November 16 - 17, 1805 At the Pacific - Station Camp and Cape Disappointment

Home The Volcanoes of Lewis and Clark Map of the Journey Volcanoes, Basalt Plateaus, Major Rivers, etc. The Volcanoes Mount Adams, Mount Hood, Mount Jefferson, Mount Rainier, and Mount St. Helens CALENDAR of the Journey October 1805 to June 1806 Along the Journey Pacific Northwest Maps - Columbia River, Volcanoes, Flood Basalts, Missoula Floods, Geology, etc. The Corps of Discovery The Journey of Lewis and Clark About the Reference Materials The Journals, Biddle/Allen, DeVoto, Gass, Moulton, Topo Maps, and others USGS Lewis and Clark Links Links to USGS Websites highlighting the Lewis and Clark Journey Resources Publications Referenced and Websites Visited

PREVIOUS November 15 Reaching the Pacific, Megler Cove to the Pacific Ocean

November 16-17 At the Pacific, Station Camp and Cape Disappointment Station Camp, Baker Bay, Cape Disappointment, North Head, McKenzie Head, Fort Canby, and the Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center

CONTINUE November 18 At the Pacific, Station Camp to Fort Canby

On October 7, 1805, Lewis and Clark and the "Corps of Discovery" began their journey down the Clearwater River and into the volcanics of the Pacific Northwest. The Corps travelled from the Clearwater to the Snake and down the "Great Columbia", finally reaching the Pacific Ocean on November 15, 1805. Along the journey they encountered the lava flows of the Columbia Plateau, river channels carved by the great "Missoula Floods", and the awesome beauty of five Cascade Range volcanoes. [Click map for brief summary about the area]

To the Pacific - November 1805 At the Pacific - Station Camp and Cape Disappointment

Lewis and Clark's camp between November 15 through November 24, 1805 - "Station Camp" - was located near today's McGowan, Washington, today the site of Lewis & Clark Campsite State Park.

Saturday, November 16, 1805

The morning was clear and beautiful. We therefore, put out all our baggage to dry, and sent several of the party to hunt. Our camp [Station Camp] is in full view of the ocean,

Along the Journey - November 16, 1805

Station Camp: "Station Camp" was near a Chinook fishing village. At the highest spot they could find, the Corps landed and, using boards from the village houses, created a campsite which they named "Station Camp." Early photographs of this area, now called McGowan, indicate that the shoreline was as much as several hundred feet south of the present location on US 101. There is a current small roadside park just west of St. Mary's Church in the general area, but this is not the actual location of the campsite. -- Pacific County Friends of Lewis & Clark Website, 2002, Lewis and Clark Bicentennial in Oregon Website, 2002, and Washington State Historical Society Website, 2002 1987 Map, Chinook Point, McGowan, Station Camp, Point Ellice, Megler (section of original). (Click to enlarge). Office of Coast Surveys, Historical Maps and Charts, Columbia River, Pacific Ocean to Harrington Point, 1987, Chart#18521, 1:40,000. -- NOAA Office of Coast Survey Website, 2004 2001, NASA Image, Mouth of the Columbia River, including Station Camp. (Click to enlarge). NASA Space Shuttle photograph of the mouth of the Columbia River, including the location of Fort Clatsop, Lewis and Clark National Wildlife Refuge, Tenasillahe Island, Puget Island, and Crim's Island, and others, June 20, 2001. NASA Astronaut Photography of Earth #SS002-724-30. -- NASA Astronaut Photography of Earth Website, 2002 ca.1935, View of area between Fort Columbia and Point Ellice. (Click to enlarge). Image from the Washington State Department of Transportation Archives, 1934-1936 Biennial Report. -- Washington State Department of Transportation Website, 2003 1997, Aerial view, McGowan, Washington, area of Station Camp. (Click to enlarge). Station Camp is pullout on the left edge. Washington State Department of Ecology Shorelines Aerial Photo #PAC0610, May 13, 1997. -- Washington State Department of Ecology Website, 2002 2004, Station Camp, Washington, informational sign. (Click to enlarge). Copyright © 2004 Lyn Topinka, private archives, used with permission.

on the bay laid down by Vancouver, which we distinguish by the name of Haley's bay [Baker Bay], from a trader who visits the Indians here, and is a great favorite among them.

