Long Beach Peninsula
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Long Beach Peninsula is an arm of land in western Washington state. It is bounded on the west by the Pacific Ocean, the south by the Columbia River, and the east by Willapa Bay. Leadbetter Point State Park and Willapa National Wildlife Refuge are at the northern tip of the peninsula, Cape Disappointment State Park, formerly known as Fort Canby State Park is at the southern end, and in between is Pacific Pines State Park.
Cape Disappointment, part of the Lewis and Clark National and State Historical Parks west of Ilwaco, was the westernmost terminus for the Lewis and Clark Expedition, and a monument designed by Maya Lin as part of the Confluence Project[1] was dedicated there in 2005.
The Long Beach Peninsula is remarkable for its continuous sand beaches on the Pacific Ocean side, 28 miles in extent, claimed to be the longest beach in the United States. Because of the fine beaches, it is a popular vacation destination for people from Seattle, Washington, 165 miles distant, and Portland, Oregon, 115 miles distant.
The peninsula is entirely within Pacific County.
[edit] Economy
The principle industry of the Long Beach Peninsula has become tourism, though fishing, crabbing, oyster farming, and cranberry farming are also important components of the local economy. Most of the towns on the Peninsula offer one or more festivals during the year to attract tourists. Perhaps the most notable of these is the Long Beach Kite Festival[2], which attracts large crowds for a kite-flying competition in mid-August each year.
[edit] Cities and towns
- Hines
- Oysterville
- Ocean Park
- Klipsan Beach
- Loomis
- Oceanside
- Long Beach
- Seaview
- Holman
- Ilwaco
- Surfside
- Nahcotta
[edit] External links
- [3] Long Beach Peninsual Tourist Info Website
- Maps and aerial photos
- WikiSatellite view at - WikiMapia
- Satellite image from Google Maps, Windows Live Local
- Street map from Google Maps, or Yahoo! Maps, or Windows Live Local
- Topographic map from TopoZone
- Aerial image or topographic map from TerraServer-USA
