We hiked to Shi Shi Beach and Point of Arches in Olympic National Park during the lowest tides of the year so we could explore the most distant tide pools. This experience never ceases to amaze us, and we see life forms that look like they evolved on another planet. This weblog primarily shows the hike through photographs, with a few words about our observations during our three-day backpacking trip in June 2018.
Point of Arches rocks at sunset
Shi Shi Beach was not as crowded as we expected, though by Saturday night it was pretty much filled up with people at the end near Point of Arches.
Almost all the people on the beach were millennials in their 20s, with few baby boomers until we saw some coming in on Sunday. Nice to see young people visiting. Everyone had smiles on their faces: exploring tidepools, photographing the sunset with smart phones, doing paired yoga poses, playing frisbee, and talking around campfires.
Perfect sunny weather; not too hot or cold.
Birdsong: lovely sounds of Swainson’s Thrush, Wilson’s Warbler, American Robin, Pacific Slope Flycatcher, and Pacific Wren floating above our tents. Pigeon Guillemot, Black Oystercatchers, gulls, ravens, eagles, and crows added their less musical but still atmospheric calls to the beach.
We waded through tide pools and climbed over barnacle- and mussel-covered rocks to get out to the outermost sea stacks. Getting near, we spotted a family (mother and two pups) of River Otters climbing the steep vegetated wall of a sea stack. A seabird was loudly calling out in alarm. Then, a pup fell 15′ down the cliff. The mother quickly descended with the other pup, dragging it along by the neck. When it got to the bottom, the mother rejoined the apparently uninjured pup, and then grabbed one of the pups by the neck and kept it from heading toward the sea. They quickly headed through one of the arches and we didn’t see them again. We could see their tracks where they explored the sea caves and arches. It’s good that the youngster had a resilient body; I would have been a heap of broken bones.
We spotted at least two Pigeon Guillemots high on the cliff above one of the arches, where we think they were establishing nests on ledges deep in rock overhangs. Hard to photograph with the sea spray and deep shade.
Most of the campers at our end of the beach went out in the tide pools, though few were as passionate about the natural history as we. Exceptions included a couple from Olympia who were on their 8th trip to Point of Arches in two years; and they went out of their way to show us an unusual tide pool animal. Another was a young woman who was incredibly interested in everything in the tide pools; we saw her over two days carefully inspecting small tide pools. Most everyone else was content to explore the convoluted arches and caves.
Counted 15 Black Oystercatchers at Willoughby Creek, joining the gulls in drinking and bathing (while photographing them laying on my belly a wave caught me and I was soaked).
We played a recording of a Wilson’s Warbler to attract one close enough that our companion, Joan, could see it. It came close indeed–zooming withing three feet of our heads in what seemed like a frontal charge.
The Olympia couple backpacked in with an REI Kingdom 8-person tent with garage and extra pole, which would have been 28 lbs. to hike with. The woman carried that, while her husband carried everything else.
Here are photographs from the weekend.
Blood Star, Henricia leviuscula, at Point of Arches
Yellow Margin Dorid, Cadlina luteomarginata, aka Yellow-edged Cadlina, at Point of Arches
Three-lined Nudibranch, Flabellina trilineata, in a tide pool at low tide at Point of Arches
Woody Chitin, Mopalia lignosa, on a rock exposed during low tide at Point of Arches
Leaf Barnacles, Pollicipes polymerus, at low tide in a surge channel at Point of Arches
Giant Green Anemone, Anthopleura xanthogrammica, lacking algae in a dark microhabitat so it appears white, at Point of Arches
Orange Cup Coral, Balanophyllia elegans, in a tidepool at extreme low tide at Point of Arches
A feather-duster worm, aka fan-head worm: a plankton filter-feeder in the family Sabellidae, on rocky substrate at low tide at Point of Arches
Underwater view of Giant Green Anemone, Anthopleura xanthogrammica, at Point of Arches
Driftwood logs deposited during fierce winter storms on Shi Shi Beach
My bare feet on Shi Shi Beach
Dwarf Purple Olive, Olivella biplicata, shell probably occupied by a hermit crab, among Coralline Algae, at low tide at Point of Arches
Ochre Sea Star, Pisaster ochraceus, aka Purple Sea Star or Common Sea Star, at Point of Arches near mussel beds at low tide
Opalescent Nudibranch, Hermissenda crassicornis, in a tide pool at low tide at Point of Arches
Emarginate Dogwinkle, Nucella emarginata, aka Northern Striped Dogwinkle, Nucella ostrina, on the rocks deep inside the arches of Point of Arches
Shell and other body parts of a crab recently eaten by a Raccoon or River Otter (otters viewed, raccoon tracks seen nearby) at Point of Arches
Giant Green Anemone, Anthopleura xanthogrammica, at Point of Arches