Along the Journey - November 16, 1805

Baker Bay: In 1792, William Broughton named the bay, "Baker's Bay," to give credit to a British merchant, Captain James Baker, whose ship was anchored inside the Columbia's mouth when Broughton crossed the bar to explore the river for Vancouver. Lewis and Clark named the bay "Haley's Bay", for the Indians' favorite trader, as reported to the captains. -- Washington State Historical Society Website, 2002 1814 Map, Lewis and Clark's map of the Columbia River (section of original). (Click to enlarge.) Baker Bay is just barely depicted on the map, and has no clear definition (just east of Cape Disappointment). Map also includes three of the five volcanoes Lewis and Clark saw and commented on. While the journals mention the expedition seeing Mount Adams, it does not appear on their map. Mount Jefferson is to the south (bottom) and off the map. From the "Nicholas Biddle/Paul Allen" 1814 publication. Original Map: "A Map of Lewis and Clark's Track, Across the Western Portion of North America, From the Mississippi to the Pacific Ocean". From: History of the expedition under the command of Captains Lewis and Clark : to the sources of the Missouri, thence across the Rocky Mountains and down the river Columbia to the Pacific Ocean : performed during the years 1804-5-6 : by order of the government of the United States / prepared for the press by Paul Allen. Philadelphia : Bradford and Insskeep, 1814. Harold B. Lee Library, Brigham Young University #upbover maps37. -- Brigham Young University, Harold B. Lee Library Website, 2004. 1887 Map (section of original), Mouth of the Columbia River. (Click to enlarge). Original Map: The Columbia River from Celilo to the mouth showing locations of the salmon fisheries, 1887. Scale ca. 1:375,000, Relief shown by hachures. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Engineer Office, G.P.O. 1888. University of Washington Archives #UW128. -- University of Washington Library Archives Website, 2002 1887, Map, Cape Disappointment and Baker Bay. (Click to enlarge). Mouth of the Columbia River showing fishtraps in Baker's Bay, 1887. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Map, published 1888. University of Washington Map Archives #UW129. -- University of Washington Library Collections Website, 2002 1987 Map, Cape Disappointment, Ilwaco, Baker Bay (section of original). (Click to enlarge). Office of Coast Surveys, Historical Maps and Charts, Columbia River, Pacific Ocean to Harrington Point, 1987, Chart#18521, 1:40,000. -- NOAA Office of Coast Survey Website, 2004 2001, NASA Image, Mouth of the Columbia River, including Baker Bay. (Click to enlarge). NASA Space Shuttle photograph of the mouth of the Columbia River, including the location of Fort Clatsop, Lewis and Clark National Wildlife Refuge, Tenasillahe Island, Puget Island, and Crim's Island, and others, June 20, 2001. NASA Astronaut Photography of Earth #SS002-724-30. -- NASA Astronaut Photography of Earth Website, 2002 2004, From Station Camp, looking downstream. Chinook Point is in the distance, with Baker Bay and Cape Disappointment at skyline. (Click to enlarge). Copyright © 2004 Lyn Topinka, private archives, used with permission. 2004, Looking across western end of Baker Bay towards Ilwaco, Washington. (Click to enlarge). Image taken from Cape Disappointment. Copyright © 2004 Lyn Topinka, private archives, used with permission.

The meridian altitude of this day gave 46o 19' 11" 7/10 as the latitude of our camp. ......

Along the Journey - November 16, 1805

The Camp - November 15 through November 24, 1805: "Station Camp", near today's McGowan, Washington,

Sunday, November 17, 1805

A fair cool morning and easterly wind. The tide rises at this place eight feet six inches in height, and rolls over the beach in great waves. About one o'clock captain Lewis returned, after having coasted down Haley's bay [Baker Bay] to cape Disappointment [Cape Disappointment], and some distance to the north along the sea coast. ...... Captain Clarke now prepared for an excursion down the bay [Baker Bay], and accordingly started,

