Astoria, Oregon

 

Finished reading the book "Astoria: Astor and Jefferson's Lost Pacific Empire; A Tale of Ambition and Survival on the Early American Frontier."  By Peter, Stark.  Eco, 2015, 400 pages.  

From 1804-1814, John Jacob Astor sent an overland party to the Columbia River form St. Louis.  They developed a new route from the upper Snake (Mad) river overland through the Blue Mountains of Oregon.  It later became part of the Oregon Trail from 1840-1870.  He also sent three ships from New York down and around the tip of South American and up to Hawaii and then to a new settlement for trading furs at a port in Astoria at the mouth of the Columbia River.    

Fascinating account of this business venture to take furs from the Northwest Pacific Coast to sell for a high markup in profit in Canton, China.  Nearly half of the men that signed on for this "Astoria" adventure died in the dangerous quest.  

Astoria

Astoria   Northwest Oregon Coastal town and Port on the Columbia River.

Population 9,500   A small town with many tourist attractions.  There are many motels, restaurants, cafes, grocery, museums, theaters, historical sights, marina, docks, hospital, gas, stores, services, supplies. 

Clatsop County   Population 38,000   The Clatsop County Courthouse is in Astoria.  Astoria is the largest city in Clatsop County. 

Astoria Images  

"Astoria is a port city and the seat of Clatsop County, Oregon, United States. Founded in 1811, Astoria is the oldest city in the state of Oregon and was the first American settlement west of the Rocky Mountains.[7] The county is the northwest corner of Oregon, and Astoria is located on the south shore of the Columbia River, where the river flows into the Pacific Ocean. The city is named for John Jacob Astor, an investor and entrepreneur from New York City, whose American Fur Company founded Fort Astoria at the site and established a monopoly in the fur trade in the early nineteenth century. Astoria was incorporated by the Oregon Legislative Assembly on October 20, 1876.  he city is served by the deepwater Port of Astoria. Transportation includes the Astoria Regional Airport. U.S. Route 30 and U.S. Route 101 are the main highways, and the 4.1-mile (6.6 km) Astoria–Megler Bridge connects to neighboring Washington across the river."

Columbia River Maritime Museum

Museums in Astoria

Astoria Lodging

Fort Astoria (1811-1825) History

Astoria Food 

Astoria   History1    History2

Astoria Column Historical Tower

Charter Boat Services in Astoria 

Lower Columbia River: Astoria to Portland, Ilwaco to Vancouver

Long Beach Peninsula  

Lewis and Clark Historic Sites

Clatsop County, Oregon  Population 38,000 

Fort Clatsop  Camp of Lewis and Clark in the Winter of 1805.  Video: Winter Story

Fort Steven's State Park  A World War II military base defending the Columbia River. 

Northwest Coastal Oregon Travel Guide: Astoria to Cape Lookout.  By Mike Garofalo. 

Clatsop People

 

Cape Lookout State Park, Coastal Northwest Oregon, Trip Day 3

 Cape Lookout State Park, Coastal Northwest Oregon

Cabin Camping Trip, Day 3, December 11, 2024, Wednesday

Near the town of Tillamook, Oregon, Netarts Bay and Three Arch Rocks

We left our Netarts Cabin at Cape Lookout State Park today. We drove home, via Oregon 6, to Portland.

Nice weather. Clear skies. Around 50 degrees F.

The Dusk Before Darkness

Where moving shadows born of sunshine rays,
Lighter and darker marks in the corners all days,
Unreadable messages from Solar Scribes for me.
Some subtle shadows drawn on moonlit trees,
Blurred and fleeting pockets of mystery to me,
Lost in the blackness of the nighttime breeze.

Night-Time creeping in, crickets chirping up a din.
No moon, No stars, No city street lights;
Darkness setting slowly and comfortably in.
A few frogs croaking love songs in the dark,
Moths fluttering into a white hot lantern
on a crazy addicted deadline lark,
Bats flapping by for breakfast, eating fluttering bugs.
Surf side sounds rumble over the invisible dunes,
Crabs and razor clams will crawl about at low tide soon,
Turtles will waddle up the shore, dig, lay eggs,
Guided by the moon, reproduction, life and doom,
In the restless dark and foamy gloom.

My flashlight sliced a path through the woods,
My cane balanced my wobbly walk for good.
Hearing the hoot of an owl in the canopy,
I walked along as slowly as I could,
Listening to the mysterious snoring damp woods.

Hera and Hypnos tried to lure me to sleep.
But 30 knot winds kept me awake,
And saved me from Nyx's minions from Hades Lake.
Chaos gave birth to Darkness and Day,
Erebus and Hemera - another way to Say,
Gods named and ancient myths for today.
Nighttime gods and goddesses mourning,
Following the Black Way to the Thanatos Graves.

My yurt at Cape Disappointment shook in the Winter storm,
I sat on the covered yurt porch, bundled up and warm;
Dark rain, cold campground so dark, everyone inside today.
The campground nearly empty these bitter January days.
The uninviting dark wet night keeps them all away.
Silence reigned that dreary soaked day,
Even keeping all of the animals hiding away.

