Our day started with a fairly long drive to the Washington/Oregon border. We drove through the small town (well really, they're all small towns!) of South Bend - the Oyster Capital of the World. We saw lots of tidal flats and even saw a man out there hunting oysters.
Our first stop of the day was at Cape Disappointment, where Lewis and Clark first saw the Pacific Ocean. We didn't get to go out to the point because we didn't have a park pass. But, we had a great view of where the Columbia River meets the Pacific. We left there and headed on to Astoria, Oregon. We crossed the Megler-Astoria Bridge - the longest continuous truss bridge in North America at 4.4 miles long. Everyone knows I'm a sucker for great bridges!
The Megler-Astoria Bridge
We drove up to the Astoria Column and had a great view of the city. You could see Cape Disappointment from here and also Fort Clatsop, where the Lewis and Clark Expedition spent the winter of 1805. That was our next stop.
This is a replica of inside their fort. The rooms were tiny and they slept 8 people per room except Lewis and Clark shared a room and Sacagawea, her husband and baby had their own room. All the rest had to share.
The next place was Fort Stevens State Park to what remains of the Peter Iredale, a four-asted steel barque sailing vessel that ran ashore in 1906 on its way to the Columbia River. The tide was out so all of what is left was out of the water. The beach was really nice with real fine light gray sand. It was a real wide beach. Conrad guessed you'd have to walk out 200 yards or more and the water still wouldn't be waist deep if the tide was in.
Conrad and what's left of the ship
Our next stop was Seaside, an old beach resort town. The big attraction there is the "Prom", a concrete boardwalk along the beach, about 2 miles long. Along the Prom are beach houses (lots of them with beautiful gardens) and hotels. The beach was packed with people. About halfway is a statue of Lewis and Clark stating "The End of the Journey". We also went to the "Salt Works" here. That was where some of the Expedition went during that winter to make salt to flavor their food on the way back home.
Lewis and Clark Statue
The beach at Ecola State Park
Last but definitely not least, we went to several different beaches. The first one was in Ecola State Park. The view was AMAZING there! I could have just stayed there all day. There were a lot of people there so it must be one of the favorites for the locals and the tourists.
This last one was taken at an overlook along Highway 101. We would love to pull over at every overlook but we'd never get to San Francisco that way!
Along Highway 101
So, that's what we've been doing today! The trip is going well and we hardly ever miss a turn! The weather was great once again today. We started out this morning in lots of fog but it cleared early. The temperature is in the mid 60s about every day and is supposed to be like that the rest of the week. Hope it stays sunny!
We're exhausted but just keep going. Am finally getting used to the time change.
Come back tomorrow!
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