But despite our less than enticing welcome, we extended our original two-day stay to five days.
Cape Disappointment Is Not Disappointing
What kept us here was our desire to bike the Discovery Trail along the coast (but not in the rain!), our interest in Lewis and Clark National Historic Park (this is where they ended their epic journey), and a craving for oysters in historic Oystertown, at the far northwestern end of the peninsula.
Cape Disappointment really deserves a more appealing name. The gloomy moniker was bestowed in 1788 by British explorer John Meares, who was peeved when he failed to find the mouth of the great river reputed to be just around the cape. “No such river exists,” he declared. Imagine his embarrassment when just a few years later, American merchant sea captain Robert Gray sailed across the bar into the river. Gray claimed the land for the U.S. and named the river Columbia, in honor of his ship.
Lewis and Clark National Historic Park
Here, on the banks of the Columbia River and on bluffs and beaches overlooking the Pacific Ocean, the story of Lewis and Clark comes to life. The 33-member Corps of Discovery arrived here in November 1805 after an arduous 4,000-mile journey from St. Louis to the Pacific.
Their journey was commissioned by President Thomas Jefferson, who said: “Find a route to the Pacific. While you’re at it, draw good maps, discover and document plants and animals, establish relationships with the Indian tribes you meet, and get there before anyone else can lay claim to it.” I’m paraphrasing here, but this was pretty much the essence of their mission.
“Your mission…the Pacific Ocean.” Coffee in hand, he’s ready to go.
We started our explorations at the Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center, located high on a bluff in Cape Disappointment State Park. It kept us busy for several hours, as we delved into the exhibits of the Corps arduous journey, the many discoveries they made, and the accounts of their interactions with the native peoples who lived along the Columbia. It was a perfect way to spend a rainy day.
A replica of the plant presses used by Lewis and Clark in their journey
More Sites Of The Interpretive Park
The enormous replicas of Chinook canoes caught our attention at Middle Village/Station Camp. Just a few miles from Cape Disappointment, this marks the last camp the Corps made as they journeyed west. It was here that they decided where to spend the winter. Arriving in late fall, the Corps assumed it was a deserted Native American settlement. But in fact, it was a summer fishing village for the Chinook, who had called this area home for thousands of years.
The park at Middle Village/Station Camp focuses on the Chinook Indian Nation history, as well as the story of the Corps and the town of McGowan that was later founded here (hence, the church). We found the stories of the Chinook to be especially fascinating.
Middle Village/Station Camp with replicas of Chinook canoes
The river provided a natural water highway for the Chinook. They were far more skillful at navigating the unpredictable waters than the Corps. The abundance of the region, including salmon, shellfish, elk, berries, and tubers, sustained hundreds of villages along both sides of the river. Were it not for the food and other help provided by the Chinook and the Clatsop Indians on the opposite side of the river, the Corps would not have fared nearly as well.
With winter nipping at their heels, the Corps crossed the Columbia to set up camp, where elk were reputed to be plentiful. They built Fort Clatsop, named after the local Clatsop Indians, and spent the winter replenishing food supplies, making buckskin clothing, working on journals and maps, and preparing for the long journey home. When they left in the spring of 1806, they gave Fort Clatsop to Chief Coboway, who had been a helpful friend to the expedition.
A replica of Fort Clatsop, where the Corps spent the winter
Bigger than our trailer, but not as comfortable
Biking The Discovery Trail
This multi-use trail is about as perfect a bike path as you’ll ever find. The Discovery Trail covers 8.5 miles of gently rolling terrain, from Long Beach to the North Beach Lighthouse in Cape Disappointment State Park—that last mile or so to the lighthouse is an uphill climb, but worth it.
We had a blast cruising along the crest of the dunes, enjoying the ocean views and the interesting sculptures along the way commemorating the Lewis and Clark expedition. It’s a great 17-mile round-trip ride.
Biking the Discovery Trail; doesn’t get any better than this
A monument to Clark along the trail (with a sturgeon and a random bouquet)
Local school children’s artwork protecting birds along the shore
Visiting the Lighthouses
Cape Disappointment overlooks the Columbia River Bar, AKA “The Graveyard of the Pacific.” It’s such a treacherous area that it requires two lighthouses, both still in operation, and both within the state park.
On the trail to Cape Disappointment Lighthouse
Cape Disappointment Lighthouse, built in 1856, is perched on a cliff, a three-quarter mile uphill hike through layers of lush green forest. It’s a fading beauty in need of restoration and not open for tours, but nonetheless photogenic. And the views from the bluff are wonderful. North Head Lighthouse, built in 1898 on the northwestern spur of Cape Disappointment, is generally open for tours, but it’s currently closed while the park restores it to its original glory.
