North Shi Shi Beach Access - Point of Arches

I stayed at Crescent Lake Lodge, so was finally close enough to get out to Shi Shi Beach, a placed I've longed to go for 10 years. It took about 2 hours to get to the trailhead. After stopping in Neah Bay at the Minimart for my $10 recreation pass, I parked right at the trailhead. Many overnight hikers were parking in private lots for $10 a day, but I decided to risk it. The gal at the Minimart said there had only been one car vandalism this year.

There has been a lot of effort and money put into the first two miles of this trail. Much of it is on boardwalks or bridges. The latter 1/2 mile was rather muddy, even though we've had dry weather. I can imagine it is like a swamp in the winter. The beach itself is gorgeous and many overnight campers were taking advantage of the summer weather. The onshore winds have been keeping it foggy until late afternoon, but the Point of the Arches were still spectacular.

I'll definitely be back for a backpack trip. Parts of it reminded me of the West Coast Trail up on Vancouver Island.