July 1st - 8th - Here we go!
Welcome to my very first curated rec!
Welcome to my very first curated rec!
Some tunes to get you grooving while you hopefully enjoy this read!
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Like they say, Fourth of July is the true start of summer in Western Washington, and that is looking to be true, temperatures are rising starting this Friday and staying high throughout the weekend. Even the high alpine is hovering around freezing, with most of it honestly above that throughout the weekend.
What I'd do AKA The Top Hits
With the Fourth of July crowds in tow, I generally try to avoid crowds so here's my personal ideas of what I'd do.
Say you want adventure:
- This weekend brings warm temps and clear skies meaning likely even more wildflowers are in town! If you'd like to go hiking or camping here are some zones with more clear skies. Note: mornings will start off cloudier and clear up as the day progresses:
- Rainier will have the clearest skies going into the weekend, with Mt. St Helens also quite nice on Saturday
- Come Sunday, you can't go wrong anywhere. Beautiful weather is forecasted for most of the state with clear skies. Have a hankering to go somewhere new, send it!
- Great weather persists Monday and slightly backs off a little Tuesday, but still decent
- Pro-tip: With the busy weekend and permits likely being difficult, consider Wilderness areas over National Parks
- Hit the water! Most towns are throwing a fireworks show. Consider poaching your nearest paddle board or kayak and go for an evening paddle to watch some fireworks from the water. Just remember to wear a life jacket, warm clothing, and carry some headlamp/light source so others can see you.

Want to kickback:
- The major cities in the Sound from Tacoma up to Bellingham are being graced with some daytime negative tides from Wed-Saturday these first two weeks of July! Find some nearby rocky shoreline to explore during those times and maybe you'll get to see some cool critters.
- If you scroll down to The Coast section, you'll see the notable low tides
A Deeper Look
The Coast
Tidepooling
The moon has blessed us with some wonderful windows for tides. Sadly, many may be working Wednesday and Thursday. Luckily Friday and Saturday could be nice!
Seattle
2026/07/01 Wed 12:29 PM -1.77 L
2026/07/02 Thu 01:06 PM -1.57 L
2026/07/03 Fri 01:43 PM -1.13 L
2026/07/04 Sat 02:21 PM -0.36 L
2026/07/05 Sun 02:59 PM 0.76 L
Tacoma
2026/07/01 Wed 12:32 PM -1.84 L
2026/07/02 Thu 01:09 PM -1.65 L
2026/07/03 Fri 01:46 PM -1.20 L
2026/07/04 Sat 02:24 PM -0.41 L
2026/07/05 Sun 03:02 PM 0.76 L
Bellingham
2026/07/01 Wed 12:45 PM -1.49 L
2026/07/02 Thu 01:22 PM -1.29 L
2026/07/03 Fri 01:59 PM -0.91 L
2026/07/04 Sat 02:35 PM -0.30 L
2026/07/05 Sun 03:12 PM 0.56 L
Bioluminescence
Like seeing the stars in the sky, the stars of the water also demand similar conditions. So sadly, it will likely not be the most ideal conditions for viewing bioluminescence as the dimmest the moon gets is 50% illuminance. This will change in the subsequent week so I look forward to updating you then.
Snorkel & Diving
Visibility has been mediocre throughout many spots at the state. Shallows are generally being reported at a few feet. Dropping deeper such as 30ft can yield improved visibility around 20ft. Again, not great but a dip down under is always nice!
Surfing
Swell is in town however wind generally is spotty. There a few days that could be cleaner however you'll have to do your due diligence about wind check ups. I'd stick to around Ruby beach and Northward the Olympic coast. If you have a day in mind, reference Windy.com and Surfline for days where winds are in single digit knots for cleaner conditions.
The Mountains
Wildflowers
With this year's poor snowpack, it's not great from a drought perspective or for our state's glaciers. As a result, wildflowers are blooming left and right! What a switch up there hahaha. As long as you stay off from the highest of peaks that are retaining snow, sub alpine environments are bound to be abundantly colorful!
A notable feature of trails with great wildflower density generally coincides with less dense tree coverage. This usually means: more open slopes, meadows, and generally around/above tree line. Usually this will coincide naturally with elevation bandwidths of around 3k or more, but this can vary from place to place. Albeit, it is a very strong starting point to filter for trails on a tool like AllTrails. Use that elevation to filter for trails to help choose your desired hike and ensure your vehicle will make it to the trailhead via reading some reviews incase your car is low clearance.
Backcountry
It's no better time to get out there! Temperatures are still cool enough but summer weather is seriously on the horizon. In all honestly, it is already here. With the alpine lakes thawing out, remember to bring BUG SPRAY! I use Picaridin based repellent as it is less corrosive on my gear.
Skiing/snowshoeing
It'll be an early start for anyone wanting to get out on any steeper slopes to harvest some corn (a type of snow texture). It's going to be hot and ready as you likely already know.
For those on foot. I would advise you start earlier than later. If you end up on any steeper slopes, there is risk of wet avalanches with such warm temps even if a spring snowpack is a much more stable snowpack. If you feel as though you are entering a precarious situation, make sure to play it safe and honestly don't venture into areas you don't have the experience or knowledge to safely recreate in. Paradise is always a safe option!
The Stars
This week sadly the stars will not be as good as they could be. However, in my next weekly update that'll be rapidly changing as we begin to approach a new moon.
Foraging
Coming soon . . .
