Ruby Beach

The rocks standing offshore at Ruby Beach are sea stacks, the eroded remnants of a coastline that the Pacific has been slowly dismantling for ages. Waves attacked headlands until only these harder pillars remained, stranded in the surf and topped, on the larger ones, with wind-bent trees.

The signature landmark is Abbey Island, a tree-crowned hump of rock near the shore that anchors nearly every photograph of the beach. At low tide you can walk out close to it across the sand and explore the tide pools sheltered in its lee, where sea stars, anemones, and small creatures cling to the rock between tides.

Ruby Beach is named for the flecks of garnet in its sand. Cedar Creek, which empties onto the beach, carries down grains of the reddish mineral, and where they concentrate they lend the sand a faint rosy tint, most visible in low, warm light near sunrise or sunset. It is a subtle thing, not a scarlet shore, but a lovely one once you notice it.

The creek also stains its own outflow a tea-brown with tannins from the forest, so the meeting of dark creek water, pale surf, and faintly red sand gives the north end of the beach a painterly quality. Add the piles of silvered driftwood the sea throws up, and there is texture everywhere you look.

Like all of the Olympic wilderness coast, Ruby Beach is protected within the national park and is home to a rich intertidal world. The tide pools reward slow, careful looking, and the offshore rocks are important seabird habitat, so this is a place to watch rather than disturb.

The mood shifts with the weather and the tide. Fog can wrap the stacks in mystery, storms can send spectacular surf against the rocks, and calm summer evenings bring glowing sunsets. Because the tide can quickly cut off the walk around the point, a glance at a tide table before you scramble out among the rocks is always wise.

Ruby Beach anchors the north end of the Kalaloch area, the stretch where Highway 101 hugs the ocean and a string of numbered beaches drop down to the surf. Just south, the small Kalaloch Lodge and campground sit on a bluff above the sea, and the famous Tree of Life, a spruce clinging to life over an eroded hollow, draws its own crowd.

Inland, the rest of Olympic National Park beckons: the mossy depths of the Hoh Rain Forest up a nearby river valley, and the wild driftwood shores of Rialto and the La Push beaches to the north. Ruby Beach makes a perfect first or last stop on a loop through this extraordinary corner of Washington.

The closest Boutel™ stays, so you can turn this stop into an overnight. Each is a place we chose through independent editorial review, never a paid placement.

Ruby Beach, on the wild Pacific coast of Olympic National Park in Washington, is one of the most beautiful and iconic beaches on the Olympic Peninsula. Named for the reddish tint of its sand, the beach is famous for its dramatic sea stacks rising offshore, massive piles of silvery driftwood logs, tide pools teeming with marine life, and rugged, misty coastal scenery. A short walk from the parking area leads down to the beach, making it accessible. Especially stunning at sunset, Ruby Beach captures the wild, untamed beauty of the Washington coast, offering a scenic, photogenic, and memorable destination in Olympic National Park.

You can stroll the beach among the dramatic sea stacks and huge driftwood logs, explore the tide pools at low tide to see sea stars, anemones, and other marine life, watch for wildlife, photograph the stunning coastal scenery and sunsets, and soak up the wild, rugged atmosphere. A short trail leads down to the beach. Beachcombing and simply taking in the scenery are favorite pastimes. With its sea stacks, driftwood, tide pools, and beautiful wild scenery, Ruby Beach offers a scenic and memorable coastal experience on the Olympic Peninsula in Olympic National Park, Washington.

The Pacific coast here has powerful surf, cold water, and dangerous sneaker waves that can surge far up the beach without warning, so never turn your back on the ocean, keep well back from the water, and watch children closely. Be aware of the tides, since rising water can cut off sections of beach and strand you, so check tide tables and avoid getting trapped. The driftwood logs can shift dangerously in the surf, so do not climb on logs near the water. Being mindful of the waves, tides, and logs keeps a visit to Ruby Beach safe.

Ruby Beach is beautiful year-round, with summer offering the mildest, driest weather and the most comfortable beach walking, though it is busiest, while the other seasons bring moody, dramatic coastal scenery and fewer crowds, with winter storms creating powerful surf. Low tide is best for exploring the tide pools, so timing a visit around low tide is rewarding. Sunset is especially magical, silhouetting the sea stacks. For pleasant weather aim for summer, and for tide pools time your visit for low tide, ideally at sunset, at Ruby Beach.

Ruby Beach is on the Pacific coast of Olympic National Park in Washington, near the other wild beaches of the coast, the town of Forks, the Hoh Rain Forest inland, and within reach of Lake Crescent and the Kalaloch area to the south. That makes Ruby Beach a scenic stop to combine with the Hoh Rain Forest, the other Olympic coast beaches, and the diverse attractions of Olympic National Park on a visit to Washington's Olympic Peninsula.