on the water, this time the Strait of Juan de Fuca. Last night we were on the shores of Lake Ozette. I am so loving the sounds of the surf and the sea birds and the calming effects of the water. Of course, I am calm most of the time these days...I'm retired!!