The Chilean Memorial is located 3.7 miles north of the Rialto Beach entry point in Olympic National Park. While the destination is marked by a simple plaque, the journey to it is spectacular - a rugged coastal trek highlighted by innumerable sea stacks, tidal flats and rich wildlife.

The receding tide reveals a honeycomb of tide pools north of Rialto Beach

The Chilean Memorial commemorates the W.J. Pirrie, a Chilean ship that wrecked in 1920

Sea stacks are often the heavily eroded remains of where the mainland once extended

Brown pelicans dive for smelt off of Rialto Beach

While seals seldom haul out on Rialto, they're common in the stacks and flats just north

Low tide opens a large network of tide pools at Hole in the Wall

Rialto Beach is exposed to heavy surf, while rugged coves just north are quite placid

A small island becomes accessible at low tide in the Chilean Memorial cove

Late afternoon and low tide in the placid Chilean Memorial cove

Intervals of rugged coast are broken by calm bays leading to the Chilean Monument

Rialto Beach is an ideal place for birding, particularly bald eagles, gulls, and pelicans

Breeding cormorants have been documented from Alaska and Newfoundland south to Mexico

Low tide can present new challenges; in this case, a long field of slippery rocks

This open expanse at low tide requires a steep headland trail over Hole in the Wall at high tide

Rialto Beach is located 12.5 miles west of Forks, WA

Offshore islands served as hunting and warring outposts for native tribes

Bald eagles are a common sight in the Sitka - hemlock forest lining Rialto Beach

The intertidal zone is a coastal area exposed to air at low tide, and submerged at high tide

Surf logs on the high tide line of Rialto Beach create a barrier between it and the forest

While harbor seals are more common, stellar seals are known to haul out north of Cape Johnson