Westward to the Pacific

The Monarch (left), and walking through the rain forest (right).

Our first destination today was the Hoh Rain Forest in Olympic National Park. The area is affected by the moist winds from the Pacific Ocean that are then lifting up to get across the Olympic Mountains and drop their precipitation on the coastal side of the mountains.  The area gets an average of 136 inches of rain a year;  luckily July is a dry month for them.  The drive in to the Visitors Center was along the Hoh River which had numerous sandbars covered with driftwood.  On the way in we also stopped at the "Monarch", the largest Sitka Spruce which was more than 270 feet tall, 12 1/2 in diameter, and 500 to 550 years old.  We hiked on the Hall of Mosses Nature Trail and wandered through this temperate rain forest.  Along with the many downed trees, the ferns covered the floor of the forest.  Moss hung from the branches and covered the trunks of the trees.  At the Visitors Center we learned about epiphytes, plants that get the moisture and nutrients in the air.

The forest floor - ferns and mosses.

We enjoyed a picnic lunch in the Visitors Center picnic area and, for the first time in a while, didn't have to hold everything down and didn't need a sweatshirt to keep warm.

Our second destination was the Pacific beaches.  First we went to the Rialto Beach in Mora which was part of the Olympic National Park. As we got close to the coast, the fog was coming in from the ocean.  The beaches were lined with driftwood (large trees actually) and you had to work your way through to get down to the  beach which was covered with large cobbles.  Even from the parking lot, before we went over the dune, we could hear the roar of the surf.  The large waves crashed on to the beach, and it was obvious one of the reasons that no one was out in the water.   Also, it was very windy and you needed a sweat shirt to keep warm.

Rialto Beach

Next we went to First Beach which is right in the town of La Push which is on the Quileute Indian Reservation.  Again the beach was lined with the large driftwood trees, but the beach was sandier and there were waves but not the crashing surf.  There were three sea stacks (small rocky islands) and a breakwater that protected this beach.  It was also right next to the marina which contained mainly large commercial fishing boats.

First Beach, La Push, in the fog.

Our main reason for going out to La Push today was because we had read that there was to be an Indian Drumming Ceremony that evening (scheduled every Wednesday).  We arrived at the Quileute Community Center at 6:00 (which is when it was supposed to start) and found that they were starting with a community pot luck dinner which we were invited to join.  We were planning on going to the seafood restaurant across the road, so we didn't join in.  Everyone was seated in a large circle.  The drums that they were using looked very much like the Irish bodhran and there was a group of drummers, as well as others sitting in the circle who also were drumming.  The man who appeared to be the leader of the group welcomed everyone and stated that this was a healing ceremony and everyone was to have left their bad feelings at the door.  He also mentioned the respect shown for the elders.  They began with a group of the women dancing while holding symbols of paddles.  The group had what appeared to be three generations of dancers - the youngest appearing to be 7-8 years old.  Then they greeted each of the visitors by name and telling where they were from.  There were about 2 dozen visitors from a variety of different locations.  General announcements were made about an upcoming event and the need for volunteers.  Then a man got up and gave a speech about how he had grown up hating the "white man".  He talked about how the children (including himself) had been taken away from their families and sent to boarding schools.   He talked about "grandparent rights" and how he had lost his grandchildren for the past three years.  He also mentioned the problem of alcoholism on the reservation and several raised their hands to indicate that they had had that problem.  After that, a family was invited to come forward and the woman first said that she was proud that it was her sister's birthday and presented her with a cake.  Then she said that her daughter had brought up her grades so that she had straight A's.  And finally there was someone in the family with a new baby.  The three were seated in chairs in front of the family and people from the circle came up to greet them and throw money on to a blanket in front of them, while a group was drumming and singing.  It had the feeling that we had been invited in to share their general community gathering rather than a performance for strangers.

We had to leave this ceremony early because the restaurant only stayed open until 8:00.  So we went across the street and enjoyed an excellent seafood dinner - crab cakes and steelhead (sea trout).  We sat looking out on to the ocean, but it was quite foggy so you couldn't see very far out in to the water.  On the drive back to the motel, we left the fog behind as soon as we got away from the ocean.

When we got back to the motel, we counted out quarters and got two loads of wash done at the laundromat here at the motel.  We have been gone long enough so that this was becoming necessary.

We haven't decided on the plans for tomorrow because there is a slight chance of rain showers.  We have been very lucky with the weather so far, so we can't really complain.