Evening Drive Up the Hood Canal

Dock at the park

My wife and I decided to take a little drive up the Hood Canal tonight.

First stop was Hwy 101 to Potlatch State Park. A nice little park with RV spots and camping across the highway, picnic tables, and a play area on the water. The park covers 125 acres with about 5,700 feet of saltwater shoreline. The water this past week has been a stunning blue-green-turquoise thanks to an algae bloom—absolutely gorgeous.

Wanting more of that blue-green magic, we cruised up Hwy 106 through the small town of Union to Twanoh State Park. Slightly smaller at 182 acres and 3,200 feet of shoreline, Twanoh is one of our favorites. The water was clear today—almost like we were in Hawai’i… until I touched it. Yep, still the Pacific Northwest. Chilly, crisp, and refreshing—the kind of water that will feel perfect once summer really hits.

After soaking in the view, we kept going up Hwy 106 for a gyro fix. We stopped at a little convenience store rumored to have the best gyros in the area: Sunset Deli. Passing it countless times on the way to races, we’d never stopped—looks sketchy from the outside, but don’t let that fool you. It was a fun little spot, and yes, the gyros were fantastic. We joked about the best Greek gyro, served up by a Korean—reminded me of a former customer at the shop, a Korean lady with a Spanish name who listened to only country music. Classic.

With bellies full, we took a leisurely drive past Mason Lake and back down into Shelton. A perfect, low-key evening adventure—or what we like to call a “cheap date.”

Got a sketchy-looking food joint that’s surprisingly amazing? Drop it in the comments—we’ll have to check it out next time!