Cape Disappointment

Cape Disappointment Review

Cape Disappointment was named in 1788 by Captain John Meares, an English fur trader who had been unable to find the Northwest Passage. This rocky cape and treacherous sandbar—the so-called graveyard of the Pacific—has been the scourge of sailors since the 1800s. More than 250 ships have sunk after running aground on its ever-shifting sands. A ½-mi-long path from the Lewis & Clark Interpretive Center in Cape Disappointment State Park leads to the Cape Disappointment Lighthouse. Built in 1856, it's the oldest lighthouse on the West Coast still in use.

>The U.S. Coast Guard Station Cape Disappointment is the Northwest Coast's largest search-and-rescue station. The rough conditions of the Columbia River provide plenty of lessons for the students of the on-site National Motor Life Boat School. The only institution of its kind, the school teaches elite rescue crews from around the world advanced skills in navigation, mechanics, firefighting, and lifesaving. The observation platform on the north jetty in Cape Disappointment State Park is a good place to watch the motor lifeboats. 360/642-2382.