• Home
  • Blog
  • About
  • PNW
    • Kayak/Travel Blog
    • Maps
  • Reviews
EVERYONE'S TRAVEL CLUB
  • Home
  • Blog
  • About
  • PNW
    • Kayak/Travel Blog
    • Maps
  • Reviews

Lose the Rude Dudes: Backcountry Beach Camping Near Rialto Beach, Washington Coast

1/13/2014

4 Comments

 
Picture
   Does the gloomy winter Pacific Northwest weather already have you planning for summer? A tradition for Captain Wifey and I is to drive the 3-4 hours from Seattle to the Washington coast and do a little backcountry camping near Rialto Beach.

View Larger Map
Picture
   The drive out there from Seattle takes you on a ferry ride (take the Edmonds ferry in the morning and Bainbridge on your return to beat the rush), through the town of Port Angeles where you need to stop and get your backcountry pass (more on this later), past lovely Lake Crescent (pictured above), right by the town of Forks (vampires anyone?), and finally to the Olympic National Park Rialto Beach parking lot.
Picture
   Rialto Beach is gorgeous. If you're staying overnight you'll park in a different parking lot since you're leaving your car. The pass you picked up at the Ranger Station in Port Angeles will go both on your dash and with you on your pack. They give you a giant bear canister (to store scented things and food overnight), that goes with you too (and is a suggested $3 donation). Off you go!
Picture
Picture
   Heading north, you'll hike a fairly short distance and reach Ellen Creek. Camping is allowed anywhere north of here, but we always keep walking past the Hole-in-the-Wall to find a secluded spot. The tides greatly affect the route and time you'll need to get places on the coast…make sure to get a tide-table book (or app, however, cell coverage can by spotty…some apps work offline, some don't) and plan accordingly. 
   Two-hours of hiking at high tide can become only 20 minutes at low tide! Sea-stacks block the way at higher tides forcing you to take the occasional steep jungle route (picture below!). At high tide, normally easy to walk on hard sand becomes deep gravel. The lower the tide the better.
Picture
The jungle path over the Hole-in-the-Wall.
Picture
Hole-in-the-Wall…duh.
Picture
   

   One of the greatest things about backcountry camping, besides being only $11 per night, is you don't have to take the risk of camping next to some loud, rude dudes. You pick the spot. We like to find a bay or inlet that becomes hard to get to when the tide comes in. Look toward the tree-line for camping spots others have used (and fire-pits). The panorama below is a view from our elevated campsite. The sea-stacks in the distance to the left are from the town of La Push - far enough, but not too far.

Picture
Picture
   Another perk is campfires on the beach. Little rain in the summer often causes the inland parks to initiate burn-bans although the coast is rarely affected.
Picture
   Sometimes you have to get creative. We were truly roughing it, trying to chill our sake that we brought along…We decided to use the cool waters of the Pacific! It kinda worked.
Picture
   Another benefit of hiking/exploring at low tide is the abundant sea life in tide pools. It's nature's aquarium out here.
Picture
   Hopefully we've sold you on the breathtaking Washington coast. Let's review:

1. The tides make or break this trip, plan accordingly.
2. Edmonds ferry there, Bainbridge ferry back.
3. Pit stop in Port Angeles at the ranger station (it's at the beginning of the road leading to Hurricane Ridge) to get your passes - $11 a day.
4. Bring your own water (which is heavy), or, what we do - bring a fancy filter to purify before drinking (or boil)…iodine tablets are not enough out here.
5. Wear supportive hiking boots, not sandals…there's lots of rock.
6. Leave room on your pack for the giant bear canister.
7. Check the weather - windstorms bring high surf. Layer…it's cold, even in the summer.
8. Check here for more info from the National Parks!

   ~Paul & Amber   ETC
Picture
4 Comments
Maplemusketeer link
5/17/2016 06:45:16 am

Thank you! I read through numerous other links that didn't go into the camping beyond Rialto Beach/Hole In The Wall at all!

This was super informative and helpful! :D

Reply
Paul link
6/4/2017 10:04:50 am

Glad we could help!!!!

