A Walk in the Sand on Dungeness Spit

A walk along one of the world’s longest sand spits can be a bit like exploring another planet--a journey into an aqueous realm altogether lost from civilization. And everywhere on the spit are birds winging through the mist and darting across the sand.

Dungeness Spit is a 5.5-mile- long curved finger of sand that thrusts from the Olympic Peninsula into the Strait of Juan de Fuca. Under protection by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service’s Dungeness National Wildlife Refuge, the spit is a haven for wildlife, particularly for migratory waterfowl.

The Pacific black brant and the Canada goose are two species that drop by in significant numbers. Great populations of migratory shorebirds arrive in the fall, while large flocks of waterfowl fly in for the winter. Eelgrass beds on the spit’s bay side are a nursery for young salmon and steelhead. Seals frequently bob above the breakers. The refuge’s best-known resident, at least to gourmets, is the Dungeness crab, prized by shellfish aficionados as the creme de la creme of crab meat.

While bird-watchers in the know flock to the spit, it remains one of the Pacific Northwest’s best-kept secrets. Rolling farmland and high coastal cliffs hide this attractive coastline from the view of motorists on U.S. 101.

Most visitors to nearby Port Angeles are so intent on boarding a ferry for the islands that they don’t do much mainland exploring. Dungeness Spit has a split personality. The ocean side is a wild beach, scattered with rocks and bizarrely shaped driftwood. In contrast, a quiet bay makes up the other side of the spit.

The ocean side and midsection are open to hikers year-round. Expect easier walking at low tide. Most of the spit’s bay side (including a substantial appendage known as Graveyard Spit) is strictly for the birds and off-limits.

When the foggy curtain parts, views from the ocean side of the spit are magnificent. Look north to snowcapped Mt. Baker and across the Strait of Juan de Fuca to Vancouver Island.

You can hike all or part of the spit. Chart your progress with the aid of mile-marker posts. Trail’s end, five or more miles up the spit, is New Dungeness Lighthouse, which has shone its guardian light since 1857.

Directions to trail head: From Port Angeles, head 12 miles east on U.S. 101 to Kitchen-Dick Road and drive about four miles north, bending briefly east onto Lotzgesell Road. Turn north (left) onto Voice of America Road at the signed entrance to Dungeness Recreation Area, a county park. Drive through the county park, past a campground and picnic area to road’s end at Dungeness National Wildlife Refuge, where you’ll find plenty of parking and the signed trail head.

The entrance fee is $5 per vehicle. The refuge’s volunteer docents, frequently posted at the trail head, answer questions and report the latest bird sightings.

The hike: The path enters a coastal woodland, then emerges to gain a vista point. Don’t be discouraged from walking onward if all you see is fog; given the rapidly changing weather around here, the fog could be long gone by the time you return from the spit, and you may have a fabulous panorama.

At 0.5 mile, the path descends to the base of the sand spit. Cross to the ocean side and begin your sojourn along the spit’s north shore.

Clear-day views include snowy Cascade peaks and the San Juan Islands. Climb past the jumbles of driftwood to the spine of the spit and look out over the bay side and its abundant bird life.

The hike ends at the lighthouse; visitors are not permitted on the very tip of the spit.

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Dungeness Spit Trail

Where: Dungeness National Wildlife Refuge

Distance: To New Dungeness Lighthouse is 1 miles round trip; shorter trips possible.

Terrain: Sand and gravel

Highlights: One of world’s longest natural sand spits.

Degree of difficulty: Easy to moderate.

For more information: Dungeness National Wildlife Refuge, 33 S. Barr Road, Port Angeles, WA 98362; tel. (360) 457-8451.