Giant Green Anemone, Anthopleura xanthogrammica, lacking algae in a dark microhabitat so it appears whitish, at Point of Arches
Mossy Chiton, Mopalia muscosa (L), and Hind’s Mopalia, Mopalia hindsii (R), at Point of Arches
Giant Green Anemone, Anthopleura xanthogrammica, with Pink Rock Crust, Lithothamnium pacificum (or related species), aka Encrusting Coral, at Point of Arches
Ochre Sea Star, Pisaster ochraceus, aka Purple Sea Star or Common Sea Star, with arms around an anemone, at Point of Arches near mussel beds at low tide
Ochre Sea Star, Pisaster ochraceus, aka Purple Sea Star or Common Sea Star, and Six-rayed Sea Star, Leptasterias hexactis, at Point of Arches near mussel beds at low tide
Man walking in the morning sea spray mist on Shi Shi Beach
Hikers and Point of Arches rocks at sunset
Feather Boa Kelp, Egregia menziesii, stranded and casting shadows on the sand of Shi Shi Beach
The rocks of Point of Arches nearing sunset
Pattern formed by water rushing back to the ocean as a wave recedes
Karen Rentz hiking on Shi Shi Beach
Columbian Black-tailed Deer, Odocoileus hemionus columbianus, near backpacking tent on Shi Shi Beach
An athletic young backpacking couple having fun on Shi Shi Beach
Black Oystercatcher, Haematopus bachmani, gathering at Willoughby Creek, a source of freshwater on Shi Shi Beach
Black Oystercatcher, Haematopus bachmani, at Willoughby Creek
Common Raven, Corvus corax, strutting on Shi Shi Beach
Northern Kelp Crabs, Pugettia producta, aka Spider Crab, in a tide pool with a lot of hermit crabs at Point of Arches
Frosted Nudibranch, Dirona albolineata, in a tide pool at Point of Arches
Smooth Bay Shrimp, Lissocrangon stylirostris, aka Sand Shrimp and Crangon stylirostris, found in tide pools at Point of Arches
Leather Star, Dermasterias imbricata, out of the water at low tide at Point of Arches
Red Crab, Cancer productus, in a tide pool at Point of Arches
Giant Green Anemone, Anthopleura xanthogrammica, with marks in sand where tentacles withdrew as tide went down
Striped Dogwinkle, Nucella emarginata, aka Emarginate Dogwinkle, with barnacles on rocky substrate at low tide at Point of Arches
Channeled Dogwinkle, Nucella canaliculata, laying eggs on rocky substrate at low tide at Point of Arches
Six-rayed Sea Star, Leptasterias hexactis, during an extreme low tide at Point of Arches
Black Turban, Tegula funebralis, aka Black Tegula, snails in a surge channel at Point of Arches
Giant Green Anemone, Anthopleura xanthogrammica, with Pink Rock Crust, Lithothamnium pacificum (or related species), aka Encrusting Coral, at Point of Arches
Karen Rentz inside a sea cave of Point of Arches at low tide
Rock formations with a large arch at Point of Arches at low tide
Rock formations with a large arch and photographer’s shadow at Point of Arches at low tide
Couple holding hands while walking on Shi Shi Beach
Rock formations of Point of Arches
California Beach Flea, Megalorchestia californiana, males fighting over a burrow near the high tide line on Shi Shi Beach
Point of Arches rocks at sunset
Point of Arches rocks at sunset
Point of Arches rocks at sunset
Rock formations of Point of Arches with a tide pool along Shi Shi Beach at low tide
Sandy shore ripples of Shi Shi Beach at low tide
Rock formations of Point of Arches with the sandy surface of Shi Shi Beach at low tide
Rock formations of Point of Arches with the rippled surface of Shi Shi Beach at low tide
Bull Kelp, Nereocystis luetkeana, stipe stranded and dried and casting curving shadows on Shi Shi Beach
Wooden pallet that has been at sea for a while, as evidenced by its load of large barnacles
By-the-wind Sailor, Velvella velvella, aka Sail Jellyfish, stranded on Shi Shi Beach
Wet sand on Shi Shi Beach after a wave subsided
Bull Kelp, Nereocystis luetkeana
Boardwalk along the trail through the Makah Reservation forest on the way to Shi Shi Beach
Traditional technique of removing strip of Western Redcedar, Thuja plicata, bark (for use in basketry and other crafts) from trees along the trail through the Makah Reservation on the way to Shi Shi Beach
If you want to visit Shi Shi Beach and Point of Arches, you need three permits:
Olympic National Park’s Wilderness Camping Permit. You can get this permit and a mandatory bear canister at Olympic National Park’s Wilderness Information Center at Port Angeles. The cost is $8 per person for overnight wilderness camping as of 2018.
Makah Nation’s Recreation Permit. As of 2018 this was a $10 per year hangtag for your car.
Parking Permit Bring cash of $10 per day as of June 2018; this link also has great detailed information about the hike.
In addition, you really need to know how to read tide tables, both for safety and to get the most out of a coastal hike. Go to tides.net as a place to start, using the nearby Tatoosh Island and Cape Flattery tide charts. We prefer to explore tide pools when the tides are minus tides, such as -2.3 ft. or thereabouts. Read up on tides.
This is one of the premier nature hikes in North America: GO!
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