| Day Three:
Stop 11: Dunes Overlook After viewing the elk, we debated whether to stop for
a bathroom break or head to the next stop. As I knew there was a
nice bathroom with running water, I persuaded everyone to keep going.
Well, it was Mother's Day, the parking lot was crowded, and the bathrooms
were closed. A lot of people headed for bushes. Picture to
the right courtesy of Melissa Riopel.
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The back dunes were massive amounts of sand with some beach grass starting to take hold |
Between the back dunes and the foredunes, was a deflation hollow filled with vegetation, such as this willow |
Salal (above), evergreen huckleberry and kinnickinnick are among the plants in the deflation basin that I use in my yard at home. |
Shore pines were growing in among the grass and scotch broom (looking beautiful with yellow flowers) in the basin. |
Looking along the foredune, with the beach on the left and the deflation basin to the right. |
Finally, the beach, and lovely large ripple marks in the sand. |
People wandered for a while and splashed in the water, then ... |
... made the long hot trek back uphill through the sand. |