As the fourth of our five Olympic National Park Daytrips, the Ozette Wilderness Hike is certainly not to be missed! Described as a truly spectacular look at the rugged Washington coast, people from all over the world find themselves mesmerized by this unique day hike.

Did you know? The old growth forests of the Pacific Northwest produce three times the biomass (living or once living material) of tropical rain forests.

This fascinating and picturesque adventure will take you along three miles of pristine northwest beach bracketed by two, three-mile boardwalk trails through deep coastal forest. It is advisable to begin your journey early in the day to enjoy all nine miles of this stunning trail loop. The drive is about three and half hours from Pacific Beach which is a much shorter journey that the typical five hours it usually takes from Seattle.

(more…)

Before we dive into this week’s post on Olympic National Park day trips, we would like to congratulate and thank Cassie Lentz for sharing her Lake Quinault story. Send us an email and we’ll get your $25 Mill 109 gift certificate in the mail!

OK, now to the adventure!

As the second of five of our favorite Olympic National Park daytrips, this week we are featuring Kalaloch and Ruby Beach.

We start our trip at the Kalaloch (pronounced clay-lock) Lodge which is located on the southwest coast of the Olympic Peninsula and approximately a 60-mile drive from Pacific Beach, WA.  The drive does not follow the coast line as there is no road through the Quinault Tribal reservation, but it will take you through beautiful areas on the peninsula and past Lake Quinault which we featured in our last Olympic National Park daytrip blog.

(more…)

Driving through Copalis Crossing on the way to the Washington coast recently, you’ve surely noticed a charming little produce market luring tourists and locals in for fresh fruits and vegetables.

Voss Acres, North Beach’s newest local market, has quickly become a household name for fresh, quality produce and warm, friendly conversations. Since opening on Mother’s Day weekend, Voss Acres has been a delightful new addition for residents and tourists on the way to the beach.

You don’t just encounter a small produce market upon entering Voss Acres;  you immediately embark on a journey into the last century sprinkled with neat stories and traditions told by the pictures on the wall and casual conversations. Passionate owners, Steve and Sharon Voss, are always eager to share any of the fascinating history while shoppers pick fresh fruits and veggies.

For example, the house in which they both live right next to the market was built in 1898 and is one of the oldest houses in the North Beach area. What has been a renovating project for Steve over the past few years, was once a “mobile” home for the workers along the railroad – the house would move along with every section of railroad that was completed.

As you walk through the market, you’ll also notice many old souvenirs and artifacts. Steve and Sharon found most of these on the site of the house when they acquired the landmark, with some items dating back almost a 100 years. The most recent find being a spark plug piece from a Model T Ford (1909-1927).

If you circle the market building to the back, you’ll immediately spot a drove of pigs surrounded by little chicken and turkeys, ducks, etc. Fresh eggs are collected all week and sold on Saturdays.  In addition to the farm animals, adjacent is an organic farm that Steve has been passionately gardening for almost 10 years now. Local, organic carrots, beans, Swiss chard, and other vegetables are a big hit at Voss Acres. Regulars ask for them all the time as they are picked fresh and cleaned as you wait.

Otherwise, Voss Acres gets most of its produce from Charlie’s Produce in Seattle, who has an excellent network of local and national farmers delivering fresh food a couple times a week to Copalis Crossing.

Seabrook’s local grocery store has also started featuring Voss Acres’ products as of late. If you stop by the Lil’s Pantry on Front Street, greeting you is Sharon’s fresh produce that is sure to complete any meal or provide for grocery shopping during your stay at Seabrook.

Whichever way you decide to try Voss Acre’s fresh fruits and vegetables, you certainly won’t regret it. Furthermore, if you can learn a thing or two about the history of the area while you’re doing your grocery shopping, all the better. It is usually the context to a place and the people in it that make it a unique experience. Voss Acre has both, and a little bit extra.

In the meantime, check out the market’s website and add Sharon on Facebook for the latest information, news, and pictures out of Voss Acres.

Whew, this was a tough one. Earlier this summer, we asked you all to share your favorite things to do while at Seabrook. In a short time we received a lot of really good responses from both homeowners and guests! While that made it difficult to select the winner of the contest, we finally found one post that comprehensively summarized many fun things to do while on the Washington coast.

So without further ado, please join us in congratulating Dana H. for being the winner of Seabrook’s summer contest!!

Dana will receive a $50 Gift Certificate to Seabrook’s favorite dining spot, the Mill 109 Restaurant & Pub. Her response was very well written and had a very unique perspective given the fact that she lives in Arizona. Here is what she wrote:

Coming from hot Arizona, Seabrook is always a welcome relief from the dust and heat.

The top things that we have done in Seabrook and the Seabrook area are as follows:

• Relax. Seabrook is very laid back and it’s easy to just relax and kick back for a while
• Watch a movie. Most, if not all rental homes have a DVD player and after the drive from Seattle it is nice to just sit down, relax, and watch a movie to unwind.
• Cool Off. Especially for people like me coming from out of state it is nice to be somewhere it can be sunny and cool, cloudy and cool, or windy and cold. Any one of these is better than where I am coming from and an enjoyable experience. A great memory I have from Seabrook is sitting by the fire outside watching the mist “rolling through the air” from the trees. Hard to explain, just something that has to be experienced!

(more…)

This month, Seabrook celebrated its 5th Annual Doggie Days event! The long-anticipated day of canine merriment proved to once again be one of the most enjoyable events held at Seabrook! Hosted for the second year in a row by Ann Kjelsberg, owner of The Salty Dog here at Seabrook, Doggie Days showed off just how dog-friendly our beach town can be!

With every size, shape, and breed of dog you can imagine, the “Bark in the Park” festivities of Doggie Days were especially fun this year. With numerous games, contests, and prizes given to dogs with unique talents such as “Best Kisser”, “Best Trick”, and “Best Barker”, everyone had an opportunity to participate. Also, special thanks to Seabrook homeowner and professional photographer Morgan of Morgan J. Miller Photography who provided a whimsical beach back-drop for both doggie and people portraits during the event.

The weather was perfect and ALL of the proceeds from the event benefited the North Beach PAWS animal shelter in Ocean Shores.

If you didn’t have a chance to join us last weekend, we hope you will enjoy the slideshow below of the festivities. A big thanks to everyone who came out, it was great meeting so many adorable pups on the park!

For those of you planning a trip to Seabrook in the coming months, check out our events calendar for upcoming fun happenings on the Washington Coast.

Enjoy the pictures!