DISAPPOINTMENT AWAITS
Our spot at Cape Disappointment State Park is tucked into pine trees and rocks near the beach at Dead Man's Hollow. This rocky coast has the dubious reputation of being the foggiest section of coast in Wahington. It is the location of many shipwrecks. There are two lighthouses that stand watch over the turbulent waters near the mouth of the Columbia River.
It can be a damp, dismal place.
But we're not disappointed. There are lots of small towns. Oysterville and Long Beach are close by as well as Astoria, Oregon across the Columbia River with coffee shops/roasteries and breweries.
This is the entrance to Long Beach's 28 miles of sand beaches. The Columbia River has carried tons of volcanic sand from Mt. Saint Helens and deposited it along these beaches over many years.
It makes for a nice beach walk(on a good day).
Downtown Long Beach has a carnival atmosphere with souvenir shops, curiosities and kite stores.
Worlds largest carved razor clam- it squirts water on the hour.
Yeah, that's Long Beach!
We drove through Oysterville and had this sighting of Bigfoot. We also saw piles of oyster shells in this quaint 1920 style cottage community.
We spent an hour or so watching boats and drinking beer @ Buoy Beer in Astoria.
Since we were only about two hours from Mt Saint Helens, we decided to drive over for the day.
If you look closely at the center of the crater you can see a little puff of steam rising from the hot rocks that form the lava dome.
When the sun is out and the clouds are right...a beautiful sunset awaits.