Forum Index > Trip Reports > Sand Point Olympic NP 2-22 to 2-24-04 with pictures
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Slugman
It’s a Slugfest!



Joined: 27 Mar 2003
Posts: 16874 | TRs | Pics
Slugman
It’s a Slugfest!
PostWed Feb 25, 2004 10:53 pm 
I left on the first ferry out of Edmonds on Sunday the 22nd at 7 am, and got to the trailhead at Ozette at 11:30. I hit the trail at noon, and donned my Stabilicers for the slippery boardwalks to Sand Point. I made the three miles in just 1 1/2 hours, despite my super-heavy pack, probably 80 pounds. The Stabilicers are essential in my opinion, since three miles of super-slippery wood is 2.9 miles too much without them. When I got to Sand point, it was high tide with big waves, and the driftwood logs were being tossed about like matchsticks. The sound of this was awe-inspiring and scary. I took a movie of it with my digital camera, it's pretty cool but didn't really capture the sound. After watching this spectacle for a while, I set up a luxury camp with a two-man, four-season tent, and an 8x10 tarp stretched over a pre-made driftwood table with "recliner" that some industrious person kindly constructed in the best view location. I then proceded to spend the next two full days doing nothing and going nowhere. Oh, I managed to grill a steak and about 20 colossal prawns, and down a six-pack of Heineken on ice over the two days (yes, I hauled in charcoal and ice to last two days!), but that's about it. I saw deer on top of a sea-stack and in my campsite with me, and eagles, and the most incredible skies I've ever seen. Sometimes "mostly cloudy" can be spectacular! Once the dayhikers cleared out Sunday evening, I saw only seven people over the next 48 hours, none of them camped at Sand Point. I kicked the deer off the seastack on Monday evening and watched the sunset from there, truly one of the great places to do so. Monday night was clear, and once the moon set, the stars were amazingly bright. Tuesday morning looked kind of raw, so I toweled off my tent and took it down, and sure enough it started to rain really hard right after that, so I was lucky to still have the tarp covering the table and comfy chair. I waited until high tide at 3 pm to see more waves crash into the driftwood, but the tide wasn't high enough like on Sunday. The hike out went by in just 1 hour and 15 minutes with the lighter pack helping, but also the torrential downpour adding some incentive. The boardwalks were so slippery that I probably would have broken a leg without the Stabilicers, really. More nimble folks could do without them, maybe, but not me.
You can see deer on the seastack
You can see deer on the seastack
Big sky
Big sky
Sluggy figures out the remote control
Sluggy figures out the remote control
Get outta my campsite
Get outta my campsite
Ferry terminal dawn
Ferry terminal dawn
waves crashing into driftwood
waves crashing into driftwood
Perfect campsite
Perfect campsite

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Damian
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Joined: 18 Dec 2001
Posts: 3260 | TRs | Pics
Damian
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PostWed Feb 25, 2004 11:42 pm 
Outstanding in every respect. Great report.

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WrongBridge
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Joined: 17 Apr 2003
Posts: 186 | TRs | Pics
Location: Pacific Beach, WA
WrongBridge
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PostThu Feb 26, 2004 1:13 am 
Slugman, very cool report! That hike is special to me because my sisters helped build the original boardwalk. Sometimes the best hikes are the short ones where we have ample time to sit and reflect like you did. WB

Too much of a good thing is wonderful (May West)
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Slugman
It’s a Slugfest!



Joined: 27 Mar 2003
Posts: 16874 | TRs | Pics
Slugman
It’s a Slugfest!
PostThu Feb 26, 2004 2:10 am 
Thanks, guys. I had intended to dayhike down to Yellow Banks, and maybe up to Wedding rocks, but the tides were against me. Low tide was at about 8 am and 8 pm each day, the worst arrangement in my opinion. I slept until 11 am on Monday! It was just too sweet to sit in my perfectly comfortable driftwood recliner and watch the sea stacks erode in the waves. It was especially nice on Tuesday to be dry and comfy in the pouring rain. Here's a recipe for collossal prawns: Shell and butterfly the prawns, then coat liberally with crushed garlic, coarse ground sea salt, fresh lemon peel, ground pepper, and parmesan cheese. Grill over a hot fire of mesquite coals until a crust forms on the outside. Serve with an artisan sourdough, and wash down with ice-cold Heineken. Yum! It's the same mixture I used on the boneless rib steak, except for no parmesan cheese on the steak.

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Spotly
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Joined: 06 Jan 2004
Posts: 3723 | TRs | Pics
Location: Spokane Valley
Spotly
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PostThu Feb 26, 2004 7:49 am 
Very cool. I agree with the "mostly cloudy" comment.

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Backpacker Joe
Blind Hiker



Joined: 16 Dec 2001
Posts: 23956 | TRs | Pics
Location: Cle Elum
Backpacker Joe
Blind Hiker
PostThu Feb 26, 2004 11:33 am 
Hey Sluggo, great job man. Did you hike north or south from ozette? I'm thinking you went south. Ive only been north. Please explain the Stabilicers?!~?!~?!~?!?!? TB

"If destruction be our lot we must ourselves be its author and finisher. As a nation of freemen we must live through all time or die by suicide." — Abraham Lincoln
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sarbar
Living The Dream



Joined: 28 Jan 2002
Posts: 8055 | TRs | Pics
Location: Freeland, Wa
sarbar
Living The Dream
PostThu Feb 26, 2004 7:05 pm 
I love the recliner biggrin.gif Hey, BPJ, the Stablicer thingies slip over your boots to give you traction on ice, snow, and rotting wet mossy logs wink.gif

https://trailcooking.com/ Eat well on the trail.
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Slugman
It’s a Slugfest!



Joined: 27 Mar 2003
Posts: 16874 | TRs | Pics
Slugman
It’s a Slugfest!
PostThu Feb 26, 2004 9:42 pm 
Joe, Stabilicers are exactly like sandals, except they go on your boots, not bare feet, and they have metal screwheads sticking out of the rubber cleats. They are essential for some conditions, like hard ice or slippery boardwalks, where crampons would be impractical. Here is a good link. Well worth the price because they last for many years! I used to wear them on snow also before I got my Vasque Zephyr GTX's, since the cleats on the Stabilicers really dig into packed snow. I find my Vasques have such agressive tread that I don't need the Stabilicers anymore for just snow. But on an icy trail like Mt Si, they turn "slippery" into "perfect traction". A must-have item for the winter hiker IMHO. biggrin.gif

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