Ruby Beach, Olympic National Park

Located in the southern part of the Olympic Peninsula in the state of Washington, Ruby Beach is a popular beach with gray sand, a lot of driftwood, some pebbly and rocky parts, and interesting rock formations.  This beach is a part of a national park named Olympic National Park.  A creek named Cedar Creek sometimes flows through the beach – once this creek passes the beach, it flows into the Pacific Ocean.  There is also a large nearby offshore rock formation named Abbey Island.  Ruby Beach has been named the 47th Best Beach in the “Top 50 Beaches in the United States” list in 2022 by Randall Kaplan, the world’s foremost beach expert who is also known as “Mr. Beach.”  In addition, this beach was also listed as one of the world’s 100 best beaches by Lonely Planet magazine.

Ruby Beach does not have lifeguards or any other amenities except nearby restrooms, so please plan accordingly.  

Dogs on leash are allowed at Ruby Beach.

Ruby Beach offers many fun activities including sunbathing, beachcombing, picnicking, hiking, tidepooling, rockhounding, fishing, boating, surfing, swimming, paddleboarding, kayaking, canoeing, wildlife watching, and surf-skiing.  Kayakers and canoers often launch their kayaks from this beach and explore the interesting rocky shoreline nearby.  Although the beach does not offer great surfing waves, surfing is also possible here on very rare occasions.  If you are planning to swim, kayak, or canoe here, we recommend being careful because the cold water here is known to frequently have dangerous rip currents and rogue waves.  Ruby Beach news reports have indicated that people have drowned here.

If you like beachcombing, you can find many kinds of interesting items here including conches, agates, sea glass, and a red-colored mineral named almandine.  If you like tidepooling, you can explore the interesting tidepools here during low tides – tidepooling is a popular activity at this beach and you can find many creatures living in the Ruby Beach tide pools.  If you are planning to explore tidepools here, we recommend reviewing a Ruby Beach tide chart before visiting this beach because the best time to explore tidepools here is during low tide in the mornings.  If you like taking pictures with beautiful views, Ruby Beach offers amazing Instagram-worthy views of the Pacific Ocean, the Olympic Peninsula coastline, and the nearby Destruction Island and Destruction Island Lighthouse – Ruby Beach sunset views are especially amazing.  In addition, many visitors also take photographs of the unique rock formations and sea stacks around Ruby Beach.  

If you like camping, there are two nearby Ruby Beach camping grounds – named Kalaloch Campground and South Beach Campground – that offer a fun camping experience.  You can visit Olympic National Park’s webpage on the National Park service’s website for more information regarding campground rules and amenities.

Ruby Beach does not offer wheelchair access to visitors with disabilities.

Getting to Ruby Beach is easy – from the United States Highway 101, you need to turn towards a slightly rugged road named Ruby Beach Road.  This road will lead you to the free parking lot for the beach.  The turn for Ruby Beach Road is easily identifiable through a street sign and this sign is located between Mile Marker 164 and Mile Marker 165 of United States Highway 101.  Once you park at the parking lot, you can easily walk to Ruby Beach through a quarter-mile-long access trail.  

It is important to note that you may need to possess an entrance pass to visit any part of Olympic National Park, which also includes Ruby Beach.  If you are planning to visit Ruby Beach, we recommend visiting the National Park Service’s website for more information regarding the fees required for visiting Olympic National Park.  

We recommend wearing sturdy footwear while visiting Ruby Beach because of its large amount of driftwood.  We recommend checking Ruby Beach weather reports before visiting here because the beach can sometimes get foggy and rainy.

The beach is named Ruby Beach due to a red-colored mineral found here – this mineral is actually named almandine and it is a type of garnet.  Experts have theorized that this mineral comes from the rocks of the nearby Olympic Mountains – these rocks naturally weather down over time and the almandine deposits within them are carried down and deposited on the beach by rivers.  In addition, Ruby Beach and the surrounding areas were the sites of two military skirmishes between the Native American Quinault people and British and Spanish explorers in the 18th century.

There are many attractions near Ruby Beach within a 30-minute-drive.  Forks Timber Museum is a museum that offers interesting exhibitions on local history – it also offers an insight into logging and homesteading in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States.  Duncan Cedar – also called Duncan Memorial Cedar and the Nolan Creek Tree – is a 1,000 year old and 178-feet-tall western redcedar tree which is known to be one of the largest trees in the state of Washington.  While this tree is currently damaged, it is nevertheless a popular landmark.  The Tree of Life is a unique sitka spruce tree and it is another popular nearby attraction – the ground beneath this tree has largely eroded away, making its survival nearly impossible.  However, this tree is still alive and derives nutrients from its few remaining subterranean roots – this has made it popular with tourists, who associate this tree with hope.  Tillicum Park is a recreational park that offers many amenities including a skate park, a playground, picnic areas, an arena, and pickleball and basketball courts – this park also has a vintage tank and train on display.  If you are looking for another attraction near Ruby Beach, Bogachiel State Park is a 127 acre-state park that has a vibrant forested landscape.  You can explore this state park through a hiking trail – apart from hiking, this state park also offers many other fun activities including camping, picnicking, and wildlife watching. 

If you get hungry, there are many great restaurants near Ruby Beach within a 35-minute drive.  Creekside Restaurant offers amazing dishes for breakfast, lunch, and dinner including soups, salads, seafood, burgers, and poultry dishes.  Blakeslees Bar & Grill – also called Blakeslee Bar & Grill – serves amazing sandwiches, wraps, salads, soups,  burgers, steaks, poultry dishes, and seafood.  The In Place offers amazing dishes for breakfast, lunch, and dinner including sandwiches, burgers, steaks, pastas, and seafood.  Pacific Pizza offers amazing pizzas and it also offers a variety of other excellent dishes including pastas, sandwiches, salads, steaks, and chicken marsala.  If you are looking for another good and affordable restaurant nearby, Sully's Burgers is known for serving amazing burgers and it also offers many other dishes including sandwiches, hot dogs, pizzas, and tacos.

If you are looking for a hotel near Ruby Beach, there are many great moderately-priced and modestly-priced nearby options within a 40-minute drive.  Misty Valley Inn offers many amenities including a garden with a hot tub, a deck, complimentary breakfast, a gift shop, and complimentary afternoon dessert.  A more affordable hotel is the 3-Star Olympic Suites Inn that offers amazing views of the surrounding forests and it also offers laundry facilities.  As another moderately priced option, the 2.5-Star Kalaloch Lodge at Olympic National Park offers a restaurant and a convenience store.  If you are looking for another good and affordable nearby hotel, the 2-Star Forks Motel offers many amenities including a seasonal pool and picnic area with a barbecue grill.  Another great modestly priced hotel near the beach is Dew Drop Inn that offers a courtyard with picnic tables.