Middle Village Station Camp, Washington, United States

3half-Brit 5:00 PM Jul 27, 2013

3½ dots! Interesting short stop to learn local history
I am so glad that this area was made into a park. We enjoyed our visit here and found it well worth taking a half hour or so to learn some local history! The Chinook Indians had a village here for many years; they were savvy traders and during excavations, archeologists found items from Europe and China. Lewis and Clark stopped here for several days during their journey. A Catholic Mission was established in the mid 19th Century, then later in that century, P.J. McGowan purchased the land and built a town. In reading all the informational signs in the park, we learned that the town of "McGowan" was quite a thriving place. They had a big cannery, post office, houses, a RR depot and a church. Some of the houses still stand but are not within the park's boundaries, so you can't see them tucked behind the trees. There are several visible foundations of old buildings. The church is a well known landmark here and has been sturdily facing the Pacific storms for over 100 years. We followed the wide smooth footpath all the way around through the park. It's very easy walking, is a total of about a half mile long and wheelchair accessible. There are several observation decks where you can look out over the area, and lots of informational signs. An interesting feature is the three large concrete canoes which kids are welcome to climb on and enjoy. The cannery docks are long gone - victims of the highway building. And yes, the highway goes right by here, so there is some traffic noise. But it didn't really detract from our visit. The views are wonderful on a sunny day :-) There is a paved parking lot that is just off the highway with some RV and bus parking. Worth a stop!

3BearTraveler69 5:00 PM Oct 29, 2015

Part of the Overall Lewis and Clark Experience
The site is notable because the Lewis and Clark expedition spent some time here. It was at this location that they conducted the famous vote that took them over to Ft. Clatsop for the winter. While the event that occurred at this location is historic, there is nothing really still here from that occurrence other than some signage. There is more signage describing the life of the Chinook peoples and there is a recreated longboat canoe and plank house. There is also a church dating to the early 1900s. It is pleasant little walk around the area and it is informative and free.