shi shi beach

I love this beach, only thing's you need to do is check the tide pool schedule and be careful going down the hill to get to the beach.

I had been trying to get out here for years. Be sure to get a tribal parking pass, $10 per year. Park right at the trailhead unless you are overnighting on the beach in which case you must get a wilderness pass from the National Park Service and park in a nearby pay lot. Be prepared for a little mud, there is one steep area just before you get to the beach. We are two women in our 60's and had no problem with it. The beach has wonderful tide pools and rock formations. Be sure to check the tide charts, much more to see at low tide.

I had no idea how flipping gorgeous Shi Shi Beach would be! I went on a backpacking and camping trip to the beach with a small group.Beauty was absolutely everywhere! Beach is secluded and spectacular with large rock formations and amazingly active tide pools. A family of bald eagles were in the trees above us and we could see dolphins and whales swimming at dusk.This is an absolute magical place. One of the most beautiful in the world!Tips: You must use bear canisters to store food & toiletries. National Park service rents them for a recommended donation of $3.Last part of the hike involves using ropes for a repel-style decent down the cliff to the beach.Leave no traceTime your trip around the full moon for ultra-low tide and amazing tide pools!

First off, the good stuff. 1- Crazy beautiful sea stacks. If you've never been here, do yourself a favor and do an image search for "point of arches olympic np" to get an idea what you'll be seeing. Even if the sun doesn't cooperate, the sunrise view at low tide of the Point of Arches is breathtaking! 2- Plenty of wildlife, including deer, sea otters, bald eagle, and various shorebirds. 3- We went midweek and setup at least a mile down the beach, and ended up with lots of elbow room. Which leads to: 4-The two mile trail, half of which is a muddy mess, to get to the cliff descent to the beach. To me, this is a plus, cause it keeps the casual tourists away. It hadn't rained much the two days previous to our arrival, so we didn't sink more than a couple inches into the goo, anyway. 5- Very photogenic. Feed images to your camera. Lots of them! Your camera will like you! And you ought to be rewarded with at least a few great color and B/W photos.The bad, or "areas of improvement". 1- as mentioned in previous reviews, you need a Makah recreation pass. Not a big deal. BUT, the parking fees if you want to overnight are a bit misleading. I think it was ten bucks a day, but that day starts and ends at midnight! So, if you camp one night, you have to pay for two separate days. 2- the two toilets we saw at the beach were disgusting, even for someone that's used to primitive camping! 3- I thought the campsites closest to the trailhead were kind of unkempt. 4- Too much litter, especially close to the trailhead. I easily filled up a Walmart bag with little pieces of trash, could've filled many more. And, there's large debris scattered about as well. Very disappointing for a National Park. 5- Kinda sorta on a related note, Hobuck Beach Campground deserves mention (I didn't see a separate writeup on Tripadvisor for Hobuck Beach, sorry). We stayed there the night before we went to Shi Shi and it was a major disappointment. My opinion, they need to have something on the order of a tribal ranger patrolling that campground, taking care of the stupidity, and making sure the bathrooms are cleaned. The showers were decent, but the toilets were plugged, sinks dirty, garbage cans overflowing. Topped off by inconsiderate campers on the beach deciding it would be great fun to launch fireworks at 10:00PM! Just what we didn't want, since we wanted to wake up early to get a nice campsite on Shi Shi.If the negatives were taken care of, this would be the best wilderness beach in the world. As it stands now, I'd recommend Rialto Beach over Shi Shi.

If you plan to stay overnight, you need to park your vehicle at a private space which costs $10/day. Day parking is free at trailhead. The trail is around 2 miles before you reach the beach. There's no elevation but the trail is full of mud. You could avoid the mud by following few trails on the side along the main trail. There are plenty of camping spots along the beach. Look for an elevated spot so that you're safe during high tide. It wasn't cold enough as expected but do carry few extra clothes. The camping spot was clean and we also left it clean for the next tourists. There are a couple of toilets available behind the beach if you really need to use it. We walked to the Point of the Arches which is about 4 mile along the beach. Overall its an amazing beach to camp overnight.

There is a hike on about one and a half our to the beach, but what a view. Such a beautiful place. Go there when the tide is low, and check out the tide poles. Saw star fish and other stuff. Really nice! People camp down there, which I wished I had done. However, not everyone clean after themselves, a real shame!

