Washington State Parks + Guest WiFi = Ideal Spot for Remote Work

We brought our work to a Washington state park and this is what happened:

The shift to remote or hybrid work has broadened horizons and allowed many people to work from anywhere with good WiFi.

With that realization - and our bosses’ nod of approval - my colleagues Steph, Heather and I decided to put the concept to the test. On a random summer Wednesday, we took our virtual workspace to Pacific Beach State Park, where the WiFi is excellent and the beach even better.

To round out our visit, we decided to keep the fun going after hours and enjoyed a girls’ night at Ocean City State Park. (By “girls,” I mean two Gen X-ers and a Millennial… We are young at heart!)

Here’s a sketch of our big day:

7 a.m. – Latte stop at Surf House Espresso next to the park. Steph wanders into the cute, nearby Beach Daisy Gift Shop. But duty calls, and she leaves empty handed.

7:15 a.m. – We arrive at Pacific Beach State Park and check out the campground. We decide the folks working in their RVs have the best commutes. Tent campers have to crawl out of their sleeping bags and get to the picnic table. What if they hit traffic along the way! 😊

Camp Host Cheryl, her dog Rox walk on the beach with Heather and Stephanie

7:30 a.m. - The marine layer keeps things cool as we find our own picnic table, log in and adjust computers for minimal glare.

9 a.m. – We hop on a Teams video meeting with our supervisor. We turn our laptops so she can see the beach. She gets a serious case of the envies.

12:30 p.m. – Lunch time and beach walk! We come across the Camp Host, Cheryl walking her sweet dog, Rox. Cheryl is a retired professor. They’re living in a Winnebago and hosting at state parks in Grays Harbor County. What an encore!

Cheryl’s duties include campsite clean-up. We’re curious: what kind of trash is most common?

“People make S’mores and the little corner of the candy bar wrapper blows away,” she says. (Pro tip: Make sure to search for the scraps before diving into your treat!)

1 p.m. – We walk back to our picnic table. We brainstorm the possibility of early retirement, van life and camp hosting. (One can dream, right?)

1:15 pm – We work quietly. Ocean waves, children’s laughter and sea breezes add to the ambiance.

On the menu:

Taco Soup: Heather serves as camp chef and whips up some taco soup. Smells from her Colman stove waft through the air. Our neighbor’s dinner has stomachs growling, too. You can’t go wrong with camp food!

Flameless S’mores: Dessert is S’mores, done in a skillet on parchment paper. Yum! We take care not to let the chocolate wrapper get away.

After dinner, we sit patting our bellies. Time slows down as we start to unwind. At 8 p.m., we stroll up the dunes for the Pacific Ocean sunset. A great conclusion to a productive day!

We understand and appreciate that not everyone can work from a park. But if you have that flexibility, we recommend checking into these WiFi-enabled Washington state parks.

You’ll get more done than you might have imagined, and you may get ideas for an encore career as a van lifer camp host!