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Cottonwood Beach as seen from Steamboat Landing, Washougal, Washington.
Old pilings of Steamboat Landing are in the foreground and Mount Hood, Oregon, is in the background.
Image taken November 21, 2004.
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Cottonwood Beach ...
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Cottonwood Beach, Washougal, Washington.
Cottonwood Beach, looking upstream.
Image taken July 3, 2003.
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Cottonwood Beach as seen from Steamboat Landing, Washougal, Washington.
Image taken July 3, 2003.
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Lewis and Clark in 1805 ...
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Lewis and Clark first noticed Cottonwood Beach on November 3, 1805, on their journey down the Columbia River on their way to the Pacific. Captain Clark wrote:
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"...
Passed a Small Prarie on the Stard. Side above,
a large Creek opposit qk Sand River on the Stard. Side, extensive bottoms and low hilley Countrey on each Side (good wintering Place) ..."
[Clark, November 3, 1805, first draft]
Cottonwood Beach was voted on to be a place of winter camp, but lost out to the location of Fort Clatsop. In the spring of 1806 however, the men did camp for six days at Cottonwood Beach gathering provisions for their trip up the Columbia.
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Cottonwood Beach and Reed Island.
View from trail above Steamboat Landing, Washougal, Washington.
Reed Island is on the right, in fog.
Image taken November 21, 2004.
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Campsite of March 31 - April 5, 1806 ...
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Lewis and Clark spent 6 days in March and April 1806 camping at Cottonwood Beach, collecting provisions for their journey upstream.
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"... we proceed on about 2 miles above the enterance of this Seacalf river and imedeately opposit the upper mouth of the quick Sand river we formed a Camp in a Small Prarie on the North Side of the Columbia where we intend to delay one or two days to make Some Selestial observations, to examine quick sand river, and kill Some meat to last us through the Western Mountains which Commences a fiew miles above us and runs in a N.N.W. & S.S.E. derection.
..."
[Clark, March 31, 1806]
The "Seacalf river" is now called the
Washougal River, and across the Columbia the "quick Sand river" is now simply called the Sandy River. The "Western Mountains" are the Cascades of Oregon and Washington.
While Captain Lewis remained at Cottonwood Beach campsite, on April 2-3, 1806, Captain Clark led a party of men back down to Columbia to look for and explore the "Mult-no-mah" River (today's Willamette River), which the Indians had told them existed.
Lewis and Clark's previous campsite was downstream at "Jolie Prairie" near Columbia Shores. Their campsite of April 6th and 7th, 1806, was in the Shepperds Dell, Oregon area.
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Lewis and Clark Campsite Sign, Washougal, Washington.
Located at the Marina at Washougal.
Image taken June 25, 2003.
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Views of Cottonwood Beach ...
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Cottonwood Beach, Washougal, Washington.
Cottonwood Beach, looking upstream.
Image taken July 3, 2003.
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Cottonwood Beach, Washougal, Washington.
Cottonwood Beach, looking downstream.
Image taken July 3, 2003.
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Captain William Clark Park, Cottonwood Beach, Washington, looking upstream.
Reed Island is in the background.
Image taken August 27, 2005.
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Captain William Clark Park ...
Captain William Clark Park, at the location of Cottonwood Beach, was formally dedicated on Sunday, August 7, 2005, after a weekend of gala events. This 85-acre park has campsites, 18 recreational vehicle spots with full hookup, public restrooms, and showers. Trails are throughout the park with docks for fishing and flinger slips to tie kayaks and canoes.
[More]
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Captain William Clark Park, Cottonwood Beach, Washington.
Image taken August 27, 2005.
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Captain William Clark Park, Cottonwood Beach, Washington.
Image taken August 27, 2005.
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View downstream from Vista House.
View shows Tunnel Point, Reed Island, and Cottonwood Point behind Reed Island. Interstate 84 is in the foreground below the lighting fixture from the Historic Columbia River Highway.
