Hood Canal| Backyard Scuba

My son recently became a snowboarder. Along with dabbling in scuba, flying, surfing, skiing – he decided to take up a new sport that provides the adrenelin rush. The joke now is that he needs to have his board in the car in case he comes upon an opportunity to practice. If you are a scuba diver, you know the feeling.

However, while our slopes in WA will soon be covered with alpine flowers, the waterways of Puget Sound are always open to your underwater attention. Even if the water visibility is down, you still get an opportunity to hone your skills. With its glacial formation of sharp deep cliffs and a till strewn botton, Hood Canal offers plenty of unique opportunities to check out dive spots accessed easily from the shore.

Pull over on Hwy 101, don your gear, and within minutes, you are in the water. So convenient, you can dive and be seated for lunch in Hoodsport by noon. Schools of ancient cod and nudibranchs, the famous giant Pacific octopus and the snaggle toothed, but clever ,wolf eels are just a few of the highlights of the descent. In Hoodsport we love how they love their divers. Stop by YSS Dive, the local dive shop located next to the public dock in town for air, gear and advice. They also offer plenty of classes and recently started offering dive charters on Saltwater Therapy.

Local lodging also caters to the scuba crowd. A couple of our favorites are Glen Ayr Resort, Hoodsport, and The Waterfront Inn at Potlatch. Glen Ayr has heated dive locker aand a gear cleaning station.

Glen Ayr's dock offers moorage and impromptu dives. The waterview spa house is the perfect remedy for the chill fjord waters. Many of the vacation rental cabins in this area (as well as cottages at Glen Ayr) have kitchens but if you want breakfast out we suggest hitting the Tides Restaurant –

Glen Ayr Resort, Hoodsport

Glen Ayr Resort, Hoodsport

quick and friendly, with loaded plates of delicious food. During pandemic restrictions, one of our favorites, Hama Hama Oyster is requiring reservations to eat at their saloon. If you can get spot in their quirky waterfront A-frames, try the oysters and clams (and the crab cakes). They don't get any fresher! El Puerto de Angeles located in Hoodsport next to YSS Dive also has good food and great views of the Canal.

Popular Hood Canal Dives th

Although parking is limited at Octopus Hole, this wall site is easy to access from shore and appropriate for all experience levels. Bring a flashlight, there are plenty of friendly octopus and wolf eels. This is a protected site so no disturbing inhabitants (and no taking the bottles that the eightlegged creatures like to hide in).

The best dive near Hoodsport is Sund Rock Marine Preserve. Privately owned, this site is carefully managed by the Sund family. Entry fee is $20 which includes dive beach entry, freshwater rinse and warm shower, picnic area, gear up benches, and parking. Rserve at sundrock.com and fill out a request for a day and time to dive during the week. Currenly they are staggering visits to allow for social distancing of groups. Last year they added an on site glamping option ($110/night) which is available to book during the summer. The platform tent overlooks the dive site and is suitable for up to two guests.

Outside of Lilliwaup, just to the South of Mike’s Beach Resort, is Flag Pole Point. More comfortably accessed by boat, you can free swim to it also. This site consists of a series of rock formations (the knuckle), rising like a mini range of mountains from the ocean floor. Since this formation is farther out and exposed to currents, this site often has excellent visibility. Ling cod lay their eggs at this protected site, and there are resident wolf eel and octopus populations. Since the rise of “the knuckle” is rapid, the site can be difficult to locate. South of Hoodsport lies Potlatch Park. While the diving at Potlatch is less dramatic than those sites already described, if you are just getting your flippers wet, this is a good place to start out. This shore diving spot is easy to get to, has showers to wash off gear, and it is a great place to get comfortable with equipment and techniques.

To find out more about diving locations and links to services, visit Mason County's tourism resource, explorehoodcanal.com.