Of course the sun came out halfway back to car, but Shi-Shi Beach was still spectacular. It was a bit of a chore to get there, but well worth the effort. You do need a Makah recreation pass to park at the trail head. It's only 2 miles to the beach, but what a 2 miles it was. Lots of muddy spots. Luckily there are a lot of side trails to bypass some of them, but then you're fighting bushes at times. There is a nice overlook of the ocean before you get to the National Park part of the trail. Then the fun really begins. Getting down the bluff is steep and challenging. Ropes are provided to help you. Take your time and everything will be fine. The beach area is awesome. I was hoping the famous Point of Arches would be within eyesight so my Dad wouldn't have to walk the extra 2 miles since we had the Ozette hike earlier in the week. It was and it was awesome to look at. We did walk down the beach a bit and it is smooth sand and a lot easier to walk on compared to Cape Alava. We walked partially down the beach and had lunch and spent quite a bit of time just watching the waves. So relaxing and awesome to look at. I know some reviewers complain about the trash in places. Anything camper related I can understand. I think some of it may be tsunami related. Some of the items were just so peculiar. Floats, balls, and even a trophy was found down there. Someone got creative and decorated a tree with some of these items. Shi-Shi Beach is just what the Travel Channel advertised a few years back. It is a spectacular wilderness beach in spite of some of the challenges getting there. Don't miss this one.

The beach was really long with beautiful scenery etc. But honestly, I am not sure if it is worth it, if you dont have much time in the area. The hike was quite long and muddy, and the beach was...well... like a sandy beach. A day before our hike to Shi-shi beach, we were on Second beach (by La Push) at the sunset and it was much-much more beautiful... My advice is to look up the photos on the internet and see what it looks like when you get there and if it is worth the hike etc... The Olympic Peninsula has a lot of other beautiful places to visit ;)

The Shi Shi beach area is beautiful. It definitely can be done as a day hike, but it also would be an excellent place to pack in and camp for awhile (if camping don't forget your bear proof food container or you can be fined). The trail out is about 2.5 miles of gradual climb followed by a very steep descent (about 200' vertical) to the beach. There are ropes provided if you need something to hang onto, but you can just hike down if you are careful. Once at the beach you can stay there or extend the hike north or south. There are great tide pools fairly close to the north and a shipwreck a little further north (after passing a couple small headlands; probably ~1/2 mile north).Be prepared for a muddy trail even if it hasn't rained for a few days. Pack some food and water and plan to spend awhile enjoying the beach, scenery, and wildlife. Plan on a good hour to hike out, at least 3-6 hours to explore, and another hour to hike back. We made a day of it. This hike is well worth the effort.

Easy hike except for about a half mile of muddy trail. Social trails bypass the worst parts. Go on a minus tide for great tide pool viewing. We also saw a sea otter - our first on the Washington coast. We did about 8 miles with lunch on the beach. We did the round trip in about 4 hours.

I was nervous about this hike after reading the reviews but we decided to do it anyway and I'm glad we did. The first third of the walk is mostly boarded trail through the forest and then the rest is muddy paths. There is a lot of mud but it's easy to avoid as there are always side trails around it. The final descent to the beach is steep but it was better than I expected after reading reviews. I didn't use the rope at all and I'm not a. Rey experienced hiker. Our party also included a toddler and a 6 month pregnant woman and we managed fine. The beach is sandy, has a great view of Point of the Arches and really cool tide pools. We saw lots of huge red starfish. I didn't see any trash. It's also a really nice quiet beach - part of the advantage of it not being super accessible. The overnight parking is definitely an issue but we had no issue with our day hike. There is also a rest room at the trail head. Overall, I enjoyed the hike and the beach was great but there are other more accessible beaches if you don't want to work as hard for the view.

