Surfin' USA

From Forks, Washington, we took off for campgrounds closer to the beach.  The first place we stayed was Copalis Beach, Washington, a tattered little beach town near a wonderful ocean shore. Lots of Washington's shore is rocky and narrow, but the beach here is deep and sandy.

Copalis Beach is in the middle of Washington state's Pacific shoreline and about 75 miles west of Olympia. It's one of seven little beach towns (Ocean Shores, Ocean City, Copalis Beach, Seabrook, Pacific Beach, Moclips and Toholah) north of the big inlet of Grays Harbor. We visited all of them.   

After Copalis Beach we went to Seaside, a tourist town that in 1806 was salt gathering spot for Lewis and Clark. Seaside has lots of hotels and restaurants, plus candy, gift and clothing shops. It also has a new brewery called Seaside Brewing (of course we visited) and we walked along the beach.  

The next day we went to Cannon Beach. Very pretty, very well manicured despite the wind off the ocean  -- just a lovely town.  It's one of he first places Jim and I visited together; back then we stayed at a wonderful small hotel called the Stephanie Inn. 

A rose among thorns, or maybe vice versa, at Copalis Beach.

Our last night at Copalis Beach, a big bank of clouds appeared.  By the time I got from the beach to the rig, I was surrounded in mist.

Driftwood sculpture near the planned coast city of Ocean Shores, Washington. 

As we drove toward Seaside, we saw signs for Lewis and Clark National Historical Park.  Since we'd been in the area before and visit almost every L/C site we pass we thought "How did we miss this one?"  So the next day we went exploring. As we approached, things seem familiar.  In fact, we had been there before, but arrived just as the gates closed. This time we saw two movies at the Visitors Center, hiked, and visited a reconstruction of Fort Clatsop, above, where the Corps of Discovery spent four months during the winter of 1805 -1806.  It was their last encampment before returning home.  The original encampment decayed; what's there now was built using detailed plans recorded by William Clark.

Cannon Beach, Oregon, tourists in front a a palm reader's shop.  She was doing a great business; must have been a good news day.

Photo albums of Cannon Beach always include a pic of Haystack Rock, which can be reached on foot when the tide is out.