Fort Stevens, Oregon

Yeah! Sunshine at last! And a perfect day to tour Fort Stevens, where the Columbia River meets the Pacific Ocean.
In general this is an area most well known for the historic explorations of Lewis and Clark and the development of the fur trade. A fact our history classes never emphasized is that it was also a strategic location for the defense of the United States, preventing access to the Columbia River by foreign invaders and thus protecting the northwestern portion of the United States. Most folks are surprised to learn that Fort Stevens saw active duty as far back as the Civil War, as well as World War I and World War II.

The visitors' center (museum) housed in the original war games building brings history alive with videos, historic displays of uniforms and other period memorabilia, and very knowledgeable volunteers who are available for tours and to answer questions.There is also clear signage for for those interested in guiding their own tour. The excellent Trail Guide has a map of the fort, detail maps of the surrounding area, and information about each building or site as it functioned throughout the years.

Standing on the ridge that is the remains of the Civil War era earthwork, looking out to the river, it's easy to imagine scene in 1863 when President Lincoln first ordered it's construction 1863 to protect the United States from British. and Confederate sea raiders. It would be wonderful to visit the fort on Labor Day when the Civil War reenactment is held, but unfortunately we missed the event this year. Reconstruction of the earthworks is a project being undertaken by the Friends of Old Fort Stevens in cooperation with several other groups.

Moving around the fort you can stand in the foundations remaining from the WWII barracks, examine large caliber weapons from WWI and WWII, walk through the rooms of batteries from both WWI and WWII, experience the view from the commander's stations, explore the steam plant, and tour the guardhouse. You can also see an example of the mines placed at the mouth of the river during WWI, and a large caliber gun that is being restored through volunteer efforts and will be fully functional when the project is complete.

The Pacific Northwest actually came under attack in WWII, which comes as a surprise to most people. A Japanese submarine fired on the fort, though we did not fire back, and there are varying explanations given as to why that was so. More amazing is the multitude of balloon bombs the Japanese sent out over the country, some traveling as far east as Iowa and south to Texas, though most of then landed in the northwest.The public was never told about them at the time, to avoid causing panic.

The visitors' center has detailed exhibits on these events and much more, including a scale model of the fort during it's most active period.

The fort is well cared for, and undoubtedly much of the credit going to the very active volunteer group. Restoration of weapons, painting of metal work, guided tours, all would  not happen if it weren't for the volunteers. Their Friends of Fort Stevens website has a great deal more information on the history of the fort and the various projects they support.

Reaching even further back in time, there's also a Native American longhouse, reconstructed on the spot near the earthworks where one was indicated on maps of the Lewis and Clark era.

After touring the fort we went back to camp for lunch, then decided to do a bit more exploring on the other side of the park.

The campground is so large that it offers several different environments, and plenty of walking and biking trails. We didn't have time to drop the canoe in the water, but Coffenbury Lake, in the southern part of the park, looks like it would be fun to explore. On the ocean side of the park the wreck of the Peter Iredale calls to mind the era of pirate ships.(more info on the wreck here).
For more photos of the fort and environs check out the album.

We could spend more time here, as there is plenty to do in the park, and to explore in the surrounding communities, but we have a game back in Eugene, so we'll drift back south for a few days.

By the way, here's a little quickie side trip of you are heading south of Portland. Take a few minutes to stop at the Baldock rest area. It's about 20 miles south of downtown Portland on Interstate 5. Its one of the larger rest stops, so there's usually plenty of parking. This southbound exit (milepost 281.6) is known for its short loop walk through the Grove of the States. The grove, located near the entrance to the parking area and to the right of the restrooms, was dedicated Aug. 29, 1967, when trees were planted to represent the 50 states and island territories. Not all of the trees have survived the years, and some states have changed the officially designated "state tree" since the planting, but it's still a refreshing and restful experience to wander through such a variety of trees.