Coming Dawn, rosy reds, sunshine slides West overhead;
Leaving Dusk, darkening pinks, sun gone down, it is said:
Reminders of the Dead.

The incandescent lamp!
Only one lamp in my yurt, not very bright,
Yet it allows me to read and write all night,
Supported by an electric Coleman lantern light.
The whole world works by electric lights.
Day and night, day and night, Month after Month,
For Year after busy Year, lighting bright the night sky;
In factories and stores and homes worldwide.
Work, work, work ... earning a living - we try.
Is such serious night pollution really wise?
Did the Milky Way disappear in the bright city sky?
Are circadian rhythms distorted and altered by and by?
Will some species become extinct from the loss of Night?

Turn off the lights, cuddle in the covers,
Start to slumber, sink into sleep,
Enjoy the darkness of the dreamless
La Petite Mort, alone, in darkness steeped.

Pacific Coast Memories: U.S. Highway 101 and 1.
At the Edges of the West.
By Michael P. Garofalo
Docu-Poems, Haiku, Concrete Poetry, Photographs, Songs

Four Days in Grayland

 

Images from the Internet of the Oregon Coast

Bandon, Oregon

Bandon, Oregon

Bullard's Beach State Park

Sunset Bay State Park Yurt Camping Trip Day 3

Sunset Bay State Park Yurt Camping Trip Day 3

Again, a bitter cold night at Sunset Bay. The temperature dropped from a 36F high to a 21F low. Burr!

The vinyl covering on the sofa and bed were cold. The yurt walls of vinyl and canvas were cold. I used 3 sleeping bags, and 2 large blankets, and was always fully dressed inside the yurt. The space heater in the yurt was no match for 21F weather. Luckily, the wind never blew on this visit.

I found it uncomfortable to go walking for more than 30 minutes when the weather hovers between 25F-35F.  

Weather reports from Karen and from local fishermen at the Arrago Cafe in Charleston OR, told me snow was expected Thursday morning. Since I needed to drive 75 miles from the coast to Interstate 5 in Roseburg via the Coquille River valley, through many coastal mountains, with the road shaded on both sides by forests; thus, snow and ice would be a serious driving hazard. Therefore, I packed up this morning and drove back to my home in Vancouver. 

Weather reports predict snow and ice in Vancouver on Thursday; and an atmospheric river is hitting California this month.

Lately, I have been working on reading and writing sonnets and longer poems:

    A Gift of Dried Garlic Flowers

    25 Steps and Beyond: Collected Works

Photos from the Internet:

Sunset Bay State Park Yurt Camping Trip Day 2

Sunset Bay State Park Yurt Camping Trip Day 2

Today was a bitter cold day in Sunset Bay. The temperature went from a 24F low up to a 38F high.  Burr!

Last night in the yurt was an unpleasant experience. I have never yurt camped in the late autumn or winter on the Pacific Coast when the temperature dropped below 40F.  The yurt heater was inadequate, the walls cold, and the vinyl couch and bed need my covers. 

30F is too cold for comfortable walking for an oldster like me.

Explore Sunset Bay, Charleston, Coos Bay, Cape Arrago State Park (1932 donated by two women: Simpsons. Shore Acres, Lighthouse

Excellent fish and chips at the Arrago Cafe in 'downtown' Charleston. 

Lately, I have been working on reading and writing sonnets and longer poems:

    A Gift of Dried Garlic Flowers

    25 Steps and Beyond: Collected Works

Photos from the Internet:

Sunset Bay State Park Yurt Camping Trip Day 1

Sunset Bay State Park, Coastal Oregon, Near Charleston and Coos Bay
Yurt Camping Trip Day 1

Drive from Vancouver south on Interstate 5 through Portland, Salem, and into Eugene. It was foggy this morning in the Valley.

Then, east from Eugene to Florence on the coast, then Reedsport, Sand Dunes, Big Bridge, North Bend, Coos Bay, Charleston, and finally arriving at Sunset Bay State Park. Check in time at the yurt is 4 pm. 

Quite cold here at Sunset Bay. Burr!  Much colder than my other trips to the beach for yurt camping. Difficult to enjoy sitting outside.

By 5 pm, I was quite tired from the long drive and after setting up my yurt. And, 
the cold was not encouraging for me.

So I stayed inside the yurt, bundled up to keep warm, read, wrote, napped, smoked half a MaryJ, sipped chocolate, enjoyed a grapefruit, ate nuts. No 
cell phone service here.

Enjoyed Bastendorff Beach County Park just southwest of Charleston. They
offer yurt cabins, RV access, tent camping. The Beach was spectacular, just south of the north jetty entrance to Coos Bay and Charleston. 

Near Bastendorff is Sun Outdoors Commercial Park had nice cabins and looked interesting.

Drove around Coos Bay city area and North Bend.

Lately, I have been working on reading and writing sonnets and longer poems:

    A Gift of Dried Garlic Flowers

    25 Steps and Beyond: Collected Works

Cape Disappointment Yurt
January 2025

Photos from the Internet:

Bridges of the Northwest Coastal USA

 Bridges of the Northwest Coastal USA

Washington and Oregon