Long Beach Peninsula is the southwestern most part of Washington State and is where Cape Disappointment State Park is located. With it’s 28 miles of continuous beach and a very popular tourist destination due to its wonderful beaches, fishing, crapping, osyter farming, state parks, and proximity to large metropolitan areas such as Seattle and Portland.
You just never run out of things to do there. Of historical fame is the town of Long Beach. A great place to grab a bite to eat and head on over to Marsh’s Free Museum, a landmark in the area. Dare if you do to enter this gem of a curiosity shop and meet up with Jake the Alligator Man. A must if you are in the area.
A bit further north is access to the Discovery Trail, a 8.5 mile trail that parallels the Pacific Ocean and is full of interesting art objects and fantastic views of nature. One of the most unique items found on this trail is a bronze sculpture of a tree titled “Clarks Tree” commemorating the carving Clark made in a tree in 1805. It looks so real. The tree is close to the 26th St entrance by the Breakers Hotel.
And all the way to the north of the Long Beach Peninsula is Leadbetter Point State Park a lovely day use area that borders the Willapa National Wildlife Refuge which is the most northerly point on the peninsula.
Across the Willapa Bay from the Long Beach Peninsula is more of the Willapa National Wildlife Refuge. Looks like a beautiful area but we were unable to explore due to the Government shutdown.
And last but not least is the quaint, charming, fishing village of Ilwaco. Full of shops and restaurants. Eat at Ole Bob’s for some great crab cakes. The Columbia Heritage Museum in Ilwaco is definitely worth a stop. Quite an interesting museum.
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