In the Footsteps of Bill and Meri

 

They were REAL campers. You might know them better as Lewis and Clark.

A few weeks before I embarked on this journey, I watched Ken Burn’s documentary on Lewis and Clark. It was simply fascinating to listen to what they endured on their 1 1/2 year camping trip.

“Ocian in view! O! the joy.”

When Capt. William Clark wrote these words in his journal on November 7, 1805, he was not standing at the Pacific Ocean but the Columbia River estuary.  It would be another couple of weeks before he and Capt. Meriwether Lewis would stand at what they had “been so long anxious to see.”  By then they had traveled more than 4,000 miles across the North American continent with a contingent of 31 explorers, mostly U.S. Army enlisted men, known as the Corps of Discovery.

Within 10 days of arriving on the coast, Lewis and Clark decided to leave their storm-bound camp on the north shore and cross the river, where elk were reported to be plentiful. Lewis, with a small party, scouted ahead and found a "most eligible" site for winter quarters. On December 10, 1805, the men began to build a fort about two miles up the Netul River (now Lewis and Clark River). By Christmas Day they were under shelter. They named the fort for the friendly local Indian tribe, the Clatsop. It would be their home for the next three months.

Step into the Fort Clatsop replica, at Lewis and Clark National Historical Park, and you'll get a real sense of what the Corps of Discovery experienced more than 200 years ago. It looks, smells, and feels pretty much the same. In peak visitor season, rangers in buckskins, offer demonstrations such as muzzle loading and shooting, hide tanning and candle making.

Here is a peek inside some of the rooms.

I walked down a trail to the historic canoe landing area. It felt awesome to be hiking the same path Lewis and Clark did over 200 years ago.

You know me, I cannot resist weird looking furry plant thingys.

After reluctantly leaving Fort Clatsop, I headed across the Columbia River to Cape Disappointment State Park.

NOTE:

If finding yourself stuck in your car on a bridge high above a river while they are doing construction gives you anxiety, do not look at the picture below.

Lewis and Clark National Historical Park is a joint venture between the National Park Service and the states of Oregon and Washington. The park rings the mouth of the Columbia River and stretches some 40 miles along the rugged Pacific Coast.

After missing the entrance to what was later named the Columbia River, English explorer John Meares dubbed the massive headland jutting out into the Pacific Ocean “Cape Disappointment.” That was in 1788. Almost 20 years later, Capt. William Clark and members of the Corps of Discovery explored the headland in their final push to the Pacific Ocean.

Cape Disappointment State Park offers breathtaking views of the Pacific Ocean and Columbia River, with old-growth forest, lakes, freshwater and saltwater marshes, as well as streams and tidelands along the ocean. There are also two lighthouses, numerous hiking trails, and 231 campsites. And deer.

You can almost see the raindrops in the puddles. I drove out to the North Jetty to check out the Cape Disappointment Lighthouse.

It was barely visible in the storm perched way up on the cliff. I get the chills just looking at that picture. Brrr…

Anyway, I headed off to my campground with a brief stop at the North Head Lighthouse.

Fully deployed and dry. I walked down a path to the beach. It was too wet and windy to take photos, but on the walk back I found some rude trees.

I call them “Bird Trees” because they look like they are flipping me the bird.

Here are a few more photos from the trail area.

OK, I may moan a little bit about the rain but then I think about what Lewis and Clark had to deal with on their journey. I can always go jump in my car and turn on the heater if I have to. They did not have that option. Watch the Ken Burns documentary if you get a chance. Fascinating.

Oh, one last thing about the rain. Everything is so GREEN!

Regards,

Greg

Say Cheese!

 

Yes, cheese. Literally tons of cheesy goodness everywhere you look. Mouse Heaven! I will get to that shortly.

I left Pacific City on Tuesday morning and stopped at Nehalem Bay State Park.

