Hi, my name is Ramsey. I’m five. My mom Taffy is one of Grandpa Jack’s children. We visited a place called Rosario Beach this weekend. Have you been there? This was my first time.
We walked down a grassy path past a building made of stones and logs. Through its windows I could see a beach, and water, and far-away mountains. The trail went around some trees, and I found a big bay on the left, and a small bay on the right opening to very big waters.
I scrambled down a trail to the gravelly beach and sat on a log to shake a rock out of my boot. Then I ran down to the edge of the water, picked up rocks, and threw them as far as I could into the bay. One was too big for me, so Grandpa Jack helped me throw it in. It made a huge splash!
Next to the beach we found a rocky, slippery place. I had never seen a place like this. It had little sharp white things on the rocks that cut a boy who fell on them, but they gave me a good grip to walk on. Grandpa called them barnacles; we could hear them make little clicking noises as they closed their shells. Little plants popped as I walked on them. I tried to walk just on the bare rocks instead. We found a big pool of water. Grandma Kath showed me a fish swimming in the pool, and little legs walking in a snail shell, and a little crab walking sideways, and several flowers that she said were not plants but animals, called amemonies.
To get off the beach we scrambled up steep slippery rocks, with my mom holding my hand, then climbed higher; all I could see was a big mountain above us. We used our hands and feet to climb carefully, and soon we were at the top. We did it! Grandpa told me there was a high cliff with a sharp edge up here, and I should be careful. My mom took my hand, and we walked near the cliff edge but not too close. My mom took a selfie of us.
We could see big white birds flying below us! We were above the birds! The sea spread out beyond us all the way to the edge of the earth.
We crossed the top of the mountain and walked down an easy trail on the other side, back into the trees. At the bottom of the woods we met a big, tall woman looking at us with big eyes on both sides of her head! She had fish and kelp and clams and crabs crawling on one side of her. She must have lived in the water or something. Grandpa Jack said she had an important story to tell us.
I found a wooden walkway leading down to a dock in the bay. I skipped along the boards, a fun way to get to the water, but I wanted rocks to throw, so we went up to get a handful and back down again to throw them off the dock.
Then we walked back up the dock and down a trail onto the other beach where I could throw more rocks. I found tiny bug things crawling on the rocks. They scared me, but Grandpa Jack said they don’t bite kids like me.
Eventually Mom said we had to leave now. I could throw two more rocks and then it would be time to go. I asked if I could throw six. She said five. I said a million. She smiled and said just five. I threw them slowly.
We clambered up to the gravel trail, looked back at the beaches, the trees, the tall wooden woman, and the mountain, then walked reluctantly back to our car.
Directions
Directions: Just north of the Deception Pass Bridge, turn onto Rosario Road. In 0.7 miles angle left onto Cougar Gap Road, then left onto Rosario Beach Road and drive to the parking lot at the end.
By bike: Rosario Road is narrow and hilly with a small shoulder but with minimal traffic.
Mobility: The gravel trail from the parking area to the isthmus is wide, slightly downhill, and firmly packed. The trails on the head itself vary from gentle with good tread to very steep and rocky.
Note: please avoid stepping on plants and animals in the tidepools, as best you can. In the busy season, the tidepools have a rope pathway to follow. At other times, do the best you can, and leave every critter at peace in its own home.
Republished with permission. Find the original article.