Astoria
We awoke on the lower Columbia River, passing Tongue Point (Point Williams to the expedition) and cruised into Astoria, where we broke our fast, docked near the Columbia River Maritime Museum. After breakfast we had free time to roam the town until 9 am when we visited the excellent Maritime Museum, where our delightful docent taught us a great deal about the maritime history of the Columbia River mouth.
We boarded buses for a short drive through the Northwest woods—Sitka spruce, Douglas fir, western hemlock, red cedar, and red alder—to visit a replica of Fort Clatsop, the Lewis and Clark expedition’s winter home. After a briefing in the museum at Fort Clatsop National Memorial, we explored the fort, watched a demonstration of firearms, and viewed the canoes and canoe launch on the Lewis and Clark River, a tributary of the Columbia, from which the expedition started its return to the United States.
Following a light lunch on board, we again departed the Sea Bird to bus in two directions: one, to the Astoria Column atop the hill above the city, from which several of the guests walked back to the ship; the other, to the beach where the ruins of the 287-foot-long Peter Iredale lay in the sand of the Pacific beach. Linda and Verne played a kelp concert on the beach before we headed back to the ship for a 5 pm departure and a brief visit to the Columbia River Bar.
We awoke on the lower Columbia River, passing Tongue Point (Point Williams to the expedition) and cruised into Astoria, where we broke our fast, docked near the Columbia River Maritime Museum. After breakfast we had free time to roam the town until 9 am when we visited the excellent Maritime Museum, where our delightful docent taught us a great deal about the maritime history of the Columbia River mouth.
We boarded buses for a short drive through the Northwest woods—Sitka spruce, Douglas fir, western hemlock, red cedar, and red alder—to visit a replica of Fort Clatsop, the Lewis and Clark expedition’s winter home. After a briefing in the museum at Fort Clatsop National Memorial, we explored the fort, watched a demonstration of firearms, and viewed the canoes and canoe launch on the Lewis and Clark River, a tributary of the Columbia, from which the expedition started its return to the United States.
Following a light lunch on board, we again departed the Sea Bird to bus in two directions: one, to the Astoria Column atop the hill above the city, from which several of the guests walked back to the ship; the other, to the beach where the ruins of the 287-foot-long Peter Iredale lay in the sand of the Pacific beach. Linda and Verne played a kelp concert on the beach before we headed back to the ship for a 5 pm departure and a brief visit to the Columbia River Bar.
