Northwestern Oregon & Southwestern Washington (National Parks Trip #3)

This post represents another installment in the series documenting our West Coast National Parks trip in the summer of 2017.  Alan and I, along with our 18 year old daughter, Kyra, logged a total of 8,513 memorable miles of adventure over the course of five and a half weeks during the months of July and August.

Despite the fact that Alan, Kyra and I were excited to be moving on to Washington and the three National Parks we would be visiting in that state, our last day on the Oregon coast was bittersweet.  All three of us had fallen in love with the State Parks and State and National Recreation Sites in Oregon that allowed easy access to the beaches and waters of the Pacific Ocean.  Leaving all that beauty behind wasn’t something we were looking forward to.  But, new adventures awaited, and we made the best of our final day on the coast of Oregon.

Our first stop of the day was Cape Disappointment State Park near Ilwaco, Washington, to see the Cape Disappointment Lighthouse.  Getting there required traversing the impressive Astoria-Megler Bridge which spans the Columbia River and connects Oregon to Washington.

Although Cape Disappointment had been named the Bay of the Assumption by Spanish explorer Bruno Heceta in 1775, it was later named Cape Disappointment by British trader John Meares in 1788 when he mistakenly believed the mouth of the Columbia River was a bay.  Navigating the treacherous Columbia River Bar – the area where the deep waters of the Pacific meet the more shallow waters at the river’s mouth - proved extremely hazardous to mariners due to dangerous tides and shifting sands.  The lighthouse was constructed in the mid-1800s and began operation in 1856.  It was not the most notable lighthouse I had ever seen, and it looked like it could use a fresh coat of paint at the time of our visit, but we were still glad we made the trek.  (Not that trekking is ever an issue for us.  Wink, wink.)

Following our visit to the Cape Disappointment Lighthouse, we backtracked past the harbor in Ilwaco and returned to Oregon over the Astoria-Megler Bridge with its amazing views.

The harbor in Ilwaco, Washington

Our next stop was the Hawthorn Cannery Museum on Pier 39 in Astoria, located in the oldest fish-packing plant on the Columbia River.  The museum’s goal “is to recount the story of 130 years of fishing and cannery history with photos, boat displays, Columbia River Packers Association (CRPS) and Bumble Bee artifacts.”  The museum’s exhibits are housed inside what were three industrial freezer rooms.  Imagining them packed full of frozen tuna, I’d say that they processed a heck of a lot of fish in this relatively small facility.  The museum tour – self-guided and free (although donations are happily accepted) – was fascinating, and provided a peek into a subculture of which we knew very little.  I can only imagine how many of these canneries, both active and decommissioned, can be found in fishing villages up and down our coasts.

The Hawthorn Cannery Museum and other commercial buildings on Pier 39

Astoria is, allegedly, the oldest U.S. settlement west of the Rocky Mountains.  Truth be told, we should have allowed more time to explore this port city.  We didn’t make it to the Astoria Tower, and only stopped to grab a quick photo of the Liberty Theatre.  In 1922, a devastating fire tore through the downtown area of Astoria, destroying more than 200 shops, restaurants and businesses in 32 prime commercial blocks of the city.  The city was rebuilt, and the Liberty Theatre which opened in 1925 became an iconic symbol of Astoria’s rebirth.  The Theatre – gorgeous, just gorgeous – is celebrating its 100^th anniversary this year.

Leaving Astoria, we continued south along the Oregon coast to Ecola State Park.  The park, a shining star like all of the others we had visited, provided a beautiful view of Cannon Beach in the distance and Haystack Rock.  That beach was our next and final stop in Oregon.  Cannon Beach, with its famous and oh-so-often photographed “haystack,” was truly stunning, but the small town was jammed with tourists and parking was difficult.  Yup, happy we visited.  Nope, probably not going back.

View of the coastline from Ecola State Park - imagine this on a blue sky day!

Haystack Rock on Cannon Beach

We returned to camp for our final night at Fort Stevens State Park.  The next morning, we would cross the state line into Washington with Mount Rainier and its spectacular wildflowers the first item on our Washington itinerary.

The wreck of the Peter Iredale on the beach at Fort Stevens - a bit eerie at night

Route 66 Update: Since several people had mentioned an interest in our upcoming Route 66 trip to me, I thought I'd include an update here.  I’m working my way through the Moon Route 66 Road Trip guide, and Alan ordered a new SD card through GM with an updated road map for his navigation system in the Camaro.  I made reservations at the two iconic motels we absolutely, positively want to overnight at – the Blue Swallow Motel in Tucumcari, New Mexico, and the Wigwam Motel in Holbrook, Arizona.  I thought I got a jump on our travel plans, but the Blue Swallow was already fully booked on the night we wanted to stay, and I had to juggle travel plans for the following month in order to extend our departure a week and snag a reservation.  Last, but not least, I downloaded several songs to my Kindle – Willie Nelson’s “On the Road Again,” the Eagles’ “Take it Easy” (for our stop in Winslow, Arizona), Roger Miller’s “King of the Road,” and (of course!) “Get Your Kicks on Route 66!”