Wednesday 9-20-23 Cape Flattery - Bear Creek Campground - Headed Home??

 

Awesome Day

The weatherman was correct, it rained through the night and was gone by 7:00. The rain wasn't hard but it was steady. We slept with the heater going all night. It was very comfortable sleeping. It was nice to wake up to a heated Minnie.

I crawled out of bed around 7:45 and got dressed. Then we had a quick breakfast. Afterwards we got the Minnie ready to go. We were ready to go about 8:30.

We started out by doing a few errands. First stop was in Port Angeles at Tractor Supply Co. to get propane. Tractor Supply had a great area to get propane. The lady, who helped us was very friendly and she also was training a new guy. She knew what she was doing and was very fast. It will probably take the guy a few times before he will learn the process of filling RVs. Larry didn't have to go inside to pay, he paid at the filling station. Next stop was Walmart for a few groceries.  After putting things away we were back on the road. Before leaving Port Angeles we stopped and filled the Minnie with fuel. We really didn't need fuel but where we are headed there are not a lot of places to get fuel. 

Propane filling station at Tractor Supply Co.

Big ship in the bay of Port Angeles

The highway we drove to our next destination was two lanes through the mountains and by the bay. This mornings skies were clear so we saw more of the bay today then we did the other day. We saw a lot of big fishing boats, tanker ships and other ships. We saw beautiful tall pine trees and Lake Crescent. Lake Crescent was a beautiful huge lake. When we got to Fairholme Campground we stopped at the dump station and dumped the tanks. They were in the process of rebuilding it so there was no place to pay for the dump and there was no water. After dumping the tanks we were back on the road.

Larry drove a curvy mountain road, at places the curves were very tight. As we drove the highway we saw fog rolling in. We stopped at a viewing area in Sekiu and had lunch. The fog was so thick you couldn't see the bay. While having lunch we saw that the fog was lifting in the direction we were going so we continued on. The closer we got to our destination the fog went away. We stopped in Neah Bay at a visitor center to get a permit for $20.00 to use their recreation area. Neah Bay is located on the reservation of the Makah Tribe. Our destination is Cape Flattery, is the farthest northwest point in the lower 48 states. This is a tourist destination. It is 8 miles from Neah Bay. 

Dock in Neah Bay

At Cape Flattery we parked the Minnie in an RV spot. Then we hiked the trail to the Holes in the Wall point. It was a .75 mile hike one way, takes about 25 minutes. The trail is well used and through the forest. Some of it is dirt with a lot of roots. Some is a boardwalk that weaves through the forest and up and down hills. The boardwalk is only wide enough for one person so at times we had to get off the trail to let people pass. Other times people got off the trail to let us pass. When we got there it was very busy but it was worth the drive to see gorgeous views of the ocean. There was a beautiful lighthouse on a rock. We walked around and took pictures. The hike back didn't seem as busy. It was a nice  

Sitting on a big chair at the beginning of the trail

 

Lighthouse in the bay

 

The waves hitting the shores

 

The boardwalk through the forest

After our hike we continued our adventure. We drove back on the same road we took in. The views were different because the fog was gone and we could easily see the ocean. Some of the views were amazing. We saw more ships in the bay. 

Our final destination was Bear Creek Campground. It's a state forest campground and because we bought the Washington Discovery Pass for $30 the camping is free. Bear Creek has a short hiking trail along the Sol Duc River. It's very steep. It starts at one side of the campground and ends at the other side, which is about .25 mile. We hiked it. I was glad I hiked with Larry because he helped me up the hill. As we hiked we saw giant trout swimming down the river. Some spots of the river was deep enough to swim in. I didn't go in because it's too cold. We had no problem finding a site. It's a beautiful campground with a lot of trees and the sites are big. During World War I the campground was a Army Camp. After the war it was used by logging companies. There's a sign in the campground, that tells the history of the campground. It's has vault toilets and is not manned by a host. It's a great place to stay.

When we were at Cape Flattery we were 2286 miles from home, the furthest we will be from home on this trip. From that point you could say we are headed home. Of course we are not really headed home, we will be on the road for a few more weeks, maybe a month.

 

Camping at Bear Creek Campground

 

Sol Duc River

By the end of the day I had done 12,000 steps, which put me in 1st place in my group.