Image taken October 21, 2006.
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Mount Hood and Cottonwood Beach ...
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Cottonwood Beach, Washington, and Mount Hood, Oregon.
View from Steamboat Landing, Washougal, Washington.
Image taken November 21, 2004.
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From the Journals of Lewis and Clark ...
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Clark, November 3, 1805 ...
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The Fog So thick [typical of the Pacific Northwest in the fall and spring] this morning that we could not See a man 50 Steps off, this fog detained us untill 10 oClock at which time we Set out [from their camp at Rooster Rock],
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I walked on the Sand beech Lard. Side, opposit the canoes as they passed allong. The under groth rushes, vines &c. in the bottoms too thick to pass through, at 3 miles I arrived at the enterance of a river [Sandy River] which appeared to Scatter over a Sand bar, the bottom of which I could See quite across and did not appear to be 4 Inches deep in any part; I attempted to wade this Stream and to my astonishment found the bottom a quick Sand, and impassable- I called to the Canoes to put to Shore, I got into the Canoe and landed below the mouth, & Capt Lewis and my Self walked up this river about 1½ miles to examine this river which we found to be a verry Considerable Stream Dischargeing its waters through 2 Chanels which forms an Island [Sandy River Delta, which has had various names throughout history] of about 3 miles in length on the river and 1½ miles wide, composed of Corse Sand which is thrown out of this quick Sand river Compressing the waters of the Columbia and throwing the whole Current of its waters against its Northern banks, within a Chanel of ½ a mile wide, Several Small Islands 1 mile up this river, This Stream has much the appearance of the River Platt: roleing its quick Sands into the bottoms with great velocity after which it is divided into 2 Chanels by a large Sand bar before mentioned, the narrowest part of this River is 120 yards-on the Opposit Side of the Columbia a <large Creek> falls in [Washougal River] above this Creek on the Same Side is a Small prarie [location of Washougal, Washington, Cottonwood Beach, now the home of Captain William Clark Park, and the Steigerwald Lake National Wildlife Refuge]. extensive low country on each Side thickly timbered
[low area upstream of Cottonwood Beach and Captain William Clark Park is the Steigerwald Lake National Wildlife Refuge].
The Quick Sand river [Sandy River] appears to pass through the low countrey at the foot of those high range of mountains in a Southerly direction,- The large Creeks which fall into the Columbia on the Stard. Side [Washougal River] rise in the Same range of mountains to the N. N. E. and pass through Some ridgey land- A Mountain which we Suppose to be Mt. Hood [Mount Hood, Oregon] is S. 85° E about 47 miles distant from the mouth of quick sand river [Sandy River] This mtn. is Covered with Snow and in the range of mountains which we have passed through and is of a Conical form but rugid- after takeing dinner at the mouth of this river [Sandy River] we proceeded on passed the head of a Island [Lady Island] near the lard Side [???] back of which on the Same Side and near the head a large Creek falls in [Washougal River, today the town of Camas, Washington, lies between Lady Island and the Washougal River], and nearly opposit & 3 miles below the upper mouth of quick Sand river is the lower mouth, [for?] This Island [Lady Island] is 3 1/2 miles long, has rocks at the upper point, Some timber on the borders of this Island in the middle open and ponney. Some rugid rocks in the middle of the Stream opposit this Island. <proceeded in> to Center of a large Island in the middle of the river which we call Dimond Isld. [Government Island] from its appearance, here we met 15 Indn men in 2 canoes from below, they informed us they Saw 3 vestles below &c. &c. we landed on the North Side of this Dimond Island and Encamped [on the north side of Government Island, perhaps opposite Fishers Landing], Capt. L walked out with his gun on the Island, Sent out hunters & fowlers- below quick Sand River [Sandy River] the Countrey is low rich and thickly timbered on each Side of the river [on the Oregon side this area is the eastern end of the Columbia Slough, located on the floodplain of the Willamette River with the Columbia River], the Islands open & Some ponds river wide and emence numbers of fowls flying in every direction Such as Swan, geese, Brants, Cranes, Stalks, white guls, comerants & plevers &c. also great numbers of Sea Otter in the river [Harbor Seals] -
a Canoe arrived from the village below the last rapid ...
