North Shi Shi Beach Access - Point of Arches
Aug 20, 2008
by
hikergirl
—
last modified
Aug 26, 2009 04:01 PM
- Type of Outing
- Overnight
- Read More in our Hiking Guide
- Hike: Shi Shi Beach and Point of the Arches
- Region: Olympics -- Coast
- Agency: Olympic National Park; Makah Nation
- Avg Rating: 4.32
- Be Aware Of
- Mudholes
Finally planned the trip to Shi Shi Beach on the Olympic Coast. Unfortunately, the weather wasn't as good as we would have wanted it.
We decided that since we were driving from near Seattle we would stay in Forks the night before so that we were much closer to the trailhead. We stopped in Port Angeles for the National Park backpacking permit and a bear canister. We then drove to Forks and stayed the night.
Thursday morning we headed to Neah Bay from Forks. Once in Neah Bay stop at the Deli Mart for a reservation permit ($10 and good for the rest of the year.) We took Robuck Rd out to the trail. The trailhead is for day use only so you must use one of the two private property parking lots. The closer one was full so we had to park at "Donna's Parking." It was $10 for the night. We were fortunate enough to have a woman who was camping nearby pick us up and drop us off at the trailhead. The walk on the road would add an additional mile to mile and a half to the trip.
The trail itself is fine at first, lots of boardwalk. Then the mudholes come. There are several trails around the mud but it's almost impossible to avoid. The cliff down to the beach is a little steep but definitely manageable. Once on the beach, we walked about another half a mile down and decided to set up camp. We later learned that the toilet and fresh water source were about another mile or so down the beach. Weed did lots of walking to say the least.
The one thing we wanted to do is make it to Point of the Arches. Make sure you grab a tide book or get a chart from the Olympic ranger station. The tide pools are incredible at point of the arches. The weather was cloudy, rainy and no sunset!
This trip was a lot of work but in the end worth it. A clear evening would have made all the difference. Overall, good trip but a lot of steps and work to get there.
We decided that since we were driving from near Seattle we would stay in Forks the night before so that we were much closer to the trailhead. We stopped in Port Angeles for the National Park backpacking permit and a bear canister. We then drove to Forks and stayed the night.
Thursday morning we headed to Neah Bay from Forks. Once in Neah Bay stop at the Deli Mart for a reservation permit ($10 and good for the rest of the year.) We took Robuck Rd out to the trail. The trailhead is for day use only so you must use one of the two private property parking lots. The closer one was full so we had to park at "Donna's Parking." It was $10 for the night. We were fortunate enough to have a woman who was camping nearby pick us up and drop us off at the trailhead. The walk on the road would add an additional mile to mile and a half to the trip.
The trail itself is fine at first, lots of boardwalk. Then the mudholes come. There are several trails around the mud but it's almost impossible to avoid. The cliff down to the beach is a little steep but definitely manageable. Once on the beach, we walked about another half a mile down and decided to set up camp. We later learned that the toilet and fresh water source were about another mile or so down the beach. Weed did lots of walking to say the least.
The one thing we wanted to do is make it to Point of the Arches. Make sure you grab a tide book or get a chart from the Olympic ranger station. The tide pools are incredible at point of the arches. The weather was cloudy, rainy and no sunset!
This trip was a lot of work but in the end worth it. A clear evening would have made all the difference. Overall, good trip but a lot of steps and work to get there.
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