Astoria and Fort Clatsop
If there was one word to describe our day today, it would be the same word that described most of the days in Lewis & Clark’s exploration over 200 years ago, and that word would be… “wet.” The previous days in our journey this week were spectacularly sunny and warm, yet as the National Geographic Sea Bird headed west last night towards Astoria, it was clear we were going to experience the culmination of the journey of Lewis and Clark in full fashion. We awakened to mist and sprinkles and gusts of wind that blew water sideways across the decks of the ship. Good thing morning qigong class was scheduled inside today!
After a turn out to the Columbia River Bar to experience the washing machine-like swells of outgoing river current meeting incoming Pacific Ocean tide, the Sea Bird docked in downtown Astoria, conveniently near the local Columbia River Maritime Museum. Rather than entering the museum however, we first took a short ride to Fort Clatsop, where the Lewis & Clark Corps of Discovery spent the winter of 1805-06. Here among beautiful misty trees, the National Park Service had constructed a replica of the fort, along with a museum and presentation about that final winter.
We returned to downtown Astoria, this time to enter and be guided through the local Maritime Museum. Here we learned further about the unique environment, and the danger of the shifting sands of the Columbia River Bar, where mighty river meets ocean, also known as the “Graveyard of the Pacific.” Interestingly displayed also was the history of tattooing, its origins in native cultures and its wildfire spread through seafaring culture.
The ship remained docked in Astoria during the afternoon, where we sprinkled out into different activities… many boarded buses headed for the Lewis & Clark Interpretive Center at Cape Disappointment, while others strolled downtown Astoria, climbed to the high point of town at Astor Column, returned for further perusing of the Maritime Museum, or remained aboard the ship for some dry R&R time.
In the evening we gathered in the lounge for cocktails and our shared photo slideshow, followed by the Captain’s farewell dinner. Though often the focus of these Daily Expedition Reports is external – on the historical and natural elements of our voyage — it wouldn’t be complete without commenting on the most precious of all experiences this week: time spent with each other, those we came with and those we have meet here along the way. Thank you for a beautiful journey. Keep shaking!
