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USA: Washington: Hurricane Ridge, Kalaloch Beach, Lake Quinault, Long Beach, Marymere Waterfall, Port Angeles, Puget Sound, Ruby Beach, Seattle

Port Angeles, Washington, USA: Steeped in history
by Prakash Bang, Editor in Chief

Port Angeles is the location of the headquarters of Olympic National Park, which encompasses most of the Olympic Mountains, and was established by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1938.

We arrived a night before and were hosted at Red Lion. A lovely property located right on the waters, overlooking the harbour. The tempting views of the rising sun, encouraged me to rise early and walk along the beach. That presented me with a two-fold advantage. One, I got some good pictures of the harbor, and, two, it built my appetite to enjoy the hearty breakfast at the Red Lion.

Whilst having breakfast, our city hosts gave us a little presentation about the history & the building of the town. Thereafter, we had an hour long guided tour of the city, especially the underground.

Port Angeles is a city steeped in history as a logging center of the Olympic Peninsula. The whole downtown area was raised in the early 1900s and many older buildings were lost until the remains were recently discovered and are undergoing a remarkable renovation. This underground area provides an insight into the past living conditions and that includes the discovery of one of the brothels and a link to a darker side of Port Angeles.

Wall Mural, Port Angeles, Washington, USA

One of the highlights of the walk was a visit to a wall mural of the Kalakala Ferry, painted by Cory Ench. The painting is bound to surprise the viewer. As one moves along the wall, the ferry appears to move with you! Port Angeles streets are home to work of arts by many other artisans too.

The city is situated on the northern edge of the Olympic Peninsula along the shore of the Strait of Juan de Fuca. Port Angeles features a long and narrow natural sand spit named Ediz Hook that projects north-easterly nearly three miles into the Strait. Ediz Hook creates a large, natural deep-water harbour shielded from the storms and swells that move predominantly eastward down the Strait from the Pacific Ocean. The harbor is deep enough to provide anchorage for large ocean-going ships such as tankers and cruise ships. The south shore of Vancouver Island and the city of Victoria, British Columbia are visible across the Strait to the north.

After the short walk our group was ready to negotiate the Hurricane Ridge.

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