Road Trip to Olympic National Park (Part 3): Rialto Beach
June 18, 2013
“There was no end to the joyful exaltation on this edge of oscillations.”
— Terry Tempest Williams, When Women Were Birds
The Pacific Ocean at Rialto Beach, Olympic National Park
The last half of our Olympic National Park road trip took us to several Pacific coast beaches. We stopped at Mora Campground on the way to Rialto Beach to pitch our tent, as we planned to have a picnic supper at the beach and stay until sunset. We didn’t want to have to set up our tent in the dark.
Our campsite at Mora Campground
The beach was two miles from the campground. We passed the Quillayute River as we neared the end of the road. Straight ahead was the endless ocean, the mighty Pacific.
Quillayute River
Sea stacks at Rialto Beach
Fourteen shades of gray
“The three great elemental sounds in nature are the sound of rain, the sound of wind in a primeval wood, and the sound of outer ocean on a beach.”
— Henry Beston
This was my first time at Rialto Beach. It’s a wild coast, with waves crashing and casting up sea foam onto the pebbly beach. Sea stacks added interest to the horizon line. Weathered driftwood lined the upper beach. The water was cold, but irresistible to children (and adults).
Rialto beach
The wild shores at Rialto Beach
Our beach chairs
Driftwood
The sky
Waiting for sunset
“There is one spectacle grander than the sea, that is the sky; there is one spectacle grander than the sky, that is the interior of the soul.”
— Victor Hugo
Rosemary's Blog 
June 18, 2013 at 7:58 am
The sea! The sky! The sayings! thank you for this beautiful gift
June 20, 2013 at 7:36 am
You are so welcome. It’s a different sort of water view than you see from your home on Samish Island, isn’t it?
June 18, 2013 at 9:55 am
Such a beautiful diverse place…love the driftwood.
June 18, 2013 at 12:28 pm
Rosemary:
Rialto Beach is one of my favourite places to see the power of the ocean.
bob
Riding the Wet Coast
June 18, 2013 at 2:39 pm
outer ocean?
June 20, 2013 at 7:35 am
Such evocative words, yes? I’m not sure what they mean exactly.
June 20, 2013 at 12:44 pm
I’m thinking of a lagoon versus the open ocean?
June 19, 2013 at 6:56 pm
This is on my list…
June 20, 2013 at 7:33 am
Maybe we can go together sometime.
June 20, 2013 at 4:57 am
The top photo looks like our shore when it’s particularly excited. Unfortunately, that’s about all we get – no sea stacks here, no coves, no sea glass or exotic driftwood. Ah, well.
This is entirely off topic, but I think you would be interested in this post at Lisa Brunetti’s. She’s doing a weekly series on drawing, and has some interesting things to say in this one, as well as some technique tips.
June 20, 2013 at 7:31 am
Thanks so much for the link to the blog. I will add it to the list of blogs I follow. I am in need of some artistic inspiration right now.