Cape Disappointment Lighthouse from Waikiki Beach
Cape D Lighthouse with a bit of color provided by a visiting school group
Looking across the bluffs to the Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center
Bald eagle enjoying the view
Exploring Long Beach
Well, it’s certainly not Astoria, but we found some interesting little towns to explore. Long Beach is the poster child for a touristy beach town, but the long stretch of sandy beach is beautiful and the boardwalk along the dunes is lovely for a stroll. (The boardwalk parallels part of the Discovery Trail, so you can explore many of the cool sculptures from here.)
Lovely boardwalk through the dunes in Long Beach
We bypassed the shops along the way but couldn’t resist a quick visit to Marsh’s Free Museum. It’s stuffed full of a bizarre assortment of oddities, from taxidermy to vintage peep shows to antique arcade games.
Downtown Long Beach and Marsh’s Museum of Bizarreness
I admit, we had some good laughs in here
Ilwaco: A Charming Fishing Village
The little fishing village of Ilwaco was much more to our liking. The harbor is picturesque, there’s a nice little farmers’ market on Saturdays, and we continued our seafood binge at Ole Bob’s Seafood Market—we came away with fresh mussels, cod, shrimp, and salmon. So good!
Picturesque Ilwaco Harbor
Ole Bob’s Seafood Market, the place to go for seriously good fresh seafood
Other local meanderings included the Columbia Pacific Heritage Museum, a very local, old- fashioned museum (free on Thursdays). There’s lots of intriguing stuff here, including a life jacket made of corks from 1904 that is way more interesting than the vest I have for kayaking. I’m going to start saving our wine bottle corks.
A collection of life vests at the Columbia Pacific Heritage Museum
We also enjoyed happy hour at Salt Pub, overlooking the harbor, where we had a delicious North Head IPA (named after the lighthouse) from North Jetty Brewery. We were wishing we’d stopped by the brewery for a tasting of more of their offerings.
The Salt Pub in Ilwaco
Local steamers and local IPA (and cranky because I want to take a photo before he can eat)
Remote Oysterville
Oysterville was the final stop on our wish list, at the northwestern end of the peninsula. Built on the rich harvest of oysters from Willapa Bay (one tiny oyster brought as much as one silver dollar in San Francisco in the mid 1800’s!) the oyster boomtown is now a quiet village of well-preserved homes from the era. The smoked oysters were a bit on the tough side, but the smoked salmon dip from Oysterville Sea Farms was among the best we’ve had, and their deck overlooking Willapa Bay is lovely.
Oysterville church, circa 1892
Oysterville Sea Farms
Feeling pretty relaxed after those oysters (oh yeah, and a beer)
Where We Stayed
We had only two nights reserved at Cape Disappointment State Park and were unable to extend our reservation. But we found a wonderful spot to hang out for several more days just a few miles down the road at River’s End RV Park. We moved into a spacious site with blazing fast internet, and just across the river, Cape Disappointment lighthouse winked at us. (As an unexpected bonus, it was less expensive than the state park.) It was a great find, but unfortunately, the property has been sold and will no longer be an RV Park.
Cape Disappointment is a fine state park, though. We enjoyed our two nights there, even in the rain. The Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center, lighthouses, and hiking trails are all conveniently within the park. The campsites are arranged in spokes, offering plenty of privacy. We liked our site in Loop A, with the sound of the ocean lulling us to sleep at night. Full hookups, paved sites with picnic tables and fire pit, and absolutely no internet or cell connection whatsoever.
Our backyard for a few days at River’s End RV Park
We made Thai Curry Mussels from some of the bounty from the seafood market
Your lucky to be where you are today and longer…. Southern California goes from 99 to 118 degrees today! Love rain over extensive heat!….Love all your photos!
Glad you enjoyed the photos, Bob. I agree, I’ll take cool summers with a bit of rain over excessive heat any day!
Awesome description of your travels. We did this route last year, your writing renews us….we are enjoying Washington, DC with our Granddaughter. 10 days here, tomorrow Gettysburg and back here for an in depth tour of the Air &Space before heading home on Tuesday. Enjoy, love your blog posts and pics!!!
Thanks so much, Julie. We’re planning to travel the East Coast one of these years, so we’ll be asking you for insider tips. Enjoy your time with your granddaughter!
I’m more intrigued with visiting the PNW with each post you write. I also enjoyed the way you added the photos to the post. Although I always took the effort to view your slide show.
