Mason County Kayak Club
Paddle destination information                                   
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West shore of Hood Canal: Hoodsport "urban" area

Body of water:  Hood Canal, west shore, just north of Annas Bay
Launch site:  Potlatch State Park
        Click THIS LINK  for driving directions.
    Alternative launch site:  Launch in Hoodsport for trips north or south
Conditions needed for trip:  No special conditions (minimal tidal currents)
Paddle trip distance:  Hoodsport is about 3.5 miles from Potlatch State Park and 4.5 miles from Lilliwaup
Nature of the area:  Heavily settled with houses close together where space exists between Highway 101 and the Canal; intermittent areas without houses where the road runs closer to the water; small town along water; views across the Canal to the east and "up" the Canal to the north

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Visit report(s)

Feb. 2005:   A one-way trip from Potlatch State Park to Lilliwaup, about 8 miles to the north, sought but did not find a pod of transient Orcas that had been sighted in the area. The trip enjoyed a sunny, warm day, with little wind until the paddlers reached Hoodsport. From there north, the water became livelier as the wind picked up, presenting some challenging waves and making the arrival at Lilliwaup a welcome landfall.





Dec. 2004:   A week of unrelenting rain almost flooded Highway 101 at the Skokomish River bridge, and produced strong runoff outflows in Hood Canal, but the morning of this outing dawned clear and beautiful, with mostly blue skies and little wind. Paddlers traveled north to Hoodsport from Potlatch State Park and, during the outing, saw great blue herons, bald eagles, seals, many mixed flocks of waterfowl (including scaups, mergansers, and buffelheads), saw several loons and heard the calls of even more, and had two unusual and very close encounters with a sea otter (on both the outbound and return legs of the trip, at the same location). The trip north to Hoodsport (where the group took a stretch break) took only an hour; the trip back south required much more time and effort. The day also became unexpectedly warm, and paddlers dressed for winter had ample opportunity to get a warming work-out on the journey from Hoodsport back south, working against a mild breeze and all the rain runoff that was trying to make its way out to sea. The outing was favored by extraordinary weather for mid-December.






        Click THIS LINK  for additional photos from the area.