Along the Journey - November 17, 1805

Cape Disappointment: Cape Disappointment, the rugged north point at the Columbia River entrance, is the first major headland along the 20 miles of sand beach north from Tillamook Head. It comprises a group of rounding hills covering an area 2.5 miles long and one mile wide, divided by a narrow valley extending north-northwest. The seaward faces of these hills are precipitous cliffs with jagged, rocky points and small strips of sand beach. Lewis and Clark used the British geographical place names given by Captain John Meares, a British trading merchant, to describe the headlands at the mouth of the Columbia. In 1788 Meares was disappointed at not finding "The River of the West". When he saw the mouth of the Columbia River, he thought it was only an entrance to a bay -- thus the name Cape Disappointment. Cape Disappointment is one of the oldest British geographical place names in Washington. -- NOAA Office of Coast Survey Website, 2003, and Washington State Historical Society Website, 2002 1787 Map, North American Coastline around the Columbia River (section of original). (Click to enlarge). Includes Cape Disappointment as "C. de San Roque". Original Map: "Carta que contiene parte de la costa de la California", by Bernabe Munoz, 1787. Scale ca.1:5,000,000. Library of Congress American Memory Archives #G4362.C6 1787 .M8 TIL Vault. -- U.S. Library of Congress Archives, 2004, "American Memory" 1798 Map, Mouth of the Columbia River (section of original). (Click to enlarge). Inset map of original, showing the mouth of the Columbia River, including Cape Disappointment, Point Adams, Youngs River, Point George (today's Astoria), and Grays Bay. Original Map: George Vancouver's "A Chart Shewing Part of the Coast of N.W. America." In A Voyage of discovery to the North Pacific ocean, and Round the World. London, 1798. University of Virginia Special Collection "Lewis & Clark, The Maps of Exploration 1507-1814". -- University of Virginia Library Archives Website, 2004 1814 Map, Lewis and Clark's map of the Columbia River (section of original). (Click to enlarge.) Shows Cape Disappointment. Map also includes three of the five volcanoes Lewis and Clark saw and commented on. While the journals mention the expedition seeing Mount Adams, it does not appear on their map. Mount Jefferson is to the south (bottom) and off the map. From the "Nicholas Biddle/Paul Allen" 1814 publication. Original Map: "A Map of Lewis and Clark's Track, Across the Western Portion of North America, From the Mississippi to the Pacific Ocean". From: History of the expedition under the command of Captains Lewis and Clark : to the sources of the Missouri, thence across the Rocky Mountains and down the river Columbia to the Pacific Ocean : performed during the years 1804-5-6 : by order of the government of the United States / prepared for the press by Paul Allen. Philadelphia : Bradford and Insskeep, 1814. Harold B. Lee Library, Brigham Young University #upbover maps37. -- Brigham Young University, Harold B. Lee Library Website, 2004. 1849 Map (section of original), Alexander Ross's Columbia River. (Click to enlarge). Original Map: Map of the Columbia to illustrate Ross's adventures. Author: Alexander Ross; Publication Date: 1849; Publisher: London, Smith, Elder and Co., 1849. Washington State University Archives #WSU478. -- Washington State University Early Washington Maps Digital Collection Website, 2004 1851 Map, Cape Disappointment, Washington (section of original). (Click to enlarge). Cape Disappointment was also known as Cape Hancock. Original Map: "Mouth of the Columbia River, Preliminary Survey, 1851". U.S. Coast Survey, 1851, #640, Scale 1:40,000. U.S. Office of Coast Survey Historical Map and Chart Collection #2228148. -- NOAA Archives Website, 2004 1853 Map, Washington and Oregon and the Columbia River, from the Clearwater River to the Snake River and down the Columbia River to the Pacific Ocean (section of original). (Click to enlarge). Includes: Clearwater River (Kooskooski), Lapwai Creek (Lapwai R.), Snake River (Saptin or Lewis R.), Columbia River (Columbia R.), Yakima River (Yakima R.), Walla Walla River (Wallawalla R.), Umatilla River (Umatilla R.), Willow Creek (Quesnells R.), John Day River (John day's R.), Deschutes River (Fall R.), Willamette River (Willammette R.), and Cowlitz River (Cowlitz R.). Original Map: "Map of California, Oregon, Washington, Utah, and New Mexico (1853)", by Thomas Cowperthwait & Co. Washington State University Archives #WSU22. -- Washington State University Library Collections Website, 2003 1855 Map, Mouth of the Columbia River, with Cape Disappointment and Long Beach Peninsula (section of original). (Click to enlarge). Original Map: "Map of a part of the Territory of Washington : to accompany report of Surveyor General (1855)". By James Tilton, Washington (State) Surveyor General's Office. Relief shown by hachures, Scale 1:1,140,480. Washington State