DAY 15 - MOCLIPS - COPALIS - OCEAN SHORES, WASHINGTON

QUINAULT OCEAN BEACH

LOTS OF PROPERTIES ARE FOR SALE ALONG THE PACIFIC OCEAN SHORE

MAJESTIC DARK GROVE OF TREES

MUCH OF HWY 109 HAS THIS KIND OF BERM...VERY DANGEROUS..MANY TIMES, ROLLED MY ANKLE ON THE EDGE

MANY BEAUTIFUL BEACHES ON HWY 109

GREEN LANTERN, COPALIS, WASHINGTON...ACCEPTED 2 COFFEEs AND A LARGE BOWL OF CLAM CHOWDER...NICE FOLKS AND NICE COMFY PLACE

COPALIS CHURCH...Many pics are kinda "frosty"...remember, it is raining very hard and the clouds are rubbing along the ground; i.e., it's FOGGY

COPALIS RIVER BRIDGE ON HWY 109

YEARS AGO, WAS FANTASTIC SALMON FISHING...NOW, NOT SO GREAT

COPALIS RIVER...THE ENTIRE RIVER IS THIS "RED/ORANGE" COLOR...TWO DAYS AGO I ASKED A WASHINGTON STATE ENVIRONMENTAL RANGER WHY THE RED COLOR in many of the Streams...HE SAYS THEY HAVE BEEN TRYING FOR YEARS TO FIND THE CAUSE...FILL A GLASS AND IT IS TOTALLY CLEAR...REALLY STRANGE

A BARRIER SAND STRIP BETWEEN THE PACIFIC OCEAN BEACH AND THE MAINLAND...QUITE UNUSUAL

BENT TREE...I HAVE SEEN TREES WITH AN "S" CURVE IN THEM...THE RESULT OF ANOTHER LARGER TREE FALLING ON THE CROOKED TREE WHEN IT WAS YOUNG...IT SIMPLY GREW AROUND THE FALLEN TREE, WHICH EVENTUALLY ROTTED AWAY, LEAVING A CROOKY TREE...ACTUALLY, HAPPENS QUITE OFTEN

RAINING SO HARD...DIFFICULT TO GET A PIC.

A DOE (FEMALE) AND TWINS OF ABOUT A YEAR OLD. THESE ARE THE "ONLY" ANIMALS I HAVE SEEN SO FAR ON MY ENTIRE WALK - EXCEPT BIRDS

THIS WATER IS JET BLACK...KINDA SCARRY TO LOOK INTO...EXPECT SOME KINDA APPARITION TO POKE OUT AN ARM OR HEAD...

SPIA AT THE "SANDS" HOTEL IN OCEAN SHORES. WAS STILL RAINING HARD. IN THE MORNING, WILL DRIVE AROUND TO FIND SOME INTERESTING PLACES TO PHOTOGRAPH...I CAME TO OCEAN SHORES IN THE 1950'S WHEN IT WAS FIRST BEING DEVELOPED...ACTUALLY, NOT MUCH HAS CHANGED...LOTS OF OCEAN-FRONT HOTELS AND DOZENS OF RESTAURANTS...WILL SEE THE OCEAN AND THE INLET TO GRAYS HARBOR IN THE MORNING...

AN ARTSY STORE IN OCEAN SHORES

ONE OF DOZENS OF RESTAURANTS IN OCEAN SHORES

THE GALOWAY BAY...AN IRISH PUB / RESTAURANT IN OCEAN SHORES

VIEW FROM MY TABLE INSIDE THE GALOWAY BAY RESTAURANT

MY YUMMY DINNER...IT WAS EXCELLENT AND PLENTIFUL OF SHRIMP, CRAB, AND HALIBUT...COST $17.00, WITH SALAD...LARGE BEER $3.00 EXTRA.

Experienced another Ride-less day today. It was raining all day with a stiff on-shore wind. Covered 8 miles of twisting rising and falling mountain terrain from Moclips, Washington to COPALIS, WASHINGTON.

Drove 6 miles South of Moclips to Iron Creek Beach and parked SPIA. Walked BACK 4 miles toward Moclips - where I turned around last evening - and back to SPIA...continued South on Washington Hwy 109 up and down and around many more steep hills till reaching flat land...turned back to SPIA...no rides for me today.

Drove SPIA to COPALIS, WASHINGTON, where I parked SPIA at the Green Lantern, a food and beverage store on the shores of the Copalis River. Ordered a cup of coffee - my first since beginning this walk -, for which they would not accept my payment. Thanked them and continued walking South for another 5 miles - just short of OCEAN SHORES, WASHINGTON, and returned to SPIA...

Was raining hard and blowing so much, had to remove my eyeglasses to see. Went back in the Green Lantern and ordered a cup of Clam Chowder and another coffee. The owner came out to chat and picked up my lunch tab...Thanked him profusely...he will follow the Blog for a bit.

Then, drove SPIA to Ocean Shores, taking a room at the SANDS Hotel ...one of 10 or so big hotels sitting right on the Ocean Beach. Cost: $38.00.

Walked to a local - recommended - Restaurant, the Galoway Bay...a typical Irish Pub Restaurant. The decor was great...the food was better. Ordered a salad with Blue Cheese and a superb menu item of Shrimp, Dungeness Crab, and Halibut on a bed of Irish Potatoes baked in a deep dish...Yum Yum...helping it along with a local (Olympia, Washington) dark beer.

Walked back to the SANDS in the dark, slipped into a steaming hot bath and soaked for an hour.

Now, to complete this Blog and sleep in a real bed.

DAILY REPORT: Walked 38 miles - count 19 miles

SEE YOUR IMPACT: Credit 19 miles @ $0.02 per mile = $0.38 for the day.

In the morning, will drive back to US 101 - which parallels Washington Hwy 109 I have walked from Moclips to Ocean Shores. Will commence walking US 101 again from about HOQUIUM, WASHINGTON. (SP ?)