Tuesday was Lewis and Clark Day--for us if not for you! We visited Fort Clatsop National Historical Park. Lewis and Clark stopped here to 'weather' the winter of 1805-1806.
The original fort is long gone and the first replica built in 1955 from the journals of Lewis and Clark burned in 2002. This replica stands as close to the original as could be deciphered from the journals. The open door was the room of the Charbonneau family (Sacajawea, etc.)
Lewis and Clark shared this room which was next to the Charbonneau's. There were 8 rooms in the fort. The rooms opposite Lewis and Clark's each held four men.
Outside the fort area we watched a musket presentation. The ranger dressed in period clothes and explained the workings of a musket. Then, he loaded and fired the musket using a spitball since there are hiking trails near the demonstration area. 
After the demonstration we joined a ranger hike to Netul Landing. It was a nice hike through the trees whose cover was thick enough to keep the rain from getting us.
The ranger pointed out many interesting plants and told their uses. This is a giant horsetail. The texture of the leaves made it good for scouring pans and such. You can see the 'ribs' along each leaf that give it its texture.
We have seen blackberry bushes everywhere we've been. The ones in this area will ripen at the end of August or beginning of September.
From Fort Clatsop we drove south to Seaside, Oregon. It is a beach town with all the appropriate beach shops, arcades, and a promenade (boardwalk along the beach). We found a place to eat lunch and stay out of the rain. We are still sampling the fish & chips of each area.Lewis and Clark had a production line at Seaside. They needed salt for their return trip. A cairn was set up and was manned 24/7. The men boiled sea water to get salt. They boiled enough water to get 4 bushels of salt.
Wednesday we planned to visit Ecola State Park. We need to see Terrible Tilly and we want to see where Lewis and Clark saw the huge beached fish.
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