Ruby Beach: One of Washington’s Best Beaches (Full Guide)
Last Updated on April 16, 2024 by Kelly
In my opinion, Ruby Beach is easily one of the most beautiful beaches in Washington State. This stunning beach has everything I love about the rugged Washington Coast: towering sea stacks, vibrant tide pools, and tons of driftwood. The beach is named Ruby Beach for the reddish color of the sand. We recently visited Ruby Beach, and it was one of our favorite beaches along the Olympic Peninsula. In this post, I’m sharing my complete guide for visiting Ruby Beach.
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Tips for Visiting Ruby Beach
- Look up the tide charts in advance of your visit. If you go for a long walk, the tides may change and your access back to Ruby Beach may be limited. If you want to look for sea life in the tide pools, make sure to time your visit correctly for low tide.
- Bring water shoes to protect your feet while you enjoy a walk along Ruby Beach.
- Bring binoculars to see the wildlife on the sea stacks at Ruby Beach.
- Bring hand sanitizer and potentially extra toilet paper. There are two vault toilets at the entrance.
- Follow Leave No Trace guidelines. Do not litter. Do not take anything from the beach, such as shells, rocks, or driftwood. At national parks, this is strictly prohibited. (Take a picture instead!)
- Do not bring drones. They are prohibited in national parks. There are lots of bald eagles at Ruby Beach, so it’s important to protect their habitat.
- Be careful where you step. Try to step on bare rocks and sand whenever possible. This will help protect the delicate marine life in the area.
- Check out the Washington Trail Association’s website on Ruby Beach. At the bottom of the page, you can read recent trip reports from visitors. It’s a good way to assess trail conditions and other important information in advance of your visit.
About Ruby Beach
The sand at Ruby Beach sometimes has a reddish tint. This is because of the minerals that are found in the sand there. The mineral almandite is a red crystal that resembles a garnet and can be found at this beach. Whether or not almandite washes to the shores of the beach will depend on the wave actions during your visit. Remember that you are not allowed to take rocks from the beach. (Keep them there for future generations!)
When we visited Ruby Beach, I don’t remember noticing any red sand. That might be because of the wave actions on the day that we visited, or because I wasn’t particularly looking for them!
There are vault toilets near the parking lot at Ruby Beach.
Leashed dogs are allowed on Ruby Beach.
Swimming is not prohibited at Ruby Beach, but we don’t advise it. The waters along the Washington Coast are very cold. Ruby Beach also has tons of seaweed that can easily get your feet tangled. Because there’s barnacles on the rocks, you can also easily hurt your feet. Unless you have a wet suit, we personally wouldn’t recommend swimming at Ruby Beach. Swimmers will also want to be alert for rip tides.
What to See
1. See the Sea Stacks
The sea stacks at Ruby Beach make the beach particularly unique. If it’s low tide, you may be able to reach some of the sea stacks. With binoculars, you’ll certainly be able to see the abundant wildlife on them. (Especially birds!) Many of the sea stacks have holes and arches, which make for some wonderful photo opportunities! The sea stacks were formed over thousands of years and represent previous shorelines. After years of waves crashing against the rocks, caves began to form. The caves then gave way to arches over time. When the arches collapsed, only the sea stacks remained.
2. Go for a Beach Walk
Our favorite thing to do at Ruby Beach is to go for a beach walk. If you gently turn over small rocks, you’ll likely see crabs and all sorts of marine life.
During low tide, there’s a sand bar that appears with shallow water. If you want to get your feet wet, that’s probably the best place to do it at Ruby Beach.
If the tide is low, you might also see plenty of tide pools. Tide pools are typically full of starfish, sea anemones, sea urchins, and small crabs.
The best time to see the tide pools is at low tide. Be sure to check the tide charts to see what time of the day you can expect to see low tide during your visit.
We recommend arriving an hour before low tide. Once at the beach, look for rocks with small pools. Peek inside and see what you can find! You might see starfish, hermit crabs, barnacles, sea snails, sea urchins, and anemones. You can protect the tide pools by gently observing. If you move seaweed aside, try to return it as you left it. Remember not to take anything home with you. Disturbing the tide pools has harmful effects on the environment.
3. Look for Abbey Island
Just off the coast, you’ll also be able to see Abbey Island. The island was formed largely from volcanic rock.
