I know it’s been way too long since my last post, and for that I apologize. Work as been really busy, and I’ve had a couple of clients die. This was sad as they were both such wonderful people – always happy, warm and friendly. So, I have been spending quite a bit of time trying to get the families as much help as possible.

Anyway, I have finally have some time away from work for a bit. While I was in Oregon and Washington state last fall visiting clients, I took about a week off and spent that time on the Washington coast using Forks, Washington as my base. This post will be the first of 3 from that trip.

Here is a short video I shot while doing some photography last October at Ruby Beach on the northwest part of the Olympic Peninsula in Washington state. Turn up the sound on your phone or computer; you’ll want to hear this.

Sorry about the quality; WordPress converted my video down to 720p from my original. But, I just love the sound of the waves crashing over the rocks. Listening to the waves crash seems to drown out the rest of the world, at least that’s how it feels for me. I thought this video might add a bit more feeling to the post.

Fortunately, that morning was really nice weather – quite sunny with a bit of a breeze pushing in those waves.

This was the first time I have ever spent any real time exploring Ruby Beach. It’s in a bit of an isolated location – about 30 minutes or so south of Forks, Washington, and maybe two hours north of Westport, Washington. (And Forks is in itself extremely isolated.) The Highway, US 101, sits a couple of hundred feet above the coast here, so there is a nice trails that winds down from the parking area to the beach.

However, to get to the actual beach, you must cross a fairly large bunch of drift logs which have been washed up onto the shore during the big winter storms. There really aren’t any official paths through the logs; you just have to carefully pick your own way.

The coast here is an incredible mix of huge rocks, sand, large gravel and logs and other driftwood that have washed ashore and been beaten and worn by the relentless waves and storms over the many, many years. Most of the rock outcroppings are basalt, hinting at this region’s violent volcanic past at the western edge of the “Ring of Fire”.

The headlands are so interesting from the beach as the many millennia of storms and huge waves have cut away at the coast, creating incredibly rugged formations.

There is a lighthouse off the coast near the right in the photo above. It lies on Destruction Island about 3 miles (5 km) from the coast. The Destruction Island Lighthouse was started in 1890 and featured a first order Fresnel lens that stood 147 feet (45 meters) above the ocean and was visible for 24 miles. The lens was removed in 1995 and now sits in the Westport, Washington Maritime Museum. Destruction Island lighthouse was completely decommissioned and shut down in 2008.

Watching these waves on a nice fall afternoon, it’s difficult to imagine the lives of those lighthouse keepers 3 miles out in the Pacific during the harsh winter storms that lash the Northwest coast. Those lighthouse keepers were some tough people.

The above photo gives a great glimpse into the changing character of Ruby Beach with the varying weather.

Well, this about wraps up the Ruby Beach trip, so I hope you enjoyed the video and the photo tour. If you are ever on the Washington coast, Ruby Beach is well worth your time.

Thank you so much for stopping by my blog, and wishing everyone the best for the New Year!