One Of The Pacific Northwest's Best-Kept Secrets From Tourists Is A Quiet Coastal Locale With Unspoiled Scenery

So you're planning on traveling the coastline of Washington state this year? You'll want the camera fully charged and a Sharpie at the ready — you know, to strike line after line from the bucket list. This is the land of whale-watching island destinations, blazing sunset beaches, and the largest rainforest in the U.S. — and somewhere tucked in there, you'll find the secret little getaway of Bay Center, too.

Now, Bay Center isn't a world-famous draw a la the old-growth woods and glacier-carved mountains of the Olympic National Park. Nope, this one's firmly in the "hidden gem" category; a proudly sleepy spot with a population of just 150 or so permanent residents and a long history of oyster farming. The location is suitably wild to match. The town clutches the tip of a little peninsula that bends into wide Willapa Bay between various river estuaries and nature reserves.

U.S. Route 101 — that epic route that covers the whole of the West Coast of the U.S. — passes right by Bay Center. That means you can get there from the big city of Seattle in around 2.5 hours or come straight down from the arrival halls of the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA) in a little less time than that. It'll also be about 2.5 hours in the car if you're heading north from Portland, Oregon, where there's yet another major international aviation hub.

Willapa Bay, the vast sweep of tidal flats that dominates this corner of the Washington coast, produces a quarter of the oysters consumed in the United States each year! Bay Center itself has been at the heart of the oystering industry since the very beginning — the town started life as the first commercial harvesting spot in the region way back in the 1850s.

When you visit, to celebrate this deep history, oysters should very much be on the menu. Thankfully, there's a vintage seafood kitchen in town that has you covered: Skylar's. The menu is bursting with proper local fare — think clam chowder, fish burgers, fish and chips, and seafood platters, not to mention all sorts of iterations of those local oysters (oyster burger, anyone?).

The town that surrounds the oyster diner and the bijou marina it sits on is wonderfully quiet and relaxed. Bay Center covers no more than a square mile in all, so it's eminently walkable. There's a riverside campground, Chinook Campground, capping off the northern end of town if you want to bring a tent and relax in the wild, and in October, you might want to visit a pioneer cemetery in town that has graves dating back more than a century.

This pint-sized, oyster-shucking town is smack dab in the middle of Willapa Bay, a world of coastal evergreens and dunes covered in sea oats. With the Pacific Coast Highway only six minutes down the road, you can expect easy access to many of the region's most tempting outdoorsy attractions.

Why not start with the Bone River Natural Area Preserve? It's 2,800 acres of brackish marshland, waterways, and tidal flats that's only about 10 minutes away by car from Bay Center. You can head there to kayak the waters amid swamp grasses and evergreen forests. Even closer to town, the Niawiakum River Natural Area Preserve offers views of wide tidal marshes and potential sightings of bald eagles in the air. Willapa Paddle Adventures in nearby Raymond is your closest local rental shop.

When you feel the call of the wild Pacific Ocean, then cruise the 101 south toward Cape Disappointment. It's one of the undisputed highlights of the Washington shoreline, and one of the best destinations to explore on the Pacific Northwest coast as a whole. A visitor center there spins tales of the daring Lewis and Clark expedition that ended there, while the wave-bashed inlet of Deadman's Cove is hailed as one of the most unusual and picturesque bays in the state.