Overview

Cape Flattery is the most northwestern point within the contiguous United States, and provides some spectacular ocean views. It's a bit out of the way, but well worth the drive and the time.

Getting There

5:00 p.m.
After we visited the Ozette Lake area, we headed back along the Hoko-Ozette Road to the northeast. At its intersection with Highway 112 we turned left, toward the northwest, and continued on toward Neah Bay on the Makah Indian Reservation.

It was getting a bit late, and the gray clouds that we'd had for most of the day were becoming heavy and ominous. By the time we got to the trailhead it was raining.

Much of the highway travels along the coast, so we got views of the shoreline along the Strait of Juan de Fuca, with its sea gulls and heron. We saw cargo ships heading in to one of the ports around Puget Sound. When we arrived in Neah Bay we found a large sign that explained that we needed to purchase a Recreational Use Permit. There were small signs along the main road indicating which businesses sold the permits. We stopped at a small gas station and purchased our permit for $7.00. The attendant also gave us a map of the cape so that we could find our way. The permit is good for calendar year 2003. We hung it on the rearview mirror and were off.

The road to the cape travels through town, then cuts to the southwest across the neck of the cape, to the west coast, along the Pacific Ocean. The area is mostly tree lined, so we didn't see much of the ocean along the way. We missed the trailhead at first, noting the few cars parked in the area, but not seeing a sign. But after driving up the road 100 feet or so we realized that what we had seen must have been the trailhead.

Trailhead

We found a spot among the three or four cars, slipped on our rain jackets, used the portable chemical toilets nearby, then headed down the .75 mile trail through the forest. Like many of the other coastal forests that we had experienced along this trip, the trees were draped in moss and lichen and everything was green and lush. We again saw several slugs along the trail. Some of the trail is a boardwalk through some very interesting trees reminiscent of something from a mystical tale of fantasy, like the Lord of the Rings.

At one point, along the boardwalk, we came to a Y junction. We took the right path because there were folks approaching the junction from the left route.

View Points

There are some steep steps in this area, but only for a short distance. And then there you are. The Tribe has built several wooden view points above the sea caves and out at the point, with great views of the sea stacks and Tatoosh Island, with its lighthouse. We could hear the waves pounding against the steep cliffs below us. The tribe has done a nice job of building the decks to match the local environment.

From our view points we could see a series of small islets to the north of Tatoosh Island where seals or sea lions were gathered, stretched out on the rocks, or swimming in the surrounding waves. We even spotted one or two closer to the coast. There were also the usual sea birds, like gulls and cormorants and herons. Out in the distance we could see another large freighter heading toward port. And way off in the distance, at times, we could see a vague shadow that was Vancouver Island, in Canada.

After a short time we walked back up the boardwalk to the Y, and took the other route the short distance to another set of observation decks. Again we got great views of sea stacks and crashing waves. It was all very exciting to us landlubbers. I am sure that if the sky would have been clear the ocean would have been a sparkling blue, with white foam spewing about as the waves crashed against the cliffs.