Day 32, Wednesday April 1st: Feeling for Lewis and Clark on a Rainy Day

 Wednesday, we woke to rain and 45ish degrees....kind of the weather at home, cold and wet. We left our HH around 09:30 and continued north on 101.  

Somewhere on the Oregon Coast

The views were nice but it was raining so we did not stop much. 

We both find the Lewis and Clark story fascinating and inspiring so wanted to see where they reached the Pacific ocean and spent the winter of 1805 - 1806, Fort Clatsop.

The Salt Works

Our first stop was the 'Salt Works' which is about 15 miles from fort Clatsop. They boiled water for a month and a half making 28 gallons of Salt from about 1400 gallons of water. That is about 50:1 ratio, worse than maple syrup 😐.

Salt Works

They used cast iron pots to boil the sea water. 

It is fascinating how much weight these men carried vast distances. Why would they go 15 miles away to boil sea water? Apparently around the mouth of the Columbia, the fresh water dilutes the salt water making it hard to extract the salt. 

We would have liked to walk to the beach, but the wind and rain drove us back to our Serenity. 

When we arrived at Fort Clatsop, it was again raining, only harder. We put on our rain coats and did a quick walk through of the Fort, it was actually pretty nice for 33 people. The contingent included one woman, Sacagawea, who was the Indian wife of a guide that they hired. She also brought along her baby and was instrumental in helping the expedition find their way and communicate with other Indians. 

Fort Clatsop

The fort name Clatsop was named to honor the local natives. Clark called them the “Clot sop Nation.”. 

The Park also has lots of displays telling the Lewis and Clark Story as well as two films which we did watch, both educational. 

We ate lunch in the Serenity and set off for Washington State, just across the Columbia River. 

Astoria–Megler Bridge

The Astoria–Megler Bridge was built in 1966 and over 4 miles long, impressive. 

I made a Harvest Host reservation at a brewery, Willapa Brewing Co., in South Bend Washington. Since it was rainy anyway, we wanted to get there and get parked in time to watch the Artemis Launch.

Watching Artemis Launch

We setup in the Serenity and watched the spectacular launch using our Starlink connection. 

God Speed Artemis!

Willapa Brewing Co.

Willapa Brewing Co. has good beer and lots of food, including Artisan Pizza.  

Beers on Tap

It would take a while to work your way through all the beers they have on tap. 

I sampled a few of their IPAs and June liked their hazelnut peanut butter stout. 

We shared a pizza that rivals Folino's Pizza back home. Some of the best pizza we have had in a long time. 

We enjoyed this Harvest Host experience and would stop here again if we are ever in the area, nice place with nice people. 

Thursday we are making our way to Olympic National Park. We are unsure what to expect since it is still technically off season. We will see.