Neah Bay to Port Angeles

Rating: SKIV

Distance:  52 NM

Date:  June 21-22, 2002

Leader:   Pete Schwab                        Participants:  4

Launch:  0530 6/21                             Return:  3:00 pm 6/22

Weather:  Mostly clear on both days with temperatures in the 60's.  Friday's winds were never more than light breezes.  On Saturday we encountered winds to ~25 knots, small craft advisory conditions. Seas rose to 2-4 feet and in some cases, 4-6 feet with rips and turbulence off points and headlands.

Seal Rock just south of Neah Bay

Description:  Originally planned as "Neah Bay to Port Townsend", the intent was to paddle from Neah Bay to Crescent Bay (42 NM) on Friday.  Camp at Crescent Bay and take Saturday off and do the car shuttles.  Then on Sunday we would paddle the balance to Port Townsend (45 NM). Then the plan changed:
   Plan 2 would have worked better for us but involved stopping at a friend's at Green Point which is entirely private and is therefore, of little value to anyone else. It was a paddle for 3 days (~30 NM each day) plan. The plan was to camp at Silverking on Thursday night.  Drive one car to Neah Bay early Friday morning, launch, and paddle back to Silverking to spend Friday night.  Friday evening we would shuttle the cars to Green Point (east of Port Angeles).  Then on Saturday we would paddle to Green Point and camp in the friends' back yard.  The cars would be shuttled to Green Point that evening.  Then early on Sunday one car capable of carrying all of the boats would be shuttled down to the launch site at Fort Worden (no overnight parking!).  We'd paddle to Port Townsend, load all the equipment in the one car, and drive back to Green Point for the final distribution of boats and equipment. 
    The reality was that on Friday we paddled from Neah Bay to Silverking (per plan) and on Saturday we paddled from Silverking to half a mile east of Ediz Spit at Port Angeles where we had to "bail" due to the wind and high seas. Hence, the title of this trip is:   "Neah Bay to Port Angeles".

    Friday dawned a beautiful day and we launched from Neah Bay around 05:30 onto calm seas and under clear skies.  About 30 minutes out we heard a Gray whale "sounding".  The huge cetacean was out for breakfast and did us the honor of hanging around us for a half hour as it swam back and forth sucking its meal of amphipods off the bottom of the Strait.  Eventually the sounding came from behind us and we had to part company, continuing to paddle to the east and our destination at Silverking.  
    Beautiful scenery and wildlife abound along this route.  The kelp beds stretch well out into the Strait and were frequently punctuated with the inquisitive heads of harbor seals.  In one spot we must have counted 20 or more seals in the area.  A Bald Eagle snatched a sea gull from the water and flew off into the nearby hills for a meal.  Later, another Bald Eagle was seen being harassed by 3 crows.  Fish  jumped frequently.  Life was good.
    On Saturday we expected the wind to pick up in the afternoon.  It picked up in the morning, and with a vengeance.  As we passed Whiskey Creek we found our placid seas were becoming rough, soon they were showing a significant wave height of 3-4 feet.  Continuous ocean swell, wind waves, and rips off the points contributed to a very busy morning that finally ended in a lunch break at Crescent Bay.  Leaving Crescent Bay, we soon encountered seas that were of the 4-6 foot variety.  Rips off the points became extremely hazardous.  At one point I ran into a rip that appeared out of nowhere.  My friend Henry said the wave seemed to "swallow" me.  I agree!  But the current was my friend and I soon escaped my little house of waves (and horrors) and continued with the task of paddling in the swells and chaotic wind waves.  
    Freshwater Bay provided a short reprieve from the seas we'd been experiencing but no sooner had we left the bay, intent on rounding Angeles Point, than we ran into a huge set of rips extending far out into the Strait.  We paddled quickly into deeper water but were continuing to be sucked into the rips by the force of the flood current.  After a time there was little use in further effort and we turned into the rips.  The first rips were the worst but chaotic seas followed us all the way around the point and even into Angeles Bay.  Exhausted we landed carefully on a beach break under the bluffs about a half mile from the western end of Ediz Hook and Port Angeles. 
    At this point we decided that Ediz Hook would probably be too dangerous to paddle so we opted to end the trip.  There's a small trail just above the beach there in Angeles Bay.  At it's head, about a quarter of a mile up from the beach, there's a cemetery on the edge of the bluff.  We hauled the boats and gear to the top where we where met by our friend Don who drove us away to the safety of our cars, and home.

