No matter how many trips I take to Cape Alava - and there have been more than a few - I never get sick of it. I see something new every time. This time, I saw harbor seals hunting in pairs at sunset during the high tide, right next to shore, heads popping up just above the water to take in their surroundings. We heard and saw seals and sea lions sunning on the rocks during low tide out near the island across from the campsite. In the morning, I saw an otter coasting through the water on its back before quickly turning and diving under to catch breakfast. Bird sightings included herons, cranes, bald eagles, black oystercatchers, ducks, and many more. As we arrived at Cape Alava to set up camp, two grazing deer greeted us, completely undeterred by our presence. As we left, two brown rabbits ran across the trail in front of us to hide in the brush. I brought my binoculars, and was glad I did.
Parking: Large lot with plenty of space was about 1/3 full when we arrived early afternoon on a Monday.
Trail: In great shape! The metal boardwalk towards the beginning was a little wet on the way out, making for some slick footing. There are also some holes in the wooden boardwalk, as usual, but it's a lovely little hike to to Cape.
Camping: Plenty of spots on the trail north of the small creek. You can keep going quite a ways up the trail for more to choose from. We encountered a group in the parking lot who said they were headed to Sand Point because there weren't permits available for Cape Alava, which made us a little concerned. There was a large group of about 9-10 in one campsite, which helped explain why the permits were limited. We had no problem finding a spot and there were some empty for the night. We chose roughly the 5th campsite (just before the bend into a big open area), and I realized the next morning there is a wasp nest in the trees between the 4th and 5th campsite. They didn't give us any trouble, but keep eyes peeled for that.
Water: The creek is noticeably lower than a month ago, but still had no issue getting that pleasantly tea-colored water collected quickly. The water is tea-colored but filters just fine and tasted fine.
Bugs: Other than kelp flies on the beach (which the crows enjoyed enormously), no major bug issues at the moment. On the hike in, there are spot that are a bit buggy, but nothing too bad.
I did notice that several trees in our campsite had branches recently sawed off, some quite roughly. One was recent and was still dripping sap. The branches weren't ones that would have been blocking the camping area at all, and with the rough nature of the cuts, I have to conclude that previous campers cut the branches to use in a fire. Once I realize this, I started to notice it all over Cape Alava. This exact behavior led to a fire ban at Sand Point, and if this keeps up, it won't be long until this happens at Cape Alava. We easily collected enough driftwood from the beach to make a small fire, so cutting into live trees seems absolutely unnecessary. I also noticed a lot of trash in our campsite, and soiled TP and wet wipes left in the corner of the fancy urine-separator privy. If you packed it in, you can definitely pack it out. Let's protect this incredibly beautiful place.
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