~Paul ETC

Reply
Rebecca
3/25/2019 11:21:51 am

What did you carry for food? I'm planning a trip this summer and am curious what others carry on these hikes/camping trips.

Reply
Paul link
3/25/2019 06:35:41 pm

Hey Rebecca!

Captain Wifey and I just brainstormed - we don’t exactly remember what we took on these trips but we thought about recent trips and came up with:

*Trader Joes is a great resource - dried fruit and nuts for the win. Dates have mad sugar and are great for a pick me up on the trail. Prepackaged in resealable ziplock bags ahead of time to lesson trash.

*baked goods are great - bread and if you made some homemade granola/power bars (less packaging if you bake).

*You can take hard cheeses and eggs for the first night (or if you brought eggs from the farmers market that haven’t been refrigerated yet - they’d last the whole trip - eggs don’t really have to be in the fridge if they haven’t been in the fridge). Camping stores sell plastic egg carrier thingys.

*Instant oatmeal and powdered milk if needed.

*The fancy REI dehydrated meals aren’t a bad idea. Low on weight is what make these a great choice (need water - see below)

*Non-refrigerated salami is perfect

*Noodles are good (note you’ll need fresh water - we always took a clay filter water purifier - you stand over a stream and put the hose in, and pump - we bought ours for under $100 at REI)

*Peanut butter or the like

*Must have coffee! - Starbucks instant via is the easiest

*Booze is tricky because it’s heavy, hence the Sake (smaller). I’d go canned or boxed wine (lose the box and take the bladder only - secure in extra ziplock so it doesn’t leak). Beer is heavy and warm. Whiskey in a flask is good. Canned wine not bad either - can crush the can to haul out.

*Smores - marshmellows (light) and those fancy cookies that have chocolate built in (chocolate topped biscuits?)

*Frozen meat (thawing as you hike) for the first night is an option but kind of a lot of trouble

*avoid cans - messy and heavy trash - bagged is better.

Will need pots, cups, bowls, sporks, spatula, oil, knife, Tupperware for leftovers, big ziplocks for packing trash out

OMG, I’m hungry now. We probably forgot something.
Hope this helps!

-Paul & Amber

Reply



Leave a Reply.

    Follow us on Twitter and receive updates when we post (click the birdie).
    Picture


    RSS Feed

    Archives

    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012
    April 2012
    March 2012
    February 2012
    January 2012
    December 2011
    November 2011
    October 2011
    September 2011
    August 2011
    July 2011
    June 2011
    May 2011
    April 2011
    March 2011


    Categories

    All
    Alki Beach
    Arboretum
    Attractions
    Bahamas
    Ballard
    Boat Shows
    Carkeek
    Cascades
    Dungeness Spit
    Edmonds
    Everett
    Florida
    Golden Gardens
    Hiking
    Hood Canal
    Kayak
    Kingston Wa
    Kiteboarding
    La Conner
    Lake Chelan
    Lakes
    Lake Sammamish
    Lake Union
    Lake Washington
    Lemurs
    Leschi
    Less Aquatic Travels
    Lighthouses
    Live Aboard
    Mercer Island
    Nisqually
    North Carolina
    Oregon
    Outside The PNW
    Parks
    Pike Place Market
    Port Ludlow
    Port Townsend
    Poulsbo Wa
    Puget Sound
    Quilcene Bay
    Richmond Beach
    Rivers
    Road Trip Month
    Sail
    Samish Island
    Sand Point
    San Juans
    Sea Serpent
    Seattle
    Shilshole
    Ship Canal
    Skagit
    State Parks
    Sunken Ship
    The Pacific Coast
    Up & Over
    Virgin Islands
    Volcano
    Whales
    Wildlife



    Videos on Vimeo

    We hope you've enjoyed the time you've spent on our site. All images, text and designs are copyright Everyone's Travel Club and may not be used without written permission from ETC.
Picture

Connect:

Contact:

everyonestravelclub@gmail.com

  • Home
  • Blog
  • About
  • PNW
    • Kayak/Travel Blog
    • Maps
  • Reviews