August 2006
Out & About:
Summer Sun on Southern (Washington) Sands
By Janice Lovelace
Summer is synonymous with time at the beach. This August, take the family and head to one of Washington’s favorites – Long Beach Peninsula. A slender finger of land, it lives up to its name with 28 miles of continuous sandy beach that is open to the public, one of the longest beaches in the United States. Only one and a half miles wide, it separates the Pacific Ocean from Willapa Bay.
Fly kites, stroll the boardwalk near the town of Long Beach, visit museums, hunt shells, hike and camp the state parks, kayak Willapa Bay on the east side of the peninsula, or visit a cranberry bog. You will find time on the Peninsula offers something different for everyone.
The peninsula was initially home to the Chinook Indians. Meriwether Lewis and William Clark explored the region in November 1805, staying nearly a month on the Washington side of the Columbia before settling on the southern side of the river. Increasing numbers of settlers followed, although the area’s greatest popularity has been as a seaside retreat. About two and a half hours southwest of Tacoma (141 miles), it makes a good weekend getaway.
There are plenty of lodging choices, from hotels and B&Bs to cottages lining the seaside, as well as condos for families, campgrounds and RV sites. At Cape Disappointment State Park, you can even rent the light keeper’s house!
Getting there: Take Interstate 5 to Olympia and take Exit 104 west to State Route 8, which will become State Route 12. At Montesano, pick up Highway 107 south to Highway 101. Stay on Highway 101 until it ends in a “T” near the Pacific Ocean at Seaview. Turn north (right) on Highway 103 to go to Long Beach, Nahcotta and Oysterville. For more information, contact the Long Beach Peninsula Visitors Bureau, 1-800-451-2542, www.funbeach.com.
City of Long Beach
Start your exploration in the city of Long Beach. Stroll the half-mile long Boardwalk for a first visit to the beach (an especially good introduction for those with strollers). Head out across the sandy beach to put your toes in the Pacific. Bring the sand toys and make sand castles. Although no motorized vehicles are allowed on this part, keep an eye out for those taking a horseback ride on the beach. Bring a picnic and set up in one of the picnic shelters. Public restrooms are close by, an important consideration for those with children.
The wind coming off the ocean makes nearly any day a great one to fly a kite. Look up and you’ll see everything from simple kites costing less than $10, like those you may remember from your childhood, to complex stunt kites worth hundreds of dollars.
Come to Long Beach the third week of August (Aug. 21-27 this year) for the International Kite Festival. Kite Trade Association International members voted it the best kite festival in the world. Make a day trip this year, since lodging reservations are usually booked months in advance.
Hundreds of kites are up flying from 9 a.m. to sundown. Different events highlight the different types of kites. Some feature characters on the kites, while others are stunt kites with multiple strings. One of my favorites had dozens of kites on one long string. The spectacular “Mass Ascension” is usually an opening event of each day.
The festival includes competitions for children younger than 14. Children will enjoy watching others their age fly the kites. Each contestant has to perform certain movements with his kite. Find out more by talking to some of the kiters about their passion or visiting the festival Web site at www.kitefestival.com.
Learn more about kites at the World Kite Museum and Hall of Fame in Long Beach, as you walk among hundreds of kites of all types and sizes. This-one-of-a-kind museum highlights the 2,500-year history of the kite throughout the world.
Getting there: From the traffic light at Pacific Street (Highway 103) and Bolstad Street, go north on Pacific Street for three blocks; turn left onto 3rd Street N.W. and look for the museum on your right. It is open daily May through September, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., and open Friday through Monday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., October through April. Admission is $5 for adults and $3 for children. 360-642-4021. www.worldkitemuseum.com.
Find a very different experience at the Cranberry Museum and Farm Tour in Long Beach. This museum and 10-acre acre demonstration farm give you the history of the berry and explains how current farming is done. Native Americans harvested cranberries from the marshes long before Lewis and Clark explored the area. Farmers have been working the commercial peat bogs for more than 100 years. After learning about cranberries at the museum, head out for a walk around the bogs, which are especially beautiful in late summer. Make a trip here in October for harvest time and the cranberry fair (Oct. 14-16 this year).
Getting there: From the traffic light at Pacific Street and Bolstad Street, go north on Pacific Street about one mile to Pioneer Road. Turn right and look for the museum on your left at 2907 Pioneer Road. It is open daily, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., April through January. A donation is requested. 360-642-5553. www.cranberrymuseum.com.
Southern Peninsula
Head south to see Fort Canby, established in 1852 as a military post and turned into a state park in 1957. It is now known as Cape Disappointment State Park. Hiking and camping are highlights, along with the lighthouses. There is no longer a fee for day use or parking.
The park is home to the Cape Disappointment Lighthouse, built in 1856. The lighthouse is located at the treacherous meeting of the Columbia River and Pacific Ocean. Hundreds of ships were lost in the waters of this area, giving it the name “graveyard of the Pacific.”