Capt Lewis borrowed a Small Canoe of those Indians & 4 men took her across to a Small lake in the Isld. [Government Island] ...
... :
note the mountain we Saw from near the forks proves to be Mount Hood
[Mount Hood, Oregon]
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Clark, March 31, 1806 ...
we Set out this morning [from their camp at "Jolie Prairie", today the location of Fort Vancouver and Pearson Airpark ... also in this area are Wintler Park and Ryan Point] and proceeded untill 8 oClock when we landed on the N. Side opposit one large House of the Shah-ha-la Nation near this house at the time we passed on the 4th of November last was Situated 25 houses, 24 of them were built of Straw & Covered with bark as before mentioned. those [of] that description are all distroyed, the one built of wood only remains and is inhabited [vicinity of today's Portland International Airport].
...
at 10 A. M we proceeded on accompanied by one Canoe and three men, one of them appeared to be a man of Some note,
...
passed up on the N. Side of White brant Island [Lady Island] near the upper point of Which a Small river falls in about 80 yards wide and at this time discharges a great quantity of water [Washougal River]. the nativs inform us that this river is very Short and heads in the range of mountains to the N E of its enterance into the Columbia the nativs haveing no name which we could learn for this little river we Call it Seal river [Washougal River] from the great number of those Animals which frequents its mouth. this river forks into two nearly equal branches about 1 mile up and each branch is crouded with rapids & falls. we proceeded on about 2 miles above the enterance of this Seacalf river [Washougal River] and imedeately opposit the upper mouth of the quick Sand river [Sandy River] we formed a Camp in a Small Prarie on the North Side of the Columbia [Cottonwood Beach] where we intend to delay one or two days to make Some Selestial observations, to examine quick sand river [Sandy River], and kill Some meat to last us through the Western Mountains which Commences a fiew miles above us [Cascade Mountain Range] and runs in a N. N. W. & S. S. E. derection. The three Indians encamped near us and visited our fire we entered into a kind of a Conversation by signs, of the Country and Situation of the rivers. they informed us that Seal river [Washougal River] headed in the mountains at no great distance. quick Sand river [Sandy River] was Short only headed in Mt. Hood [Mount Hood, Oregon] which is in view and to which he pointed. this is a circumstance we did not expect as we had heretofore deemed a comsiderable river. Mount Hood bears East from this place and is distant from this place about 40 miles. this information if true will render it necessary to examine the river below on the South Side behind the image canoe [Hayden Island] and Wappato islands [Sauvie Island] for some river which must water the Country [Willamette River] weste of the western mountains to the Waters of California. The Columbia is at present on a Stand and we with dificuelty made 25 miles to day—.
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Lewis, April 2, 1806 ...
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Fir is the common growth of the uplands, as is the cottonwood, ash; large leafed ash and sweet willow that of the bottom lands. the huckleburry, shallon, and the several evergreen shrubs of that speceis which bear burries have seased to appear except that speceis which has the leaf with a prickly margin.
among the plants of this prarie in which we are encamped I observe the passhequo, Shannetahque, [8] and compound firn the roots of which the natives eat; also the water cress, strawburry, flowering pea not yet in blume, the sinquefoil, narrow dock, sand rush which are luxuriant and abundant in the river bottoms; a speceis of the bearsclaw of which I preserved a specemine it is in blume.
the large leafed thorn has also disappeared. the red flowering currant is found here in considerable quantities of the uplands.
the hunters inform me that there are extensive praries on the highlands a few miles back from the river on this side. the land is very fertile.—
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