Tides/Currents: 
    On both days we began the day with a below average low and then followed a steep flood all morning and partly into the afternoon.  Flood current was strong enough to allow us to average 3 knots on Friday (including breaks and lunch).  On Saturday we began with flat seas which later became 2-4 feet and then 4-6 feet.  Rips and wild seas were encountered off any headlands, points, or jetees.

Charts:

NOAA Chart # 18465.
Maptech Number 103.  Cape Flattery to Whidbey Island.

Notes:

1.  There is NO overnight parking at Fort Warden State Park!  If you expect your car to be there at the end of the trip you may want to make the car shuttle on the early morning  of the last day.  That way you can park down by the dock for the $6 launch fee.

Directions to Launch Site: 

1.  To Neah Bay:  From I-5 at Highway 16 it’s 178 miles (~3 hours/45 minutes) to Neah Bay. Take highway 16 to
highway 3 (at Bremerton), then take hwy 3 until you reach 104. Take 104 over to the Olympic Peninsula where you’ll get on Hwy 101. Take Hwy 101 to Port Angeles and follow it through town. When 101 turns left (towards Forks) follow it out of Port Angeles and a couple of miles down the road you'll come to the Hwy 112 turn to the right which is well marked for Neah Bay. It's only 60 miles to Neah Bay from the turn but it's two lane, and kinda slow. As you pull into town you'll see a pier on your right.  Beach access is just east of the pier.

2.  To Silver King Resort (just east of Pillar Point): To get to Silverking RV resort, take WA 112 to Joyce, Crescent Bay, etc. about 4 miles west of Pt. Angeles.  From downtown PA (Race Street) it is about 36 miles to the turn off for the resort.  This is about MP 33.  There is a somewhat obscure white sign on the right.  Come down the hill (3/4 mi or so) and there you are.

3.  To get to Crescent Bay: From I-5 at Hwy 16 it takes a good 2 hours and 45 minutes to get to the launch site (126 miles). Follow 16 to Bremerton and then follow the signs to The Hood Canal bridge. After you cross the bridge stay on highway 104 until you get to hwy 101. Take 101 to, and through, Port Angeles. It turn left in Port Angeles. After you get out of Port Angeles take the right turn for Hwy 112. You'll follow 112 for 7.5 miles until you see the sign for the Salt Creek Recreation Area (Camp Hayden Road) and then turn right. From there it's 3.7 miles to the public ramp. When you see the Salt Creek campground, don't turn in, just bear off to the left and on down to the launch site. The site is a small gravel parking area just behind a small marsh. If you're going to camp for the night at Carol's Crescent Beach, just continue along for another 1/8 mile and you'll see it on the left.

Facilities:  

Carol's Crescent Beach Camping: The camp ground is right in front of Crescent Bay. They own a half mile of sand beach that's within 100 yards of your camp site. The day use fee is $5 for two people. Three of us spent the night tent camping and they charged us a total of $27 for the weekend. Really nice folks. To contact them call 360-928-3344 for reservations. The campground has hot showers, bathrooms, and a laundry. All were very nice and clean.

Silverking Resort:  261 Silverking Resort Road, Clallam Bay, WA, (360) 963-2950.  

Sample Magazine Submittal:  Jun. 21-22, Fri.-Sat. – Neah Bay to Port Townsend (SKIII). 87NM. Spend two really full days exploring the northern extremity of the Olympic Peninsula.  Camping on Friday night will be at Crescent Bay.

References: 

Scott, James W., and Melly A. Reuling. Washington Public Shore Guide. Seattle: University of Washington Press.
1986. pp. 256-257. 

Washburne, Randel. Kayaking Puget Sound, the San Juans, and Gulf Islands. Seattle: The Mountaineers. 1996. pp.
210-214.

Mueller, Marge and Ted. Afoot and Afloat, North Puget Sound. Seattle: The Mountaineers. 1995. pp. 220.