Be brave, he said, and don’t let a little rainfall dampen your spirits this weekend.
“The last couple years have been rainy, and we’ve still gotten tons of trash off of the beach,” said Jon Schmidt, coordinator of the Washington Coast Cleanup, the event encompassing more than 40 Olympic Peninsula sites this Saturday morning.
In April 2014, more than 1,000 volunteers took to the state’s beaches to pick up some 20,000 pounds of debris, Schmidt noted.
This time out, of course, it could be sunny.
In any case, Schmidt hopes to see volunteer beachcombers check in Saturday at sites from Peabody Creek in Port Angeles to Rialto Beach near LaPush, from Sooes Beach near Neah Bay all the way south to Kalaloch Campground.
As of Thursday morning, registration was looking healthy: Schmidt reported that 1,196 people had signed to clean Washington’s beaches.
To register and find abundant information — directions, what to wear, check-in times — see www.coastsavers.org. Select “Washington Coast Cleanup” and check the map loaded with links to each beach.
Although volunteers are encouraged to register, it’s OK to just show up.
Among the sites needing more volunteers are Fort Worden State Park, Chito Beach near Sekiu and Deep Creek and Twin Rivers, also on the West End.
Another spot still slim on sign-ups is the beach at Kalaloch — where volunteers can camp for free tonight and Saturday if they like. Campers will need to check in at the Olympic National Park Wilderness Information Center — 3002 Mount Angeles Road, Port Angeles, 360-565-3100 — for permits.
Some of the Peninsula’s best-known waterfronts are fully booked. Dungeness Spit, for example, has plenty of people — including U.S. Rep. Derek Kilmer, the Democrat representing the 6th Congressional District, which includes the North Olympic Peninsula.
“He’s going to be out there the whole morning,” Schmidt said.
Also full are Salt Creek and Murdock Beach near Joyce, Port Williams in Sequim, Second Beach near LaPush and Hobuck Beach near Neah Bay.
That still leaves many other places needing people: Freshwater Bay, Pillar Point, Sekiu River and Hoko River on the West End; First Beach at LaPush; and Duk Point, Cape Alava, Sand Point and Hole-in-the-Wall along the Pacific Ocean.
For those wanting to go farther afield, the Washington Coast Cleanup involves many more sites, from Moclips and Pacific Beach in Grays Harbor County down to Cape Disappointment just above the Oregon border.
Chance a La Mer just above Ocean Shores and Cranberry Approach and Surfside Approach on the Long Beach Peninsula are also on the cleanup map.
Free barbecues are open to volunteers Saturday afternoon at several North Olympic Peninsula locations.
Listed on the www.coastsavers.org home page, they include Hobuck Beach, Kalaloch Lodge and the Three Rivers Resort at noon; Chito Beach and Lost Resort at Lake Ozette at 1 p.m.; and the Ozette Ranger Station at 3 p.m.
Chito Beach Resort will host a barbecue with Loose Gravel playing bluegrass from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. The Lions Club is donating deserts. Clallam Bay Sekiu Chamber of Commerce members have been asked to bring side dishes, bringing them to Chito Beach Resort at 7639 state Highway 112 by 1 p.m. or dropping them off today at the chamber’s visitor center on Highway 112.
Cleanup volunteers can register and pick up gloves and bags at the visitor center, Vista Neighborhood, Sekiu River, Shipwreck Point and Ray’s Grocery.
The dumpster will be at the county park in Clallam Bay.
The most unusual finds can be brought to the visitor center by 3 p.m. for judging. First prize will be a sweatshirt; second prize will be a hat.
Organizations such as the Surfrider Foundation, Olympic National Park and the Clallam Bay-Sekiu Lions Club will sponsor the burgers and fixings for Saturday’s barbecues.
Schmidt noted, too, that the massive cleanup effort affords volunteers free access to multiple Washington state parks and miles of wilderness coast within Olympic National Park and tribal reservations, including some not typically open to the public.
Sarah Creachbaum, superintendent of Olympic National Park, offered a simple statement about the event.
“We are extremely grateful,” she said, “to the hundreds of people who give their time and energy to clean up and care for Washington’s coast.”
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Features Editor Diane Urbani de la Paz can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5062, or at diane.urbani@peninsuladailynews.com.
