Fort Worden's beach offers experiences wild and winsome

Saturday morning, early, at Fort Worden State Park near Port Townsend: The beach is deserted but for one man in black sweats moving through a tai chi routine. Slowly reaching up into the sky then pushing open hands out to the Strait of Juan de Fuca, he's found an ideal spot for his ballet, on the lip of the Pacific Ocean. As the man falls into an easy rhythm with the waves, he must feel it, the intense solitude that is not loneliness.

He hiked to this place for a reason, but beach walking can be utterly pointless and thus, a sure path to rejuvenation. It engages all the senses: empties heads of chatter, soothes feet abused by sidewalks, cleanses bodies with air that smells like white sheets on a backyard clothesline.

Take your pick from countless beaches in the Northwest but one of the most varied and close-in is a stretch of sand, rock and logs that curves around Fort Worden. The east side of the beach facing Admiralty Inlet is generally quiet, genteel, right for sand castles and meditative reveries. Pass around the Point Wilson lighthouse though, heading west, and the entire character of the place changes. Here the beach faces the ferocious Strait of Juan de Fuca. The water is not placid, but resembles open ocean, a response to the force of wind careening in from the Pacific.

Start on the east side of the park near the wharf. Across the inlet is the blue outline of Whidbey Island. The water changes instantly from glassy to ruffled; rough bands of water stand up like the back of a mad cat.

This beach is good for kids, with gentle driftwood, including a huge upended tree root with holes suitable for slithering through and framing faces. A giant seesaw sits on the beach. It offers the proper bucking action, which is now outlawed on playgrounds elsewhere. Happily, the long arm of the law hasn't reached the shore yet, because this teeter-totter makes even adults squeal.

The beach curves around the Coast Guard's lighthouse (not open to the public, so don't even think about it).

Up on the hill and to the left where Fort Worden's famous bunkers lie, there's a view of craggy evergreens making every effort to grow. They look like bonsai on a grand scale, trimmed to their essence by the winter blast. After the turn comes what the park map calls the "wild beach." If there's even a bit of wind, the waves hump up creating a surreal illusion that the water is higher than you are. By the sea's edge, it's still sandy and flat, but black rocks pile up next to the land and huge logs lay astride one another like fingers crossed. Grassy hills give way to 200-foot sandstone cliffs, scrubbed raw by ocean storms.

At the the base of the bluffs, lovers have etched temporary endearments into the wet clay: "I LUV Danny" someone carved. Bittersweet sentiments that waves eventually must obliterate.

At low tide, the hike goes around another headland, which allows for a sweeping view of the strait. Ships appear as dots on the horizon and the next time you look up, they've become massive freighters steaming inland.

The beach is simultaneously full and empty, depending on where, and even if, you focus. While it's restful to let the eyes glaze over and stare into the gauzy distance, there's a microcosm at your feet to consider. With the realization that an entire day could be spent on one-square inch of beach, it's tempting to crawl on hands and knees across the sand and rocks. Swirls of different-colored sand create graceful painterly contrasts. Loops of bleached bull kelp appear sculpted into elegant designs. Even the requisite washed-up tire, Firestone in this case, seems set down like a precisely placed throw pillow.

Eventually, the beach terminates at North County Park. Venture up to the bluff into a wind-swept field to the east. Locals call it the Chinese Garden, not because there's actually a garden there, but because this was the place Chinese people were allowed to plant vegetables years ago, away from town.

From here, turn around and wander back. You'll discover beach walking has at least two other endearing qualities: A) Everything looks completely different on the way home, so it's all brand new, kind of like getting two hikes for the effort of one; and (B) Other than keeping track of tides, it's pretty hard to get lost.

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If you go:

From Edmonds, take a ferry to Kingston. Head west on Highway 104 to the Hood Canal Bridge. Cross the bridge and follow signs to Port Townsend and to Fort Worden State Park. From Seattle, take the ferry to Bainbridge Island. Take Highway 305 north and west about 13 miles to Highway 3 north and follow signs to the Hood Canal Bridge. Follow the signs to Port Townsend and Fort Worden.

Washington State Ferries - Schedule information: Seattle, 206-464-6400, 888-808-7977 or 800-84-FERRY (automated). Web site: http:/www.wsdot.wa.gov/ferries