![]() ![]() ![]() The 2.5-mile long, three million ton, stone structure was completed in 1917.Ĭape Disappointment also housed a Civilian Conservation Corps camp from 1935 to 1938. With the South Jetty in Oregon, the jetties provided for safer navigation of the Columbia River bar. Army Corps of Engineers arrived at Cape Disappointment for construction of the North Jetty at the entrance to the Columbia River. Gun batteries and other structures still sit on the cliffs overlooking the Pacific Ocean. The fort continued to be improved until the end of World War II. The installation was expanded to become Fort Canby in 1875, named for Army General Edward Canby. In 1862, Cape Disappointment was armed with smoothbore cannons to protect the mouth of the Columbia River from Civil War threats. In 1898, the North Head Lighthouse was completed. Plans for a second lighthouse, North Head Lighthouse, were drafted in 1889 because of poor visibility of the Cape Disappointment Lighthouse to southbound ships. The Cape Disappointment Lighthouse was constructed in 1856 to warn mariners of the treacherous river bar where the Columbia meets the Pacific, known for its many shipwrecks as "the graveyard of the Pacific." This is the oldest operating lighthouse in the Pacific Northwest. In 1805, the Lewis and Clark Expedition arrived at Cape Disappointment after their 18-month, 3,700- mile journey from St. In 1792, American Captain Robert Gray successfully crossed the river's bar and named the river "Columbia" after his ship, the Columbia Rediviva. Meares, therefore, named the headland Cape Disappointment. Though the cape was first mapped by Spanish explorer Bruno de Hezeta in 1775, its naming is credited to English Captain John Meares, who approached the cape in 1788, but could not locate the river's entrance. In parkĬape Disappointment sits within the traditional territory of the Chinook tribe, known to be sophisticated traders and highly engaged in the maritime fur trade. Within the park store you will find a café offering summer foods, including artisan pizza, salads, sandwiches and local seafood. ![]() The park store offers gifts, ice, wood, fishing gear and other camping essentials. For more information or to reserve your stay, visit the links below. For fee information, check out our camping rates page.Ĭape Disappointment has 3 cabins, 14 yurts and 2 vacation houses available for rent. Reservations can be made online or by calling (888) CAMPOUT or (888) 226-7688. Maximum site length is 45 feet (limited availability). For more information about the Discover Pass and exemptions, please visit the Discover Pass web page.Īutomated pay stations: This park is equipped with automated pay stations for visitors to purchase a one-day or annual Discover Pass.Ĭape Disappointment has 137 standard campsites, 50 full-hookup sites, 18 partial-hookup sites with water and electricity, five primitive hiker/biker campsites first come first served, one dump station, eight restrooms (two ADA) and 14 showers (four ADA). Learn about beach-specific hazards and how to stay safe when you go to play or camp at coastal parks on our Beach Hazards page.ĭiscover Pass: A Discover Pass is required for vehicle access to state parks for day use. Washington's coastal parks are dynamic and beautiful. The park offers yurts, cabins and unique historic vacation homes to meet travelers’ diverse lodging needs. Park featuresĬape Disappointment is a 2,023-acre camping park on the Long Beach Peninsula, fronted by the Pacific Ocean and looking into the mouth of the Columbia River. This park will fill your senses and occupy your mind, and you will long to return. The beaches at Cape Disappointment also lure kite-fliers, sand-castle builders and those who love to walk and explore.ĭon’t be surprised if you leave Cape Disappointment intrigued by its complex and multi-faceted history and enchanted by its legends and its vistas. Benson Beach is a popular clam-digging destination, and fishers love to set up on the North Jetty to catch salmon and crab. Hike through old-growth forest or around freshwater lakes, saltwater marshes and ocean tidelands. Find overgrown ruins of military bunkers and coast defense batteries, and hear tales of two lighthouses and the first attempts to reach the Columbia River by ocean. Step into the Lewis & Clark Interpretive Center for interactive exhibits. military and maritime legacies and to experience the story of Lewis & Clark and the effect of their Corps of Discovery Expedition on Native American tribes. Named for Captain John Meares’ first thwarted voyage to find the Columbia, Cape Disappointment is steeped in Northwest history. Lighthouses stand sentinel atop windswept cliffs, sea smells waft up through the air and waves collide with a crash where the Pacific Ocean meets the Columbia River below. ![]()
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