Dave and I are home now from our trip to the beach. Still at the beach on Friday morning, we woke up to rain--the first rain around 102 days. The whole state of Washington had been under a burn ban, but that ban is lifted now.
We like to camp at Washington State Parks during the off-season. Not only are the parks less crowded, but we can use Dave's Senior Off-Season Pass and camp for $6/night. Each season we have to pay $50 to buy the pass. Unfortunately, this great deal is only available for Washington residents.
On Wednesday, while Dave made a quick trip back to Vancouver, I went for a walk on the beach. The weather was beautiful and there was no wind.
Benson Beach at Cape Disappointment State Park is accessible from each of the three sections of the campground. Here's a picture of the access from Sites 1-60, which is the full-hookup section where we like to stay.
The picture makes it look like the path to the beach was blocked, but it was open and it was an easy walk to the beach. Here's a shot looking back toward the camping loop containing sites 11-20. This is a busy loop because everyone walks through this loop in order to get to the beach. This loop also gets the most wind since it's closest to the ocean. 
The sign at the top of the picture warns that dogs must be on a leash and that hazardous swimming conditions are present. And, oh yes, no gathering of wood is allowed on the beach.
There was plenty of driftwood along the edge of the beach. Below are a few pictures of some of the structures that people had built from some of the driftwood.
I saw this piece of flotsam and couldn't quite imagine what the original boat had looked like. I also couldn't tell if these remains came from the Japan tsunami or from a local boat.
Top of the flotsam:
Back of the flotsam:
Cape Disappointment has two lighthouses, Cape D Lighthouse, which has black stripes and is pictured at the top of my blog, and North Head Lighthouse, which has a red roof and no stripes, and is visible from Benson Beach.
Cape Disappointment Lighthouse is accessible by taking a 2-mile hike, but North Head Lighthouse has a road and parking lot and also has two rental vacation houses.
Did you know that according to Norse mythology, the first humans, Ask and Embla, were formed out of two pieces of driftwood, an ash and an elm?
THE END
Nice deal for the state parks if you're a resident!
ReplyDeleteOff season camping is really great almost everywhere. But that's a wonderful deal for you guys. Glad you can take advantage of it.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you finally got rain, the state really needed it. I love the houses people make out of driftwood, they don't have driftwood here on the east coast, at least not where we have been.
ReplyDeleteGreat photos, Carol. Glad you and Dave had a good time at the beach. Time to get out the umbrellas now. Same here.
ReplyDeleteLove those beach structures. Used to have fun doing that when I was younger. Looks like a nice place to stay - we need to get up there.
ReplyDeletegreat recap of your getaway to Cape Disappointment!..not a disappointment that is for sure!!
ReplyDeleteGreat header photo. Love that area.
ReplyDeleteThe driftwood pictures are really neat. Great shots.
Six dollars is pretty cheap living....
ReplyDeleteNope.. didn't know that!
ReplyDeleteDid you know that I am very jealous!?! lol