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Sea Kayak - Sequim Bay

Windy, but well protected in the Bay. Chop increased to solid 1 ft plus waves around noon, but weather was great. Visited Paradise Cove and Sequim Bay State Park boat launch

Placeholder Contact Profile Fred Inman
October 27, 2020
  • Road suitable for all vehicles

  • Due to high winds outside the bay, the launch location was changed from Port Williams to the public park just south of John Wayne Marina.   Not the best launch location for anything other than high tide, but conditions were in our favor with a rising tide.

    At the entrance to the bay, west of the spit, swells and white caps were visible.   Sounds of strong shore breaks on the spit were present as we paddled on the bay side.  

We started at the public park just south of the John Wayne Marina.  Rising tide helped us avoid the usual mud at this location.  Bathrooms were open, clean, and warm.  

We headed north from the launch and almost immediately observed a sea lion thrashing in the water with a large fish in its mouth.  We could not tell whether the sea lion was playing with the fish or just trying to kill it.  

We passed the sea lion and returned to west shore to avoid wind and slight current.   As we passed the entrance to the marina, we saw two river  otters.  

As we arrived near the entrance to the bay, we saw swells and white caps coming into the bay, so we decided to ferry to the south side of the spit.  Conditions at the spit, where there is usually an eddy, were flood like current with no eddy due to the energy coming from the entrance.  

Mount Baker was visible as we neared the spit.  It was completely covered with snow.  Some of the Olympic range, with snow was visible, but otherwise was covered by local cloud cover.  We visited Paradise Cove and enjoyed the old buildings on the spit and the newer "fancy" homes on shore.  We intended to make our way down the east shore as close to the south end of the bay, but the wind picked up a bit, giving us a quartering following sea.  We changes course to go directly to the Sequim Bay State Park for lunch instead. 

A short paddle to the south after lunch to explore the Sequim Bay State Park mooring dock and we turned north to return to the launch site.  There was just enough wind to make it worth while to be near shore.  There wasn't much in the way of waterfowl, but we did see a number of kingfishers and two bald eagles.

Great day with great folks!