Although the lighthouse helped reduce accidents for ships coming into the Columbia, mariners soon discovered that the light couldn’t be seen well when coming from the north. So a sister lighthouse, North Head, was added in 1898. Limited tours to the top, for $1 admission, are available in the summer. (Call 360-642-3078 for details.) You can hike a four-mile trail through old-growth forest to the lighthouse, following Clark’s path through the area. However, it might be too much for your younger children unless they are experienced hikers. Take a jacket because it is windy.
The park also houses the Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center where you can trace the whole 28-month trip the explorers took between 1804 and 1806. Easy to walk around, it features murals showing the trip as well as pages from the explorers’ journals and photographs of the time. Although Lewis and Clark only spent about three weeks exploring in this area, there are many artifacts, making it well worth the visit.
Getting there: From the stoplight in Ilwaco, go west on North Head Road for about five miles into Cape Disappointment State Park and follow the signs to Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center. It is open daily, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is $3 for adults and $1 for children. 360-642-3029. www.parks.wa.gov/parkpage.
Learn more history of the area at the Ilwaco Heritage Museum. Starting with the Chinook people and moving through the region’s logging, fishing and agricultural history, this museum’s exhibits will help you feel as if you lived in those times. Children will enjoy the train depot.
Getting there: From the stoplight in Ilwaco, go south on First Street for one block, turn left onto Lake Street and look for museum on your right at 115 S.E. Lake St. The museum is open Monday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and Sunday, 1 to 5 p.m. Admission is $3. 360-642-3446. www.ilwacoheritagemuseum.org.
Astoria Area
If your family wants to know more about Lewis and Clark, head south over the Columbia River to the Astoria area, about 20 miles away. Nearby Fort Clatsop at the Lewis and Clark National and State Historical Parks marks the winter home for Lewis and Clark in 1805-06. The Clatsop native people helped the 33 members of the expedition party survive the winter and prepare for the return trip east.
The original fort deteriorated, but was rebuilt in the mid-1950s, using Clark’s original sketches. Last year a fire burned it down, but volunteers worked all winter to rebuild it in time for the launching of the boats this March, symbolizing the return home of Lewis and Clark. Re-enactors dressed in period clothing engage in common activities from the early1800s. The visitor center at this national park has exhibits and videos, as well as a bookstore. A picnic area is nearby. Take time to hike one of the trails through the wetlands.
Getting there: Take Highway 101 south to Astoria, go about six miles south to the park. It is open daily, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., from mid-June through Labor Day and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. the rest of the year. Summer admission is $5 for adults and $2.50 for children, or use your National Park Pass. 503-861-2471. www.nps.gov/lewi/FOCL.
Northern Peninsula
Take a day to head north from the town of Long Beach to the Willapa Bay Interpretive Center in Nahcotta to understand the importance of oysters to the region. It is built to look like an oyster station house. See artifacts and photographs about the oyster industry. A short video explains the process as well as spotlighting the ecology of the area, which makes it an ideal spot for oystering.
Willapa Bay is one of the most productive oyster beds on the West Coast. Many of today’s oysters start their lives in a hatchery and are then transferred to the bay where they grow on old (recycled) shells. It takes about six years for an oyster to grow to a harvestable size. Much of the land by the bay is privately owned, but at the interpretive center, you can head out to the coastline to see where oysters grow.
Getting there: Head north on Highway 103 from Long Beach. From the traffic light in Ocean Park, go east on Bay Avenue to the stop sign. Turn left onto Sandridge Road and drive one-half mile to 273rd Place. Turn right onto the breakwater. The interpretive center is right past the Ark Restaurant. It’s open Friday through Monday, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., from Memorial Day to Labor Day. Admission is free.
Drive another three miles north to Oysterville. As its name implies, this town was once the heart of the oyster region in the 1800s, until the native species was over-harvested. At one time it was the county seat and a rich town. Today, there aren’t many year-round residents, but there are lovely old homes and the entire community is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
You can hike at Leadbetter Point State Park north of Oysterville. Here you will find shifting sand dunes, as well as potholes filled with water and marshy plants, making it a great place to watch birds. Part of the park is a lowland forest, where you might see deer and small mammals. There are four relatively flat, maintained hiking trails a half-mile to two miles long, including one running from the bay to the ocean. Remember to wear shoes and pants that can get damp and muddy or sandy.
Getting there: Go north on Highway 103 from Long Beach and drive three miles north of Oysterville. Follow the signs to the park. There is no parking fee for day use.
The Willapa National Wildlife Refuge encompasses more than nine square miles just north of the Park, at the tip of the peninsula. It contains sand dunes and marshes for hiking. It, too, is a great area for spotting birds, especially during migration periods.
Kayaking is another activity for the Willapa Bay side of the Peninsula. You can kayak in the bay itself or on one of the several streams draining into it. The easiest place to access the bay on the north end of the peninsula is the boat launch in Nahcotta. Enjoy the shorebirds as well as seals, sea lions and possibly a porpoise. Make sure to check the tides, because at low tide the shores become muddy and nearly impossible to navigate.
Whatever activity you decide to pursue, the Long Beach Peninsula has something to offer. Twenty-eight miles of public access will help you get your “beach time” for this summer.
Janice Lovelace is a Puget Sound writer and traveler.
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