Lewis and Clark Museum at Cape Disappointment

Dugout canoe similar to the one Lewis and Clark used on their trip to the Pacific.

Cape Disappointment does not live up to its moniker’s pronouncement.  It was not disappointing at all.  The beach was fabulous, with sand from one end to the other.  The lighthouse was easily within view, being perched upon a bluff where its lifesaving beams once reached out to nearby sailors.  Along the precipices were numerous colonies of three different cormorant species other oceanic fishers.  Abundant hiking trails, well maintained, provide ample leg stretching activities for those so inclined.  Then, on top of all that, was the fort and museum.

The fort was a relic of two world wars.  Its job was to protect the entrance to the mouth of the Columbia River.  Battlements rested high atop vertical cliff faces to give spectacular views of the Pacific Ocean where the great river emptied its sediment.  Also visible were the bird colonies, much closer at hand than they were from the beach’s viewpoint.  Next to the concrete bunkers comprising the fort was the Lewis and Clark Museum.

We spent the better part of an hour mulling about the displays.  Lewis and Clark made history by being the first to travel the distance across the burgeoning continent and reach the Pacific Ocean.  Their travels are legendary throughout the US and their feat no less impressive.  The museum holds numerous artifacts and displays to awe the patron.  Particularly impressive are the many hands-on opportunities for little fingers.  All ages are sure to be delighted with the discoveries which await them.

The photo above is one of the exhibits.  It is a 50% scale of a dugout canoe, the type Lewis and Clark made with the help of aboriginals after their trek across the continental divide.  The photo does not do justice to the impressions I got while standing there.  Hewn from massive trees, they were the mode of transportation for the explorers for a good portion of their journey.  Before the Columbia River was tamed, there were many rapids and boiling cauldrons of death which had to be run or bypassed through portage.  It must have been a harrowing adventure.