Dungeness Spit

What a treat to drive from Bainbridge Island to the Dungeness Spit along the Juan de Fuca Straight. Just across the water we could see Victoria and Vancouver Island. We were really close to home.

Immediately it reminded me of the Sidney Spit, which is on Sidney Island, one of the Gulf Islands near Sidney BC.

I found this map next day and added it.  You can see the Dungeness Spit... and Victoria, with Sidney just north of it. Salt Spring Island is upper left corner.  Then to the right of Salt Spring is the string of islands, Galiano, Mayne and Saturna.

It is over 5 miles one way to the lighthouse near the end of the spit.

This ariel shot even shows the snow capped Olympic Mountains in the background.  On a clear day we see these mountains from our sun deck on Mayne Island.

Much of the spit is protected as a National Wildlife Refuge... and one side of the spit is set aside for nesting birds.

There is endless driftwood in the center of the spit...

and lots of sea gulls...

With just my iPhone camera I caught several gulls in flight.

As I was shooting my family walking on the beach this gull innocently crashed thru my picture.

Here is our family without the sea gull.

Son  Shelby with Kim posed for me.

The spit is full of water-smoothed rock.  

The driftwood provided interesting background and foreground for several shots. Shirley had our grand daughter pose for her.

I had to get a shot of Maizy too.

Other families were also using the driftwood to stage photo opportunities.

Shirley really enjoyed the afternoon walk on the beach... and stopped so I could capture the moment.

Someone carefully balanced these rocks on the driftwood. Lucy wondered how long it would be there?

Shelby set up the iPhone to capture this great family photo of us all on a huge driftwood log. No easy task to get us all to cooperate!

A perfect place to go for an afternoon walk. It is a place that we want to come back to and walk the entire length of the spit, check out the light house and maybe stay overnight there. There are apparently over 200 different species of birds in this area. What a great spot to spend some time.

"It's inherent in human nature to want to know more than I know right now... to want to know some place that I haven't seen before."
-Buzz Aldrin   (Well spoken by one who went to the moon!)