Hiked a series of short but beautiful trails along the coast of Lopez Island. Great weather. A bit windy but that took any bug away.

The Shark Reef sanctuary is the one the locals recommended for looking at seals. And surely enough, there were many there. But we went there around 9am and that was likely the seals' breakfast time. We could see them munching across the sea weeds with our binoculars. There were also interesting, loud, black birds with red beaks, which we were told later were oyster catchers.

The Iceberg point trail had wonderful scenery and felt the most peaceful.

We finished at Watmough bay, ascending to Chadwick Hill for the views and then connecting to Point Colville via Watmough Hill. We returned through the road as the Watmough Hill part was fun to do once but didn't seem entertaining enough for a second pass at it.

The trails were all dry and there were many ripe salmonberry bushes at the shark reef trailhead. We saw very few people in the morning. The only place that started to be a bit crowded was the Watmough bay area past noon. Fortunately we got some alone time at the top swing on Chadwick Hill.

This was a great way to discover the island. But the next time I'd likely go with a bike instead of a car. There are hills but none of them seemed very painful and the roads are wide enough to feel reasonably safe.

We had a full day to explore Lopez, starting with Iceberg Point. Trails are in great shape. A few flowers but more to come in the next few weeks. Don’t forget binoculars. Not the first time we saw baby seals here.
Our next stop was Point Colville. Perfect spot for lunch, protected from the wind. Good spot for birds. We saw a kingfisher, heron, eagle and vultures here.
Next stop was Shark Reef. I’ve been coming here for 40 years and didn’t think there was anything they could do to improve it until I saw they replaced the stinky old outhouse. Amazing job SJ Co! It’s fresh as a daisy in there. There was the usual collection of seals out on the rocks. We saw a family of sea lions pass through the channel, an eagle dive for its lunch, then, when we were fully satisfied with our trip, we saw an orca!
We got in line but missed the 5:00 ferry because they only had room for about a dozen cars. This gave us a couple of hours for one more hike. Nice trails right by the ferry with an eagle nest and my first orchid this spring. Will try to update pics when I make it home.

Visited Lopez Island last weekend for some shoreline walking during the slow season. 

Parking for iceberg point at agate Beach has a big portion of the spots blocked off for what I assume is landslide risk. The road looks just about ready to wash into mackeye harbor here. Not sure how long for but something to keep in mind- even though it was a Friday in February most of the spots filled as a result. 

After starting south on the road you pass through a neighborhood and then the turnoff is very well signed. Trail is mostly not muddy which is a blessing in winter.

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For point colville there are 2 different parking options: the "big" lot at the head of watmough bay and a signed spot on watmough head rd with space for only about 3 to 4 cars. The smaller lot gets you much closer/ is shorter but you skip the bay that way. We did the bay and the point as both are fairly easy walking and well maintained. The smaller lot also does not have a pit tiolet while the bay parking lot does. It was clean when we visited.

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Shark Reef is also well signed and has a pit tiolet. Room for maybe 8 cars or so. While it's the shortest trail on the island we did, it's not to miss. The view is gorgeous and there are plentiful seals on the rocks around deadman island. Plenty if places to stop and just soak in nature. I would come back to lopez for this place alone. 

Happy trails.

A pleasant mile loop. The first bit is a boardwalk, and then after that its a dirt path. A few muddy sections, and some spots that involve walking over rocks (sturdy shoes are your friend if you want to go adventuring).

A pretty clean bathroom near the entrance.

Don’t forget reservations for the ferry. I thought we’d be ok arriving at 10:30 for the 11:55 but we ended up waiting for the next boat. 
Shark Reef was lovely. They’ve done a nice job with the boardwalk through the woods. Lots of birds singing. 
Seals and and a loud family of Canada Geese out on the rocks. We soaked up the sun as long as we could, knowing the weather would be taking a turn for the rest of the weekend.