There’s no geoduck on the menu and a light fixture over the bar is made of Smirnoff bottles, so don’t expect anything fancy served under a display of taxidermy. But the back patio opens up right to the waterfront, and the airy fresh-made bread that sandwiches grilled oysters, bacon, cheese, and veggies is on point. The tavern feels like it sprouted straight from the moss and brine of the Hood Canal shore, as local as the elk whose heads ended up on the wall.

Despite advertising its 12 beer and cider handles right in the name, most of this woodsy eatery screams family friendly, from the Little Free Library on the porch to the selection of milkshake flavors. Breakfast leans toward the decadent, like french toast drowned in cinnamon roll sauce, but the kitchen slings pizzas and burgers with oven-baked fries for most of the day.

An outdoor, shop-side snack joint so charming it made our list of the best restaurants in Washington. The farm’s own you-shuck (cheaper) or on-the-shell oysters are served in quaint A-frame shelters and around a bar, with crab cakes and chowder as more filling follow-ups.

Though the name refers to a fish hook in this seafood-heavy region, it could also refer to how this part of Hood Canal makes a sharp turn north (rather like a fish hook, come to think of it). Its geography tends to isolate Union from the travelers barreling north or south between Port Townsend and Olympia, making this open-air, counter-service eatery a calm place to dine on the waterfront. The attached market sells local gifts and gourmet foodstuffs.

The pulled pork and brisket sell out fast at this barbecue-forward sandwich shop, but the rest of the offerings are still worth the stop. Most dishes are named for the cars that once used this building as a filling station, and the walls are peppered with local notices and news alerts; it may be perfect for tourists passing through on their way to a picnic, but it’s clearly a locals’ joint.

The enchiladas and burritos are straightforward—and welcome in a small town without many restaurants. Given the proximity to the water, it’s no surprise that a crab quesadilla and prawn fajitas sneak onto the menu, and the wraparound back porch is ideally situated for summer margaritas right on the canal. Keep an eye out for harbor seals popping their heads out of the water to scope your order. 

Despite the near-endless coastline of the 68-mile-long Hood Canal, public access spots can be hard to find. Look for the state parks wedged between the highway and the waterline every so often, like Dosewallips, Twanoh, and Potlatch, or Scenic Beach or Kitsap Memorial on the eastern shore. The shores here are strewn with sharp rocks and even sharper shell pieces, so it’s a shoes-on kind of experience; plan for waterfront picnics and nature viewing, not sandcastles.

With a road that corkscrews around the peak to bring drivers to the top, Mount Walker is one of the most accessible summits on the Olympic Peninsula; there’s also a trail for hikers. Two viewpoints open up to broad views of Hood Canal and the distant Cascades, and native plants and 100-year-old trees line the road itself. The route closes in winter, usually reopening in early spring.

There’s more than an oyster dinner hiding under the surface of Hood Canal. Dive spots, many accessible from the shore, include shipwrecks, sea flora, and many giant Pacific octopuses. The YSS Dive shop serves as rental source and jump-off point; it also does boat dives and classes. Winter may be the tourism offseason above the surface, but that’s when the visibility is at its best underwater.

Though there are plenty of places to sample the bounty of Hood Canal in restaurants, there are oysters, clams, and mussels for the taking on the beaches themselves. The state controls harvest windows at each public beach, and a license is required. Hood Canal Adventures even rents equipment for winter crab season.

No one would mistake this warehouse-looking edifice for a trendy gift shop; inside, the long aisles are filled with shelf-stable groceries and rural home supplies, plus a smattering of printed T-shirts. Two racks of family-made leather belts give the entryway a pleasant aroma; they’re high-quality accessories, unlike what you’d find at Target.

When you get as much rainfall as the Olympic Peninsula, it has to get downhill to Hood Canal somehow. That makes for a lot of waterfalls hidden in the peninsula’s eastern slopes, many of which are accessible by short hikes and drives. The Pacific Coast Scenic Waterfall Trail notes some of the most popular cascades.

Though Hurricane Ridge up north and the ocean beaches out west get most of the attention, Olympic National Park does stretch east toward Hood Canal. Near Lake Cushman, the Staircase area has a large campground and several hiking trails along the Skokomish River, though the road does sometimes close in winter. Expect thick forests filled with old-growth Douglas fir.

An outlier, and not just because it’s on Hood Canal’s less traveled end. The resort offers by far the sleekest accommodations in the area, featuring cottages and suites, some with balconies and window seats. The spa, lobby with a giant fireplace, restaurant, and lounge all make it ideal for stormy season, though in warm months there are kayak and motorboat rentals out back.

With tiny cabins lining the waterfront, Mike’s excels at the quaint kind of vacation, one where there’s no restaurant in the lobby—or really a lobby at all. The rooms are recently updated and have kitchenettes, but the big draw is the scuba diving, boating, or just beachcombing right outside. Glamping tents across the highway deliver more of a woodsy experience.

Though the inland lake has no hotels, the shores are full of vacation rental houses. With Olympic peaks towering just behind, it’s a swimming idyll in the summer but a quieter retreat in the offseason. Find public lake access and camping at Skokomish Park. A golf course nearby offers a year-round driving range and a seasonal nine holes among the trees.

While much of the eastern side of Hood Canal is residential, this park outside of Poulsbo has four rentable cabins open year-round. Situated among tall trees, they’re a short walk from a canal view from a bluff and a path down to the beach.