Cape Disappointment Hike
From Oregon Hikers Field Guide
- Start point: Waikiki Beach Trailhead
- End point: Cape Disappointment Lighthouse
- Hike type: In and out
- Distance: 2.9 miles
- Elevation gain: 385 feet
- High point: 170 feet
- Difficulty: Easy
- Seasons: All year
- Family Friendly: Yes
- Backpackable: No
- Crowded: Yes
Contents |
Hike Description
Cape Disappointment is the southernmost point on Washington’s Pacific coastline and is near the place where Captain William Clark first sighted the ocean in November, 1805. The Cape Disappointment Lighthouse was constructed in 1856 to warn ships of the dangerous bar at the mouth of the Columbia River. This hike will take you over a headland which once hosted the gun batteries of Fort Canby (the area was originally named Fort Canby State Park), built during the Civil War, and now the site of the Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center (separate entry fee). The trail then dips to skirt an active Coast Guard station and the overlook above picturesque Dead Man’s Cove before rising to the lighthouse with its views over the mouth of the Columbia and south to Tillamook Head and Saddle Mountain. This is a good whale-watching spot in season. In addition to being a Washington state park, the area is part of the Lewis and Clark National Historical Park.
From the Waikiki Beach Trailhead, first take two short trails that were designed by artist Maya Lin as part of her Confluence Project for the Lewis and Clark Bicentennial. Both lead from near the information kiosk near the restroom. The first is a “boardwalk” that basically forms a to-scale record of the explorers’ journey. Quotes from their journals decorate the slabs, which lead to little Waikiki Beach, a favorite spot for novice surfers. The second trail leads along the base of a grassy bluff past an amphitheater to a circle of cedar snags and a stump. Homage is paid along the way to Mother Nature’s mentoring of the local Chinook Indians.
To begin the Cape Disappointment Trail, walk back next to the road almost as far as the fee booth. See the trailhead on your right and head up a grassy knoll. See an alder-ringed pond down to your left. Hike along a narrow ridge under red alder and Sitka spruce in an elderberry/sword fern understory. Pass between two large spruce trees, drop slightly, and then rise up a graveled trail to a junction. Head right here up a concrete staircase to a viewpoint that was part of the Fort Canby complex. Get a sweeping overview of Peacock Spit, Benson Beach, and the North Jetty. Return to the main trail, and pass through a salal thicket to reach another viewpoint. Head into the woods and hike around a concrete water tank before dropping to the Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center. The Center is a museum of the expedition, but also details the story of Fort Canby and the maritime history of the area. Various ruins and interpretive signs, as well as the solidly built Battery Harvey Allen, exhibit Fort Canby’s purpose. Walk around the front of the Interpretive Center to get a clifftop view and enjoy the reek of cormorant guano - the birds nest and rest on the rocks below.
Continue from here past a bunker and descend to a junction with the trail from the Center disabled parking area. Go right under large spruce trees and traverse down above the Coast Guard station. A spur leads right to a view of the narrow chasm of Dead Man’s Cove. A Coast Guard signs warn you not to descend to the beach (they're tired of rescuing idiots), but you may see scofflaws doing it anyway. Continue on the trail to the station fence and take a concrete roadway that heads up the slope. Get some good views of the cove and finally reach the Cape Disappointment Lighthouse. There is no public entry, but views extend south to the Coast Range of Oregon, with Saddle Mountain most prominent, Clatsop Spit, ocean freighters at the Columbia Bar, and Peacock Spit and the North Jetty below.
Maps
- Maps: Hike Finder
- Cape Disappointment State Park (Washington State Parks)
- Cape Disappointment State Park (Warrenton Trails)
- Adventure Maps: NW Coast Trail Map & Guide
Fees, Regulations, etc.
- Park hours 5 a.m. - 12 a.m.
- Dogs on leash.
- $10 day use or Discover Pass
Trip Reports
- Search Trip Reports for Cape Disappointment Hike
- Cape Disappointment 2/13/2022
- Cape Disappointment/Fort Columbia, Washington
- Cape Disappointment - Memorial Day 2013
- Cape Disappointment...Again...
Related Discussions / Q&A
- Search Trail Q&A for Cape Disappointment Hike
- Epic Waves at Waikiki Beach
- White Moth at Cape Disappointment (WA)
Guidebooks that cover this hike
- PDX Hiking 365 by Matt Reeder
- Best Hikes With Kids: Western Washington by Susan Elderkin
- Hiking Washington’s History by Judy Bentley
- Hiking Oregon’s History by William L. Sullivan
- 100 Hikes: Oregon Coast by William L. Sullivan
- Best Easy Day Hikes: Oregon’s North Coast by Lizann Dunegan
- Hiking the Oregon Coast by Lizann Dunegan
- Washington Hiking by Scott Leonard
- Pacific Northwest Hiking by Scott Leonard & Megan McMorris
- Washington State Parks: A Complete Recreation Guide by Marge & Ted Mueller
More Links
- Cape Disappointment State Park (Washington State Parks)
- Cape Disappointment State Park (WA) (National Park Service)
- Cape Disappointment State Park (FunBeach.com)
- Cape Disappointment State Park (Long Beach Area State Parks)
- Lewis & Clark Interpretive Center (FunBeach.com)
- Lewis & Clark Interpretive Center (Lewis and Clark Trail)
- Fort Canby, Washington (The Columbia River: A Photographic Journey)
- Fort Canby (FortWiki)
- Cape Disappointment, WA (Lighthouse Friends)
- Cape Disappointment Lighthouse (U.S. Lighthouses)
- Cape Disappointment Lighthouse (FunBeach.com)
- Cape Disappointment Light (Wikipedia)
- Cape Disappointment State Park has lost 260 acres (Washington State Department of Ecology)
Contributors
- bobcat (creator)