4. Look for Destruction Island
You can also see Destruction Island from Ruby Beach. The island is about 4 miles to the southwest. You can still see a lighthouse on the island that was built in 1889 and operational until 1995. On a clear day, the lighthouse is visible from Ruby Beach.
5. Check Out Cedar Creek
You can also see Cedar Creek near where the trail meets the beach. The creek empties into the Pacific Ocean, and it’s also typically a shallow area where kids will enjoy playing. (Always keep a close eye on kids during water play!) When we visited Ruby Beach, we saw several children tossing rocks into the creek and having a good time.
To the north of Ruby Beach is the outlet of the Hoh River.
There are 8 indigenous tribes that have lived along the shores of the Olympic Peninsula. These include the Quinault, Quileute, S’Klallam, Hoh, Jamestown S’Klallam, Elwha Klallam, Makay, Port Gamble, and Skokomish. Be respectful of these lands.
| Also see our full posts about Kalaloch Beach and Third Beach, both of which are very close to Ruby Beach! |
Directions
Ruby Beach is located on Washington State’s western coast along the Olympic Peninsula. Ruby Beach has breathtaking views of the Pacific Ocean. To reach this beach, take Highway 101. You’ll see the signage for Ruby Beach around mile markers 164 and 165 (depending on which direction you are coming from).
From Seattle, the distance to Ruby Beach is about 185 miles. Without traffic, it’s under a 3.5 hour drive.
From Forks, the distance to Ruby Beach is about 27 miles. It’s about a 35 minute drive.
From Kalaloch, the distance to Ruby Beach is 8 miles. It’s bout an 11 minute drive.
Once you reach Ruby Beach, there is a parking lot and an overflow lot. You’ll need to purchase an Olympic National Park pass. (We recommend purchasing the pass in advance and printing it out.)
From the parking lot, there’s a short trail (about a quarter of a mile) that leads down to Ruby Beach.
Visiting Ruby Beach from Port Angeles
Many people visit Ruby Beach during their stay at Port Angeles.
The drive from Port Angeles to Ruby Beach is about 84 miles. It takes a little under 2 hours to drive from Port Angeles to Ruby Beach.
We think that Ruby Beach makes an excellent day trip from Port Angeles. While you’re in the area, also check out Kalaloch Beach and the Hoh Rain Forest.
Nearby Hotels
Kalaloch Lodge
The Kalaloch Lodge is located on a bluff overlooking the ocean. The main lodge was built in 1953 and is currently owned by the National Park Service. In addition to the main lodge, there are also cozy cabins and the Seacrest House, which is full of hotel-style rooms.
The cabins at Kalaloch Lodge have either full kitchens or kitchenettes as well as wood-burning fireplaces. The Bluff Cabins have a view of either the ocean or the creek. The Kalaloch Cabins are log cabin-style and have nature views.
There is intentionally no WiFi available at Kalaloch Lodge so that guests can truly disconnect. Dogs are permitted in the cabins, but not the main lodge.
| While visiting Kalaloch, make sure you visit the Tree of Life! |
Kalaloch Campground
Kalaloch Campground is open 365 days a year. During the summer you can make reservations. The rest of the year, it’s first-come, first-served. During the off-season, some of the camping loops might be closed, but some loops will remain open. We highly recommend that you make reservations in advance if you are planning on visiting during the summer months.
The Kalaloch Campground is fairly large, with 168 campsites. (Including 4 accessible sites and 1 group site.) There are no hookups for RVs, but there is a dump station for a fee. There are restrooms with flush toilets, but no showers.
| Don’t miss our full guide to Hurricane Ridge! |
South Beach Campground
The South Beach Campground is located just a few miles south of the Kalaloch Campground. This campground is open just during the warmer months, so it’s a good place to check out if the Kalaloch Campground is full. The South Beach Campground is not on the reservation system, so it’s a first-come, first-served basis. Because Kalaloch Campground uses reservations during the summer (and is often fully booked), the South Beach Campground is a good place to try for a last-minute getaway.
Summary
I’ve been to Ruby Beach several times during my life. We most recently visited Ruby Beach in the month of April. It was grey and moody day, and there were very few people at Ruby Beach. It felt like we had the beach to ourselves! Ruby Beach is truly a magical place to visit. It’s one of those places that will move your soul when you see it for the first time. This is one place that we would return to multiple times.
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