Some Of The PNW's Most Amazing Beaches Thrive In This Washington Village Hiding In Olympic National Park

There's no denying that Mother Nature was being generous when she crafted Washington state. This is the land of the soaring Cascades, the unique landscapes of lush, rolling hills over in Palouse, the salt-sprayed San Juan Islands — the list goes on. And, while California, Hawaii, and Florida tend to dominate when it comes to America's top-rated beaches, the Evergreen State is no stranger to stunning coastline. Just check out the incredible beaches that await in La Push.

This small, unincorporated town is the home of the Quileute Tribe. It straddles the Quillayute River, with one foot in the Pacific Ocean and the other in the lush rainforests of the Olympic Peninsula. With a whopping 70 miles of protected coastline come marine preserve stretching around it, it's a fine place to seek out those quintessential Pacific Northwest beaches — think driftwood-strewn sands, dramatic rock stacks, and ancient forests socked in with fog and mist.

It's a bit of a journey to get here from the big city of Seattle but the trip should be one full of "oohs" and "aahs." The main highway is the 101, which threads its way west along the fringes of the Olympic National Park, skirting the shimmering waters of Lake Crescent and offering up glimpses of snow-capped peaks in the distance. The drive is about three-and-a-half hours from Seattle–Tacoma International Airport, and a touch more from the downtown of the Emerald City.

The trio of iconic beaches close to La Push town are conveniently named First Beach, Second Beach, and — you guessed it! — Third Beach. They each offer something a little different but, in essence, are prime examples of the raw, rugged Pacific Northwest coastline. First Beach is the most accessible, unfolding right in front of the town center in a scythe of sand. Come here for punchy surf waves and visions of rugged James Island, an old fortified rock that rises where the Quillayute River meets the sea.

The parking for Second Beach is barely a 5-minute drive from town but there's a hike through coastal rainforest to access the sands. When you finally emerge onto the coast, prepare to be wowed, for this one's a medley of forest-tufted sea stacks and craggy rock arches. It's enough to enchant visitors. One person on Tripadvisor summed up their experience of Second Beach, saying that "the light is silver to blue to gray. There are giant rocks in the water and ghostly driftwood on the beach. Words cannot describe the beauty. This was my favorite spot in the park."

Finally, Third Beach beckons a little south of Second Beach. This is where things are remote and unbusy. Crowds thin out because the trek to the seafront is 1.3 miles long, going through dense forests filled with mushrooms and thickets of greenery. You'll have to clamber over pillows of driftwood to make it onto the beach itself, but the reward is a truly wild section of coast where waterfalls crash from the woods into the ocean and whales can be spotted from the shore.

Aside from the wave-bashed beaches around town, La Push is also a gateway to the greater Olympic National Park, which encompasses territory that extends to the north and south, but also deeper inland. It's a vast reserve of 1,441 square miles, famed for its glaciers, old-growth trees, and soaring summits that are forever topped with ice and snow.

Because it's perched on the Pacific, the town is a convenient base for reaching the fabled Hoh Rain Forest, one of the largest rainforests in the U.S., no less. The parking for that is just over an hour's drive from La Push. It offers access to a trio of amazing trails, which include the easy-going Hall of Mosses, a short loop that showcases trees draped in lichens and moss, and the 17.3-mile Hoh River Trail, a prime backpacking route amid ancient spruce groves.

If you prefer to stick to the coastal portion of the Olympic NP, then check out the Hole-in-the-Wall trail that starts at Rialto Beach on the north side of the river in La Push itself. It's 3.3 miles in total and takes you along beaches drowned in sea foam, past trees that have been claimed by the ocean, and out to dramatic rocks that are split in half.