Steilacoom Salmon Beach

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Steilacoom – Salmon Beach

Report from Ken
3/24/07

This wasn't supposed to be the itinerary for the day. There was a Kayak'n'Klean scheduled for the Nisqually Delta and I was really looking forward to a group of us heading down to do a little beach clean-up and paddle through the hidden green waterways of the Nisqually Reach. The weather report was calling for 30+ knots of wind and a whole lot of rain, however, so the trip was called off at about 7:00am. It seemed a shame to be landlocked for an entire day though, so I convinced Mary to drop me off at Steilacoom and I'd paddle home with the wind and the current at my back. Which is more or less how it worked out.

I got on the water at about noon and headed out past the Anderson Island ferry toward Chambers Creek. The water was rough as the current from Balch Passage and Carr Inlet mixed with the main flow. The wind was a quartering tailwind, so although I didn't have to paddle into it, it wasn't directly on my stern. The wind combined with the irregular chop made it difficult to keep the kayak on course for a little while, but once past the confluence of the currents, it got a lot better.

The rain was falling hard as I passed the entrance to Chambers Creek and came ashore briefly at an old loading pier near the gravel pits. I took some photos of the immense concrete loading stations that mark the heart of what used to be the largest gravel operation in the south Sound, and is now going to be its newest championship golf course. (Honestly… I don't know which of those two alternatives I prefer less.)

I passed through the strong rip at the point of Day Island and headed to shore at Titlow Beach. I was looking for a bowl of chowder and a beer, so I went to Steamer's, just up from the rocky beach. The tide was still falling but I would have to eat fairly quickly if I wanted to catch the last of the ebb and make it through the Narrows before the flood began.

As it worked out, it didn't take too long to get back to Salmon Beach. I pushed off from Titlow and was beneath the bridges in a matter of minutes. I could hear the traffic 300 feet above me, tires hissing on rain-soaked pavement, and then I was out of range, and the other sounds became easier to hear again. The brook that had turned into a little waterfall, emptying into the rocks at the shore. The birds in the trees, as well as the cries of the gulls and the sound of the water as it flowed quickly over and around the rocks. I could hear the seals as they barked at one another, lost in the mist. Then, out of the fog, I began to see the shapes of the houses on the beach. The trees on the hill behind them were starting to turn green, tentatively believing that Spring is just around the corner.

Then I was done, the keel scraping up onto the sand. The day hadn't turned out quite like I thought it would, but it was another good day on the water anyway. You just gotta learn to roll with the changes.

(Note: The Nisqually Delta Kayak'n'Klean has been rescheduled to September 29th. See you there!)