What a magnificent day! Warm, sunny weather, in late October, in Astoria Oregon, which received over 90 inches of rainfall last year. Most unusual, but staff and guests took advantage of this beneficence, and engaged in enjoyable and educational experiences throughout the day.
National Geographic Sea Bird had left Portland the previous evening, Sunday the 20th, and set sail under many of the Willamette River bridges that make the city so special. By morning, we were docking in Astoria at about breakfast-time. The city, founded in 1811 as Fort Astor, a fur-trading post sold to the British a year later, languished until after 1850, when salmon fisheries and canneries gave it new life. Today it is thriving as an educational and recreational haven. Among its many attractions is nearby Fort Clatsop, winter encampment of the Lewis and Clark Expedition in 1805-1806.
Our first excursion today made the Fort a target. We arrived about 9 a.m., watched a video preview, toured the reconstructed Fort, viewed the exhibits at the Visitors’ Center, and bought a few books! It’s somewhat strange to be at the end of the Lewis and Clark Trail on Day 1, but we’ll put the pieces together before it’s over. Just as the Lewis and Clark Bicentennial celebration reached Astoria, the Fort caught fire, so building it anew became an apt commemoration.
From the Fort we travelled to the Columbia River Maritime Museum, adjacent to the ship’s dock, and the best museum of this sort west of Mystic, CT. The permanent exhibits alone trace the history of sailing vessels in the area from the 18th century to the present. Not all of these vessels were successful, because the Columbia River Bar, where the river meets ocean tides, is treacherous, and has caused upwards of 2,000 shipwrecks. Special exhibits this year include ancient maps of the Pacific Northwest, and the harvest of sharks for their livers during World War II. Shark livers are rich in Vitamin A, which supposedly improves eyesight, and was deemed essential for USAAF airmen.
In the afternoon, guests faced agonizing choices. Some explored the Lewis and Clark Wildlife Refuge aboard expedition landing craft. Others kayaked, or learned to kayak. And still others bussed across the Astoria-Megler Bridge into Washington, and eventually discovered the Pacific Ocean at Waikiki Beach. The Washington coast is loaded with Lewis and Clark sites, but on this beautiful, warm and sunny fall day, the Pacific seemed the most likely choice.
Weather forecasts are excellent for our next day’s exploration of the Columbia River Gorge, so we are all excited!