Imagine waking up to the song of the seagull, spending your afternoon on a kayak trip around Nehalem Bay, then taking a short walk over the dunes to the beach. There you'll sit with a blanket and watch the sun set over the ocean in the shadow of Neah-Kah-Nie Mountain. Finally, snuggle down for the night while the ocean waves sing you a lullaby. This is Nehalem Bay State Park.

And these are photos of the boat ramp, the bay and a typical campsite. They have almost 300 of them here.

Horseback riding is very popular at this campground as well…

Gotta love a campground that provides shovels for, well, you know.

Thursday I drove to Fort Stevens State Park. This is the mother of all Oregon State Parks. In fact, it is one of the largest public campgrounds in the country with over 490 sites, including yurts and cabins. It lies next to the site of a military installation once used to guard the mouth of the Columbia River.

This area is called Yurt Village. Yep, those be Yurts!

Fort Stevens was the primary military defense installation in the three fort Harbor Defense System at the mouth of the Columbia River (Forts Canby and Columbia in Washington were the other two). The fort served for 84 years, beginning with the Civil War and closing at the end of World War II. Today, Fort Stevens has grown into a 4,200 acre park offering exploration of history, nature, and recreational opportunities.

Coffenbury Lake just west of the campground has two swimming areas, a picnic area, restrooms, and a boat ramp (10 mph boating speed limit). Two other smaller lakes offer boat ramps for fishing and canoeing.

Well, you cannot visit Fort Stevens State Park without checking out Fort Stevens the, er, Fort. I have fond memories of Fort Clinch in Florida that Glenn and I raided last December, so I headed off down a colorful road.

The sign looks interesting.

But it looks like someone stole the Fort. They just left behind the foundations and a cannon.

To be honest, there were some remnants of the old fort still standing. They were crowded with school kids being led around by old guys dressed up in even older uniforms. I kept my distance.

One of the most famous spots for digging up razor clams is the beaches just south of the Columbia River. Locals claim they are the best tasting of the various clam species and there are clam bakes at the State Park. Here is a neat tip that a camper passed on regarding cleaning these ugly things.

“Bring back a bucket of seawater-enough to cover the clams. Pour a box of cornmeal over them and let it sit overnight in a cool place. The clams will ingest the cornmeal. The cornmeal will swell up inside the clam and they will be forced to vomit out the cornmeal, along with all the sand and mud and anything else they have in their stomachs. Makes cleaning a lot easier.”

OK, I will get right on that…

But what about the cheese you ask. Oh yes, the cheese. I like cheese and when you are in Oregon, there is one place you have to stop at to indulge your cheese fantasies. I stopped here on Tuesday before I visited Nehalem Bay State Park.

Yep, the Tillamook Cheese Factory!

They have a self-guided walking tour that takes you to the processing area where big pieces of cheese are progressively made into smaller ones. At least there is some action there as opposed to a tour of the cheese aging room. Check out the neat shirts as well.

The color is a little off because of all the cheese dust floating in the air…

Here is the best part. After looking at cheese you can sample all the free cheese you want. These bowls did not remain at the same level for very much longer.

They had all different kinds of cheese for eating, I mean sampling. From their award winning medium cheddar all the way to their extra-sharp reserve, which is aged for 3 years.

My sister is probably drooling as she looks at these pictures. She REALLY loves cheese. She will put cheese on cereal and dunk cheese in coffee. She also likes the end cuts of beef roasts. Where are you going with this, right? Is that what you are thinking?

Well, they have a store, of course, where you can buy cheese. I found this for my sister.

See, end cuts of cheese! These are pieces they pick up off the floor before the 5 second rule kicks in. And this is their super duper extra sharp 3 year old special reserve cheese to boot. Sis, I hope that this package will remain unopened until I get back to town in 4 months.

I am leaving Oregon and busting into Washington on Saturday. On May 29 I will be entering the vast rainforests of Olympic National Park for 10 days. It should be quite an adventure!

Regards,

Greg