I would like to apologize for the length of this review beforehand. My friends and I were very excited to see this place. I'm not the type that writes reviews, but I feel it's fair to warn fellow wilderness lovers before a journey is made.The drive to the beach was a long and twisty one from Port Angeles, through mainly logged, devastated, man handled scenery, apart from the Crescent lake passing. The entirety of the area outside the national park is young planted woods and clear cuts which serve to demoralize the wilderness lover. Passing through Neah Bay, which is the main population center of the Makah tribe is also a sobering view into the quality of life the native peoples in the area have. Upon arriving to the trail head to Shi Shi we saw a sign instructing over night hikers to park .6 miles back in a private lot for protection from vandalism, which apparently is very likely to happen. At the private residence and adjoining lot where bottled water (a bit on the not so fresh looking side) and other last minutes were sold, we found out our two night stay was going to cost us 30 dollars in parking protection fees. It felt a bit like we had been snared in racket.We decided to journey back to Neah Bay and get a tribal parking permit which was half the price and good for many months. The car was then parked in a turnout about a half mile from the trailhead. The danger of a fine from the tribe was out of the way, but not the danger of thieves.The hike in was pleasant enough. There were some nice stands of mature forest, with lots of lush undergrowth. The second half is a fairly uninspiring straight line of mud with no views, and private, access restricted trails (you're on tribal lands until the beach). Just after you come to the Olympic National Park sign there is a very steep scramble down a cliff. At the bottom you are greeted by a few dark campsites strewn with litter, and a frightening open air pit toilet hastily screened off by a few chest high pieces of washed up plywood. It was hard to gage if the dead seal carcass near by, or the latrine smelled worse. Evidence of folks rejecting this nightmare of a toilet was everywhere. All of this is pretty much right on the trail before it opens to the beach.The beach itself was physically beautiful! However, it was marred significantly by litter. I asked a ranger by phone the next day about the garbage to see if it was tsunami debris. He told me unfortunately it was not. He said day hikers and backpackers tend to leave large amounts trash behind. It was saddening. While setting up camp we encountered a very aggressive and upset man who said his tents, backpacks and guitar had just been taken, while he had a quick wash in the surf. We told him we saw only day hikers with nothing he described on our way in. He ran off like a crazy man toward the trailhead to find the thieves. He apparently came back while I was away and became very confrontational with my friends, and gave them a bit of a scare. While talking to other campers we got the idea that this happened a lot at Shi Shi. On the positive side, there was a new born deer we discovered curled up behind a log next to our camp. Mom was not far away. We also saw a pod of orca whales that looked to be hunting.Overall the experience was dirty, unsafe feeling, and not up to National Park standards. The ranger on the phone was not surprised at what I had to report while reserving a new spot in the Olympics to camp.I hear there are better beaches to the south.

I'd done my research and read all the reviews about this beach, but nothing compared to experiencing it in real life. At the trail head, there's a warning sign that the hike is not suitable for people with weak knees, ankles, or backs, and they're not wrong. Do not attempt this hike or the crazy descent to the beach if you have any of the above, as you could be seriously injured with no help for miles. The hike through the forest was incredible. The foliage is thick and dense and beautiful. It was a little buggy (we were just there on 6/5/14) but nothing too serious. I'd read about the mud and prepared for it by getting waterproof hiking boots. Let me tell you, they were the greatest investment of the entire trip. My friend was wearing tennis shoes, and she was absolutely regretting as we tromped through pools of shoe-sucking mud. There are side trails, but not for ever mud hole that needs to be crossed.The descent. Again, I'd read about the steep descent you must take to get to the beach, but I was not prepared for what met us at the end of the trail. You start at the top of a sheer cliff and practically have to repel down the side of it. Okay, that's a little drastic, but you do have to take it slow, as the only thing helping you down are tree roots for footing and a rope to hold on to. People with ankle or knee problems WILL NOT make it without serious injury. I, myself, had to force myself to not look down. I've never had a problem with virtigo, but I was suffering when I'd catch a glimpse of the sheer nothingness behind and under me.All in all, a great experience. The beach is not to be missed, and the tide pools are spectacular. I just got back from the ONP on Monday (6-9-14), and I will never ever forget the day we spent at Shi Shi.

My husband and I (both retired) hiked this trail in May. We'd been wanting to go to Shi Shi Beach, Cape Flattery, and Lake Ozette. I'd read reviews that the trail was muddy but thought since it had been dryer weather, we'd be okay. I was glad I brought my Bogs boots in a backpack because about 1/2 way through the trail there was no getting around the mud. You had to go through it. My husband had high top hiking boots and at one point he stepped into mud over the top of these. The muddy areas are scattered mostly within a 1/2 mile stretch. We were told by a ranger that it's muddy year round. It was an adventure, that's for sure. The last 1/8 mile is steep, with a rope to hold onto. When we finally reached the beach we were frankly, a little disappointed. The once pristine beach had washed up water bottles, etc. from the tsunami in Japan. We were told that only a couple weeks earlier there had been an Earth Day cleanup. We'd seen lovelier beaches along the Pacific Coast if WA without having to trudge through mud. (Our favorite is Second Beach, near La Push.)

So the hike was a little muddy but the end result was gorgeous! The beach was mostly deserted. The weather was clear and about 70 degrees. We climb over the large rock formation to get to the north side of the beach and it was even more beautiful. Absolutely no one was there!. I took a short nap listening to the waves while my husband explored. The views were completely breathtaking and appeared like they could be right out of a movie...stunning.