Beacon Rock State Park
Beacon Rock State Park is a state park of Washington, USA, in the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area, on State Route 14 about 35 miles (56 km) east of Vancouver, Washington.
The park takes its name from Beacon Rock, an 848-foot (258 m) rock next to the Columbia River. The park also includes 4,482 acres (1,814 ha) of forested uplands across the highway from Beacon Rock, with a 1.25-mile (2.01 km) nature trail, 9.5 miles (15.3 km) of hiking trails, and 13 miles (21 km) of fire road. Hardy Falls and Rodney Falls are scenic highlights along the trail to the summit of 2,445-foot (745 m) Hamilton Mountain, which has a view of Bonneville Dam and points east. A new trail has been constructed to Little Beacon Rock.
On October 31, 1805, the Lewis and Clark Expedition arrived here and first measured tides on the river, indicating their long journey was nearing an end.
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[edit] Beacon Rock
Beacon Rock, from which the park takes the name, is on the north bank of the Columbia River. It was named by Lewis and Clark in 1805; they originally referred to it as Beaten Rock, later as Beacon Rock. They noted that the rock marked the eastern extent of the tidal influence in the Columbia. The rock was later known as Castle Rock, until 1916 when its name was changed back to Beacon Rock.[1][2]
Beacon Rock is 848 feet (258 m) tall and is composed of Andesite. Henry Biddle purchased the rock in 1915 for $1 and during the next three years constructed a heavily switchbacked trail, handrails and bridges. The three-quarter mile trail to the top, completed in April 1918,[1] leads to views in all directions. It is a popular hiking destination.
The United States Army Corps of Engineers planned to destroy the rock, to supply material for the jetty at the mouth of the Columbia (see Columbia River Bar), and dug three caves on the rock's south side. During this time, Biddle's family tried to make it a state park. At first Washington refused the gift, but changed its position when Oregon offered to accept.
It has been variously claimed to be the second largest free standing monolith in the northern hemisphere, or in the world, just behind the Rock of Gibraltar… or Stone Mountain… or Mount Augustus, the latter two being very much larger than either of the first two. The assertion depends on how one defines the term "monolith". For example, Devils Tower National Monument in America is larger than Beacon Rock, but is considered an igneous intrusion rather than necessarily a "single rock".
[edit] Sources
- Mueller, Marge & Ted (2004-09-15). Washington State Parks: A Complete Recreation Guide (State Parks). Mountaineers Books, Seattle. ISBN 0-89886-893-9.
[edit] References
- ^ a b "Historic Photograph Collections: Henry J. Biddle photographs, c.1860s-1925". University of Oregon. October 2005. http://libweb.uoregon.edu/speccoll/photo/fbiddle.html. Retrieved 2006-10-09.
- ^ GNIS says its decision to rename was in 1915: "GNIS entry detail for Beacon Rock". 1979-09-10. http://geonames.usgs.gov/pls/gnispublic/f?p=gnispq:3:::NO::P3_FID:1516208. Retrieved 2006-10-09.
[edit] External links
Coordinates: 45°39′42″N 122°00′56″W / 45.66167°N 122.01556°W
