June 29, 2019

Rialto Beach

The north most of the Olympic NP beaches, Rialto is a must see on your way up the Washington coast. Though a total of 13 mile there and back walk, we were amazed at just the first 2 miles of beach. We would love to do the rest next time!

On our leisurely walk we encountered numerous sea stacks, ginormous driftwood logs, and glimpses of wildlife. We saw of a crab, an eagle, a sea otter, and a seal all in one morning.

The highlight, however, was experiencing Hole-in-the-Wall. This beaut, like most of the what this beach has to offer, can only be accessed during low tide. We were super lucky to catch it right before it was too late. We even got to see a few vibrant tide pools at the base of the structure.

If we were to visit Rialto again (which I fully plan to), we would plan on arriving as the tide is lowering. There are several points along the the full length of the beach that can only be crossed during low tide. Also, we’d have access to even more tide pools along the way.