The first stop was Ediz Hook in Port Angeles. There, I saw Heermann's Gulls, Black and Ruddy Turnstones, Hooded Mergansers, Sanderlings, and Semipalmated Plovers. I left Ediz Hook and went up Hurricane Ridge Road into Olympic National Park. Seven miles up, I saw a large bird cross the road ahead of the car. I slowed down and stopped where I saw it go up the bank and there stood a
"coastal race" Blue Grouse staring back at me. At the top, the clear view of the Olympic Mountains was incredible.
The Olympic Mountains from Hurricane Ridge Road in Olympic National Park, Washington.
In the area around the visitor center were Red-breasted Nuthatch, Gray Jay, "Oregon" Junco, Swainson's Thrush, Band-tailed Pigeon, and Golden Eagle. After returning to the bottom, I drove to Tongue Point, near Crescent Beach, and spotted another first---a
Pacific Loon. I followed Highway 101 to the Hoh Rain Forest. Everything was covered with mosses and ferns. The Douglas Firs and Sitka Spruces were impressively tall.
The Hoh Rain Forest southeast of Forks, Washington.
A Sitka Spruce in the Hoh Rain Forest, southeast of Forks, Washington.
Highway 101 near Ruby Beach in Washington.
I stopped at Ruby Beach and Kalaloch to check the Pacific coastal waters where I found Common Murre, Rhinoceros Auklet, Pelagic Cormorant, and California Gull.
The seacoast at Ruby Beach in Washington.
California Gull at Ruby Beach in Washington.
At Point Brown, near Grays Harbor, there were hundreds of
Sooty Shearwwaters.
Sooty Shearwaters at Point Brown near Ocean Shores, Washington.
Also spotted there were Brown Pelicans, White-winged Scoter, and Semipalmated Plovers. Unfortunately, I couldn't find any Snowy Plovers. I then drove all the way around Grays Harbor and spent the night in Westport.
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