August 5, 2021
We were in Sequim from July 22nd to August 2nd. As described in my last post, two of those days were spent hiking in Olympic National Park. The rest of the time was spent cycling, walking, and a little bit of kayaking in Sequim Bay. Yes, and doing some boring but necessary tasks like grocery shopping and laundry. When you're on the road as long as we are, you need days to do the mundane chores and to take a break from sightseeing.
We found that the Olympic Peninsula has a bike trail that goes from Port Townsend on the northeast side of the peninsula to Port Angeles further west. It's a paved trail, mostly off-road. We rode two different sections on two different days.
Our first ride started just east of the Railroad Park Bridge. The bridge was built in 1915 and is now part of the Olympic Discovery Trail.
The bridge crosses over the Dungeness River.
On our way back, we stopped to look at a lavender field. One of several around the town.
We rewarded ourselves with a stop at the Peninsula Taproom for a pint and some nachos.
On our second ride, we started a little further east of Sequim and rode to Port Angeles. A good portion of the trail ran along the water.
Port Angeles Harbor
A little covered bridge on the trail.
The trail passes by the Port Angeles waterfront and through a portion of town.
A few miles east of town we reached Ediz Hook, the eastern barrier between the Strait de Juan Fuca and Port Angeles Harbor. This aerial view was taken from our hike on Hurricane Hill days after our ride. It was neat to see the whole hook from above.
We rode out on the Hook as far as we could go. We had to stop when we came to the entrance of the Naval Station which is at the very end.
A selfie at the end of our ride, looking out at the harbor and the mountains.
After our ride, we stopped at the Purple Haze Lavender Farm.
We had to try the lavender ice cream we had heard so much about. I had a white chocolate-lavender cone. It was delicious!
One afternoon, we drove to the Dungeness National Wildlife Refuge to take a walk out on the Dungeness Spit, a 5-mile long sand spit jutting out from the Olympic Peninsula into the Strait of Juan de Fuca. It is the longest natural sand spit in the United States. This is an aerial view I took from Hurricane Hill on a later date.
It was slow walking in sand and rocks, so we didn't go all the way out to the lighthouse. We turned around after about 3 miles. That was plenty for us.
A Western Gull
Heermann's Gulls - a new one for me. I like their red beaks.
A Sandpiper among the rocks
A view from the opposite direction on our way back.
When we got back, the fog had lifted and we were able to see the lighthouse much more clearly with Mount Baker in the background.
Another view of the spit. Walking is only permitted on the ocean side. The righthand side is a closed area for the protection of the wildlife in the refuge.
Next stop, Whidbey Island. After three weeks, we're finally leaving the Olympic Peninsula, but not going very far.
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