North Head Light is one of two lighthouses at Cape Disappointment State Park, located at the south end of the Long Beach Peninsula at the mouth of the Columbia River. The other lighthouse is Cape Disappointment Light, the oldest operating lighthouse on the West Coast.
The mouth of the Columbia River has the reputation of being the roughest ocean bar crossing in the world. Steep waves over 30 feet high are common. Thus, aids to navigation are have always been particularly important here.
North Head Light is open for public tours for $1.00 per person. The keepers houses are available as vacation rentals.
Cape Disappointment State Park offers fishing, boating, clamming and crabbing. The park contains 7 miles of hiking trails through old growth forests, salt marshes, and freshwater marshes.
The park also contains the Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center, a graphic portrayal of the Lewis and Clark Expedition. The Center also contains displays of local history and an excellent exhibit of the history of photography with a regional slant.
Ash Creek Images
Photographs of the West by Doug Gorsline
North Head Lighthouse, Cape Disappointment State Park, Ilwaco, Washington.
