We’re camped on Third Beach.
In the morning, the tide drains the beach. It’s as if a mischievous god has pulled the plug on the sea. We wander among boulders plastered with sea stars, anemones and barnacles. Raccoons scurry about, crunching crabs. Black-tailed deer sample the kelp. The screams of oystercatchers break the stillness. Ghostly Graveyard tombstones tower in the mist.

Third Beach lies in the middle of the longest stretch of untouched coast in the Lower 48, most of it within Olympic National Park. A saw blade of headland and beach, the coast is rugged but accessible. For photographers patient with (and respectful of) tides and weather, it’s a prime hunting ground for an astonishing diversity of photographs.

Winter, when storms rule, is a great time to visit; go for ocean waves, storm-bent trees or kamikaze surfers. Alternatively, visit in spring, when the coastline is flush with wildflowers (May is best). Or time a visit during a full (or new) moon between May and August, when you can explore the tidepools on the rocky headlands.

Defiant Point-of-the-Arches sea stack panorama mellows in the setting sun.

For any coastal visit, you’ll need tide tables. Check Saltwatertides.com, pick up a tidal guide locally at a marine store, or stop at Swain’s in Port Angeles (605 E. First St.) on the way out. Subtract 30 minutes from the Aberdeen tides to estimate highs and lows. When tidepooling, get to your location two hours before the low, and start back before the tide reverses. Round a headland only on a receding tide. In winter, be wary of waves roaring up the beach; big swells and high winter tides can combine to toss drift logs like toothpicks.

From Cape Flattery to Kalaloch, here is a north-to-south guide to the best beaches, sea stacks and tidepools accessible by car, short hike or overnight backpacking trip.