University Historical Maps Collection #WSU314, and University of Washington Map Collection #UW114. -- Washington State University Library Archives Website, 2004 1855 Map, Northwest Oregon and mouth of the Columbia River (section of original). (Click to enlarge). Includes the Columbia River, Cape Disappointment, Point Adams, Saddle Mountain, Lewis and Clark River, Youngs River. Original Map: From the northern boundary of California to the Columbia River : from explorations and surveys / made under the direction of Hon. Jefferson Davis, Sec. of War by Lieut. R. S. Williamson, U.S. Topl. Engrs. and Lieut. H. L. Abbot, U.S. Topl. Engrs., H. C. Fillebrown, J. Young, and C. D. Anderson, Assts., 1855. Notes: Scale 1:760,320. Relief shown by hachures. At head of title: Routes in Oregon and California. Map no. 2. "Drawn by John Young." From U.S. War Department, Explorations and Surveys for a Railroad Route from the Mississippi River to the Pacific Ocean. Topographical Maps... to Illustrate the Various Reports... (Washington, 1859) Library of Congress American Memory Archives #G4290 1855 .W5 RR 170. -- U.S. Library of Congress Archives, 2004, "American Memory" 1887 Map, Columbia River from the Mouth to Pillar Rock (section of original). (Click to enlarge). Cape Disappointment is shown as Cape Hancock. Original Map: The Columbia River from Celilo to the mouth showing locations of the salmon fisheries, 1887. Scale ca. 1:375,000, Relief shown by hachures. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Engineer Office, G.P.O. 1888. University of Washington Archives #UW128. -- University of Washington Library Archives Website, 2004 1887, Map, Cape Disappointment and Baker Bay. (Click to enlarge). Mouth of the Columbia River showing fishtraps in Baker's Bay, 1887. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Map, published 1888. University of Washington Map Archives #UW129. -- University of Washington Library Collections Website, 2002 1949 Map (section of original), Cape Disappointment, North Head, McKenzie Head, Fort Canby, Ilwaco. (Click to enlarge). Office of Coast Surveys, Historical Maps and Charts, Columbia River, Pacific Ocean to Harrington Point, 1949, Chart#6151, 1:40,000. -- NOAA Office of Coast Survey Website, 2004 1987 Map, Cape Disappointment, Ilwaco, Baker Bay (section of original). (Click to enlarge). Office of Coast Surveys, Historical Maps and Charts, Columbia River, Pacific Ocean to Harrington Point, 1987, Chart#18521, 1:40,000. -- NOAA Office of Coast Survey Website, 2004 2001, NASA Image, Mouth of the Columbia River, including Cape Disappointment. (Click to enlarge). NASA Space Shuttle photograph of the mouth of the Columbia River, including the location of Fort Clatsop, Lewis and Clark National Wildlife Refuge, Tenasillahe Island, Puget Island, and Crim's Island, and others, June 20, 2001. NASA Astronaut Photography of Earth #SS002-724-30. -- NASA Astronaut Photography of Earth Website, 2002 ca.1879-1909, Cape Disappointment. (Click to enlarge). Pictured is a scene in the region served by the Oregon Railway & Navigation Company between 1879-1909. This is Cape Disappointment, north of the Columbia River. Photographer unknown. Oregon State Archives Salem Public Library #ORN25A. -- Oregon State Archives Website, 2003 1997, Aerial view, Cape Disappointment. (Click to enlarge). Looking at Cape Disappointment Lighthouse. Washington State Department of Ecology Shorelines Aerial Photo #PAC0547, May 10, 1997. -- Washington State Department of Ecology Website, 2002 2004, Cape Disappointment, as seen from North Spit, looking towards Cape Disappointment Lighthouse. (Click to enlarge). Copyright © 2004 Lyn Topinka, private archives, used with permission. North Head: North Head, the extreme western point of Cape Disappointment, is 170 feet high, with a very jagged, precipitous cliff, backed by a narrow grassy strip. The higher ground behind it is covered with trees. The North Head Lighthouse was built in 1898, and affords a spectacular view of the Pacific Ocean, with Benson Beach and the mouth of the Columbia River to the south and the Long Beach Peninsula stretching northward, a panoramic vista unparalleled on a clear day. -- NOAA Office of Coastal Survey website, 2003, Washington State Parks and Recreation Website, 2003, and Long Beach Area State Parks, 2002 1887, Map, Cape Disappointment and Baker Bay, including McKenzie Head. (Click to enlarge). Mouth of the Columbia River showing fishtraps in Baker's Bay, 1887. