Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Once home to the Chehalis tribe, Grays Harbor was first charted by non-native explorers
in 1792 when American Robert Gray arrived in the bay, which acts as an estuary for the
Chehalis River. Farming, fishing and fur trading were the staple of the settlers in the
1840s and '50s, though this was quickly replaced by lumber in the 1880s. With most of
the mills now closed, Grays Harbor has become a sleepy backwater, although the area is
doing its best to lure in tourism with a variety of charter-fishing and beachcombing activ-
ities.
Getting There & Away
BOAT
A passenger ferry crosses from Westport to Ocean Shores six times daily mid-June to
Labor Day, and on weekends only May to mid-June and September ($6/10 one way/
round-trip). Purchase tickets at Float 10. Call
Westport/Ocean Shores Ferry
(
360-268-0047)
for information.
BUS
Olympia (two hours, six daily), Lake Quinault (one hour, four daily), Ocean Shores (1½
hours, 10 daily), Westport (30 minutes, seven daily) and Centralia Amtrak station (1½
hours, one daily). There are connections to the Long Beach Peninsula with
Pacific
Wishkah and G Sts, in Hoquiam at 7th and J Sts.
Ocean Shores
Washington state's most popular coastal resort is a manufactured beach haven known as
Ocean Shores that was constructed in the 1960s on a scenic stretch of shoreline. While
the settlement boasts its fair share of clichéd resort activities, including golf, dune-buggy
riding and gambling at the Quinault Beach Resort and Casino, the area is far from
spoiled, with kite flying, canoeing (there are over 20 miles of interconnecting canals) and
razor clamming (digging in the sand for razor clams) also enduringly popular.
Sights & Activities
You can rent boats to ply the region's ubiquitous canals at
Ocean Shores Electric Boat
back riding can be arranged through
Nan-Sea Stables
(
360-289-0194; 255 SR 115)
. If
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