<< Winter Wonderland

11/27/11 - Dungeness Spit at High Tide

If you read our web site, you'll know that we prefer coastal hiking when the tides are low, ideally at three feet or less, but this time of year has terrible hiking tides, so we decided to tackle the Dungeness Spit a mere hour after an eight foot high tide. According to our tide calculator, the tides were still over seven feet when we set out, so there wasn't much beach, and what there was was often blocked by driftwood. We set out grimly, clambering along that part of the spit we usually view from the beach below.

As it turned out, we went much farther than we had anticipated. There was a lot of driftwood, but we could get around most, either by heading upland or timing the waves and racing around the obstacle. Heartened by our progress, we made it out past the half mile marker which is usually well away from the water, but now had the waters licking its support logs. There were rocky stretches, but there were also good stretches of sand, so we continued. We made it safely past the one mile marker, much to our surprise.

The walk back was easier. The tides had gone out while we had headed onward. Yes, it is an easier hike at low tide, but we're pleased to report that the Dungeness Spit is still a great place to explore, even near high tide.


Lots of driftwood, not much beach

The view back

More driftwood

Driftwood decorated by nature

The stake, so impossibly far

One of the inland routes

One of our obstacles - We went inland here.

Driftwood decorated by man - also mountains

Arty, arty, arty

A rough stretch

The view as we departed

Keywords: dungeness spit, tides