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Map, published 1888. University of Washington Map Archives #UW129. -- University of Washington Library Collections Website, 2002 1949 Map (section of original), Cape Disappointment, North Head, McKenzie Head, Fort Canby, Ilwaco. (Click to enlarge). Office of Coast Surveys, Historical Maps and Charts, Columbia River, Pacific Ocean to Harrington Point, 1949, Chart#6151, 1:40,000. -- NOAA Office of Coast Survey Website, 2004 1997, Aerial view, North Head showing the North Head Lighthouse. (Click to enlarge). Washington State Department of Ecology Shorelines Aerial Photo #PAC0533, May 10, 1997. -- Washington State Department of Ecology Website, 2002 1912, North Head Lighthouse. (Click to enlarge). Original from: "Puget Sound and Western Washington Cities-Towns Scenery" by Robert A. Reid, Robert A. Reid Publisher, Seattle, 1912. Archival photograph by Steve Nicklas, NGS/RSD. Image from the NOAA Photo Archives Coastline Collection #line2186. -- NOAA Photo Archives Website, 2002 McKenzie Head: McKenzie Head is located 0.8 miles northwest of Cape Disappointment Light. It is 190 feet high and nearly round. On its seaward face it is covered with grass and fern, bare of trees. On its eastern face it is heavily wooded with spruce. -- NOAA Office of Coast Survey Website, 2003 1887, Map, Cape Disappointment and Baker Bay, including McKenzie Head. (Click to enlarge). Mouth of the Columbia River showing fishtraps in Baker's Bay, 1887. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Map, published 1888. University of Washington Map Archives #UW129. -- University of Washington Library Collections Website, 2002 1949 Map (section of original), Cape Disappointment, North Head, McKenzie Head, Fort Canby, Ilwaco. (Click to enlarge). Office of Coast Surveys, Historical Maps and Charts, Columbia River, Pacific Ocean to Harrington Point, 1949, Chart#6151, 1:40,000. -- NOAA Office of Coast Survey Website, 2004 1997, Aerial view, McKenzie Head. (Click to enlarge). Washington State Department of Ecology Shorelines Aerial Photo #PAC0544, May 10, 1997. -- Washington State Department of Ecology Website, 2002 Fort Canby: In 1862, Cape Disappointment was armed with smoothbore cannons to protect the mouth of the Columbia River from enemies. The installation was expanded to become Fort Canby in 1875. The fort was named after General Edward Canby, who was killed in the Modoc Indian War. The fort continued to be improved until the end of World War II. Gun batteries still sit uptop the park. Today Cape Disappointment State Park (formerly Fort Canby State Park) is a 1,882-acre camping park which offers 27 miles of ocean beach, two lighthouses, an interpretive center and hiking trails. Visitors enjoy beachcombing and exploring the area's rich natural and cultural history. The nearby coastal towns of Ilwaco and Long Beach feature special events and festivals spring through fall. -- Washington State Parks and Recreation Website, 2002 1949 Map (section of original), Cape Disappointment, North Head, McKenzie Head, Fort Canby, Ilwaco. (Click to enlarge). Office of Coast Surveys, Historical Maps and Charts, Columbia River, Pacific Ocean to Harrington Point, 1949, Chart#6151, 1:40,000. -- NOAA Office of Coast Survey Website, 2004 2001, NASA Image, Mouth of the Columbia River, including Fort Canby State Park. (Click to enlarge). NASA Space Shuttle photograph of the mouth of the Columbia River, including the location of Fort Clatsop, Lewis and Clark National Wildlife Refuge, Tenasillahe Island, Puget Island, and Crim's Island, and others, June 20, 2001. NASA Astronaut Photography of Earth #SS002-724-30. -- NASA Astronaut Photography of Earth Website, 2002 1997, Aerial view, Fort Canby State Park. (Click to enlarge). Washington State Department of Ecology Shorelines Aerial Photo #PAC0546, May 10, 1997. -- Washington State Department of Ecology Website, 2002 Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center: In November of 1805, the U.S. Corps of Volunteers for Northwest Discovery, led by Meriwether Lewis and William Clark, reached the mouth of the mighty Columbia River and the Pacific Ocean at last. "Great joy in camp," Clark wrote in his journal, "we are in View of the Ocian, this great Pacific Ocian which we been So long anxious to See." Today the Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center stands high on the cliffs of Fort Canby State Park, 200 feet above the pounding Pacific surf. A series of mural-sized "timeline" panels guide visitors through the westward journey of the Lewis and Clark Expedition using sketches, paintings, photographs and the words of Corps members themselves. The center also features short film presentations, a gift shop and a glassed-in observation deck with fabulous views of the river, headlands and sea. -- Washington State Parks and Recreation Website, 2003 1997, Aerial view, Fort Canby State Park and the Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center. (Click to enlarge). Washington State Department of Ecology Shorelines Aerial Photo #PAC0546, May 10, 1997. -- Washington State Department of Ecology Website, 2002

Along the Journey - November 17, 1805

The Camp - November 15 through November 24, 1805: "Station Camp", near today's McGowan, Washington.

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June/July 2004, Lyn Topinka
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