'Split-Rock Cove'

I recently returned from a subsequent visit to Cape Flattery accompanied by Jason ‘Kiwi’ Goldstein, founder and owner of Global Adventure Guides. Although I’ve been out to the Cape numerous times, it was always for a quick day paddle or while enroute to a different destination. The Cape is so incredibly rugged, so awe inspiring, that I always felt a little deflated by my abruptness. This trip was short in miles, but long in exploring; the plan was to paddle every beach, cove, sea-cave, and waterfall between Neah Bay, and Fuca Pillar.

Our first day found us doing just that. Along the way we found the most incredible blow hole just west of Warmhouse Beach. Incredible in that although there really wasn’t much surf, it would blow foam 20 ft in the air. One of the first items I noticed was the ‘Moon Jellyfish’ in the water, hundreds if not thousands just below the surf glowing indigo in the afternoon sun. Large numbers of Harlequin Ducks where also present, far more then I’ve seen in the past as well as the ever present Pelagic Cormorants. In the warm afternoon sun, you could really pick out the subtle green color of their plumage.

That night we rounded the Cape and camped in a small nameless cove facing the setting sun. There were two beaches separated by a large sea stack rising somewhere around 100 feet straight up. It didn’t take long to notice the crack that split the needle diagonally in two sections, which some day would topple the upper portion, so we decided to hence forth call our camp ‘Split-Rock Cove’. The camp was surrounded by steep cliff walls and pocketed by fissures and caves leading back from the beaches. Some were as deep as 40’ and it was hard not to feel claustrophobic while exploring their depths. That night we enjoyed a breathtaking sunset made all the more special by the rugged terrain. Where we off Washington’s coast, or Patagonia? It didn’t take much imagination to place us anywhere on the globe.

The next morning we expected to find low water off our beaches as we were at a new moon, but what we didn’t expect was the huge slippery boulders between our beach and the waters edge. Plenty of time for a leisure breakfast while waiting for the incoming tide, but we’d have to move our camp if we were to meet our take-out schedule at the end of the trip. Although the forecast was only slightly more energetic then the previous days, it was just enough to threaten to close out our slot. We kept a watchful eye on wind and waves as the morning progressed and tried to discern a pattern to the wave trains coming in. I had been fairly relaxed about the whole deal as I’ve paddled through larger waves, and much more wind, but as the time came for me to commit myself to launching, I realized that there was no margin of error and no turning back once off the beach. Any misjudgment or mishandling of the boat, and I wasn’t paddling out of the cove. The waves were large enough to guarantee a holed boat if you were even slightly side surfed. This was the most exposed launch I’ve made and although I was confident I had the skills to survive, I was certainly pushing the envelope. We took the time to make sure we both understood the days paddling route, decided on a rendezvous site and time in case of separation, and did a quick radio check on our VHF sets as part of our backup plan. However, we both made it with no mishap; although I had a extra-large helping of adrenaline as I misjudged the wave set I exited on and had them break on me just as I ran the slot.

Conditions quickly quieted as we ducked behind the Cape into the Strait of Juan de Fuca in search of a second camp. We found a nice beach just west of Warmhouse Beach and after setting up camp, paddled the rest of the afternoon combing beaches for those ever elusive glass floats. And although we didn’t find any floats, we took advantage of the negative tide to explore the lower tidal zone and marvel at all the marine life; huge beds of Acorn Barnacles out feeding, Chitons, and sea-anemones just to name a few. All in all this was a great paddle, made so by the great location, and the great company with me.