Ruby Beach Trail

The Ruby Beach Trail at Olympic National Park near is an easy 0.6-mile out-and-back hike that leads to views of Abbey Island and the sea stacks that dot the coastline.

Explore Olympic's Ruby Beach

This hike begins at the main parking lot for Ruby Beach and follows the well-maintained path as it leads down toward the beach. Along the way is at least one lookout point of the beach, Abbey Island, and the sea stacks, so if you're short on time or don't care to deal with the driftwood trees that line the beach, you can appreciate the views from the trail.

Following the trail further, it leads through short shrubs like Salmonberry and other native plants before the trail essentially ends at the beach. From the beach, you're on your own to explore and you should do so with caution. Note that Ruby Beach is littered with large, bare trees that often become stacked on top of each other due to the always-rising and falling tides. These driftwood trees can often roll and have been known to roll on to and crush hikers and visitors, often resulting in death. From the end of the trail, passing these driftwood trees, you must be careful and commit to exploring mostly at low tide when the trees are less-likely to roll over and crush you.

On the opposite side of the driftwood trees is where Ruby Beach's views really come into view. From here, you can hike up to the monolithic sea stacks that dot the beach's shoreline. These large rocks were shaped by the ocean, eroding them slowly over time. In many of the sea stacks, you'll find large holes that you can even walk through or simply take photos through as if they were portholes off of ships floating on the ocean.

To the north sits Abbey Island which adorns a forest atop of its rocky outcropping. While there's no easy way (without climbing skills and gear) to reach the top of Abbey Island, the view of it from Ruby Beach is unmatched along Olympic's western coastline.

When you're done exploring what Ruby Beach has to offer, the trail leads back to the parking lot for an easy 0.6-mile out-and-back hike.

Parking

Hikers will find a large parking lot at the coordinates provided, located on the west side of US-101 south of Hoh, Washington. The lot is large enough to fit several dozen vehicles as of June 2025.

Warning

Driftwood trees: As stated earlier, the driftwood trees that line Ruby Beach can in fact be extremely dangerous, especially at high tide when the trees can and do move around. If you traverse the trees when there's water surrounding them, you take on chances that the trees could roll and fall onto you, ultimately crushing and killing you. It's best to explore Ruby Beach at low tide when the trees are essentially immovable. Note that it's best if you do not climb the trees but instead walk around them if you can. Hike at your own risk.