Those canoes are amazing. As modern day travelers, it’s always fascinating to learn about those that paved the way.
Ingrid, summers in the PNW are wonderful. This is our seventh summer here; we’ve always had beautiful weather and never run out of things to explore. I think you would love it! Glad you like the photos in the post. :-)
I look forward to seeing your wine cork life jacket. If it works, I hope you’ll share the plans :)
Haha, yeah! I’ll be happy to share the plans, Sue. Do you need one for the lake? Perhaps for Lewis?
I have always been thrown off by the name “Cape Disappointment”. How could anyone think that gorgeous place was disappointing? I really wish someone would rename it already. I mean, if it was New Jersey, I would get it. But there?? No way!
I just got a bike, so I am now really paying attention to places with good (relatively flat) bike trails. This will be on our list. Looks awesome!
Finally, I imagine Kevin will give me a similar look soon if I don’t stop insisting on photographing every damn thing all day every day. Oh well, we all (including our husbands) must suffer for our art. :)
Laura, you are hilarious! I agree that Cape Disappointment needs a new name. But it is a good story. How fun that you got a bike — we’ve had a blast biking trails all over the country. This was one of the best and most beautiful so far.
As far as the husbands go, yes, they must suffer for our art. :-)
I enjoyed the new format to your blog. But I must say that I enjoyed doing the reading then getting the surprise of the photos. Change is good:) This was a very timely post since we will be in Long Beach in two weeks!! I have taken notes on all to see and, of course, where to eat and get fresh seafood. The best part!! I am very excited to get there now. Thanks for planning our visit for us. The week is full! Tell Eric I so understand the grumbies when food is waiting!
Glad you like the new blog format, Pam. It was time for a change! I’m delighted that I managed to get this post done BEFORE you get to Long Beach. You will love Ole Bob’s and the bike trail. And of course, the history of the area.
Like Pam I’m delighted to have this post now – we arrived in Astoria today and planning a day trip to the L&C Interpretive Center. Adding Oysterville to the plan!! Your photos are amazing in any format, this is fun too. Look at your Bald Eagle – wonderful :-)))
Oh, Astoria! I’m betting you’re at the Sunday Market today. :-) The L & C Interpretive Center is well worth a visit. So is Middle Village/Station Camp. And yes, Oysterville! It’s only a 28-mile drive up the peninsula, so it’s a nice day trip. Have fun! And thanks for your nice comment about our photos, Jodee.
Your trip along the coast brings lots of memories and is strongly enticing me to revisit. But I noticed a change in your format, I enjoyed viewing your slideshow!
Funny, how Steve and Eric gets cranky if their pictures are taken before they can take a bite :)
MonaLiza, I hope you do revisit the coast — but not quite so early in the spring so that you’ll have better weather. This is definitely a nice cool place to spend summers.
After all these years you would think Eric would be used to me wanting to take photos of everything. I can’t imagine Steve cranky! :-)
Once again you take us on a trip which we would be very unlikely to make. We have not travelled in the U.S. as we have internationally, and it is really nice to have you do this kind of “reporting” so as to awaken our awareness of what might be possible should we turn to U.S travel one day.
Yet again, oysters rule the day Mmmm, yum. Ben gets cranky too when I want a photo and he has to wait before that much anticipated first bite!
That picturesque Ilwaco Harbor, is definitely our type of place too! And we can see why you liked it. Beyond the aesthetics and culinary attractions, we are particularly intrigued by the opportunity to learn something about the Chinook and other tribes that Lewis and Clark encountered. The American tendency to “start the clock” at the arrival of European discoverers and to underplay the rich cultural heritage of so called “native” tribes, continues to this day to be a black mark on the American approach to teaching history.There is nary a thought about the great cultural diversity and accomplishments of native American tribes and other than a couple of simplistic reference to a couple of “Indian leaders”, Americans are woefully uneducated about the rich tapestry of the people that came before. So little glimpses and hints, such as the ones you provided, are very much welcome. Perhaps one day, there will be a willingness on the part of the government, history book writers, history teachers and the people themselves to get past their ethnocentric view of U.S. history and a rediscovery of native cultures will come to pass.
Terrific post and beautiful photos. Especially love the one of the gorgeous bluff!
Peta & Ben
Peta & Ben, Thank you for your very insightful comment. Eric and I are in complete agreement with everything you wrote. In our travels, we’re always drawn to learning all that we can about the native cultures. We teach extensively about the native peoples in our summer programs on Lopez Island, and it’s heartening that most of the children have some familiarity with what we’re teaching. So things are changing a bit, at least in the Pacific Northwest!
