Cape Disappointment State Park - Cape Disappointment Lighthouse, Quinault National Recreation Trails & Fort Stevens Clatsop Spit — Friday, Mar. 1, 2024

Bottom Line:

A nomadic day of short trails on the southern Olympic Peninsula straddling the Columbia River, from crashing surf at Cape Disappointment, to rainforest in the Quinault valley, to endless beaches and shipwrecks at the mouth of the Columbia River. The weather was certainly not "fine" but perfect to accentuate the wild and stormy nature of this coast and its history of shipwrecks. PNW beauty - outstanding!

Stats:

• Distance: ~ 4 miles over the day
• Duration: All day exploration by car and trail
• Road/Parking: Discover Pass required to park within Cape Disappointment, but kiosk for day tickets available; Oregon State Park pass needed to park within Fort Stevens State Park; lots of informal parking along the road as you head deep into Olympic National Park via the Quinault River road (BEAUTIFUL drive, rain or shine)
• Weather: WET! Driving rain for most of the day with the occasional sunny break; 30sF; strong winds at Cape Disappointment with moderate surf (forecasted at 9-12 ft); mix of rain and snow in Quinault; no real break like yesterday at Kalaloch Beach
• Trails: Drove the Quinault River valley road and stopped to explore a couple of the numerous waterfalls; Cannings  Creek inside Olympic National Park is stunning, and you can bushwhack your way upriver a distance; heading south, explored the Cape Disappointment lighthouse section of this State Park, spending a fair amount of time watching the surf at Waikiki Beach - see video; CAUTION: the beach logs and breakwater boulders are very slippery - I have a bloody shin to show for it! The trails were very muddy, and the winds strong up on the bluff; crossed the Columbia River at Astoria, visited the Columbia River Maritime Museum to learn all about the prolific shipwrecks in this area as well as WWII history, and then headed out to Fort Stevens State Park for beach walking, shipwrecks and old military installations; the spit here is many miles long but not the best weather day to hike that far! CAUTION: The spit is open to vehicles for at least part of its length 
• Takeaway: Waikiki Beach at Cape Disappointment is quite the perch for pounding surf - would like to come back to photograph on an even higher surf day, but might need to wait until next winter at this point; you can rent the lighthouse keeper cabins at North Point during the winter season for winter storm watching

Fort George Brewery in Astoria was a great place to dry out with microbrews and burgers afterwards! The Quinault Lake Lodge also has a BOGO promotion that is a screaming deal - basically $100 per night.

More Information on this Trip Report

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