10/08/08 - 10/21/08 Copalis Beach, WA

 We arrived in Copalis Beach on Oct. 8. To our TT friends, we stayed at Copalis Beach Resort, which was ok, but the coastline there is mostly flat. This is an ROD park. We drove north and south along the coast, but there were too many trees for a good view of the ocean. We will probably not visit this area again as we love the mountains and the WA coastline is not as rugged as the Oregon coastline. There was a razor clam dig over the weekend while we were there. It’s a really big deal. The campground filled up and everyone gathered up their gear, coolers, lanterns, lots of beer, etc. and headed to the beach a little before dark. They stayed out there in 40 degree weather until they got there quota of 15 each or midnight, whichever came first. We went out and watched for awhile, and they were all finding a lot of really good looking clams. On Sat. Oct. 20, we took a 9 mile bike ride on the beach. I know 9 miles doesn’t seem very long, but believe me it was! You can drive cars on this beach, so the sand is really packed down. What we didn’t take into consideration was the tide. When we left the tide was out. We could only ride south which was with the wind. When we started back the tide was coming in, so the sand was much softer and we were riding against the wind. We had to walk our bikes through the hardest parts. But, it was a great workout and it was beautiful watching the waves crash in and the birds flying everywhere. And that glass of wine really tasted great later! Next stop will be Randle, WA. Our campground is located centrally between Mt. Rainier and Mt. St. Helens.