I love this area, we’ve been many times camping with our kiddos when they were younger. Wow, I miss the PNW. Your oysters look delicious! I love the new layout with photos in the text!
Glad you like the new layout, Linda. I needed a change. :-) I think you and I feel the same way about the PNW. There are many interesting places in this country (and in the world) but this calls to me like no other.
We so loved our week on the Long Beach Peninsula a few years ago…your post brings it all back vividly!
Lisa, I’m so glad we took the time to explore the peninsula in-depth. It offered far more than we expected!
Thanks for bringing back fond memories of our time at Cape Disappointment State Park. Our site had full hookups and a path through the trees to the beach with a view of the North Head Light. We also sampled as much seafood as we could and had fun exploring the Long Beach Peninsula.
Beth, we were in the same camping loop — although we didn’t score one of the sites with its own path to the beach. But we did enjoy the sound of the ocean at night. The seafood truly is outstanding!
Have to say up front that even though “Mr. Jefferson” is nearly worshipped in his hometown, I consider his Lewis & Clarke deal to have been the demise of the Native Americans. I suppose I should just feel that it would have happened anyway but I can’t help but think perhaps not so soon or with such vengence.
Ok on to my not so controversial opinions.
I’ve always thought Disappointment was an unfair name for such a place and am glad to know how it came to be but still don’t understand why they kept it unless it was so they could tell the story. So sorry you missed the lighthouse tour but what a great shot from the beach.
Looks like you had a fabulous time in the area. I am not surprised that you could not extend your stay in the state park. We never can either. But I’m heartened to hear that you could find another place nearby that sounds wonderful. What a bummer that it is going to be something else soon. Like condos??? Ugg!
That’s one fantastic bald eagle picture. Seafood “binge” is right down my alley. I think Cranky is David’s brother.
I like any format you choose. Your pictures are divine within the post or at the end or anywhere any time.
Sherry, that wonderful little RV park isn’t going to be condos, but will be a private residence. Too bad, because we definitely would have returned to it!
I agree that Lewis and Clark contributed to the demise of the native peoples, as did all of the European explorers. How in the world we ever came up with the idea that the land belonged to us, I’ll never figure out. At least Lewis and Clark attempted to establish peaceful relations with the Native Americans, but it was on their terms — and the ultimate cost was devastating on so many levels.
I’m glad you like the new format, or any format that we choose. :-))
We spent last August on the Washington coast. I loved your photos of the Cape Disappointment- brought back so many memories.
Glad you enjoyed the photos, Pat. Cape Disappointment seems to be a favorite with many people!
I’m glad you included the date of that original expedition as a reference point because I’m currently reading an amazing but horrendous book (from the phenomenal Irish writer Sebastian Barry called “Days Without End”) about the wars with the Native American’s in the mid-1800’s. What a shame that in many cases, things started out with such kindness between the Europeans and the Native Americans only to implode later in such shocking violence.
I like the new format. I think….. Well, I used to love seeing the photos at the end. But at the same time I like seeing what I just read about! It’s funny how I like aspects about both!
Nellie and I have just returned from our wonderful trip back to the Netherlands (and Scotland) where I soaked in as much Dutchness as I could get before I had to say “good-bye” again. I recognize the cranky face waiting for the photo to be taken before eating. But in Nellie’s case, it was more from embarrassment than from hunger. I think it’s probably a lot more fun to embarrass one’s kid than to irritate one’s spouse however!
Welcome home, Janet! It sounds like you had a glorious trip. I’m looking forward to hearing all about it and seeing photos when we return to Ashland in October. :-)
Thanks for the book recommendation — you always come up with such excellent suggestions. Things definitely went wrong a long time ago in our treatment of the indigenous peoples of this country — and truthfully, they can never be put right. It appalls me that our ancestors could have been so arrogant.
I had it in the back of my mind for us to go to Long Beach last year but we were enjoying the Port Townsend area too much. Hope to make it there next year. Oh, and I get cranky too when I have to wait for photos to be taken of our meals and cold beers.
Haha, apparently there are a LOT of our friends out there who get cranky when they have to wait for photos when there’s a meal (or beer) in front of them! Port Townsend is one of our favorite towns, so I can understand why you didn’t want to leave.
I agree with you Laurel that Cape Disappointment is not a fitting name for such a beautiful place. We loved our time in this part of Washington. Your lovely photos and descriptions brought back some happy memories.
LuAnn, we thoroughly enjoyed our time on the Long Beach Peninsula, too. It was even better when the rain stopped after the second day. :-)