The other half is at Coos Bay. This is a list of shipwrecks of Oregon. The Mountain of a Thousand Holes: Shipwreck Traditions and Treasure Hunting on Oregons North Coast. Special Issue, Oregon Historical Quarterly119:2 (Summer 2018). Soc. Kohler // Rodanthe, North CarolinaThis beautiful four-masted schooner from Baltimore was pushed ashore by a hurricane in 1933. Milwaukee was overhauled in 1916 to prepare her for extended future service. Soc. The raging sea took the lives of several passengers, crew, and lifesavers as rescue boats capsized in the rough surf. The rugged coast of the PNW has inspired Indigenous storytellers for centuries. After it was set on fire to burn off the oil the ship split in two, and it took nine years for crews to fully remove both halves from the water. READ MORE: 8 shipwrecks that still haunt the Oregon coast. Thus, it is likely that the Santo Cristo de Burgos had between 1,000 and 1,500-ton capacity, which would have been a fairly common size range at the time. The 160 passengers and most of the freight were landed on the Oregon shore. If you have comments if you would like to use a picture please let me know Thank you. Research Lib., Journal Coll., 013305. Most shipwrecks were either buried deep under the ocean floor or discarded soon after wrecking, but there are several that remain as a ghostly shell along Oregons coastline. 6. La Follette, Cameron, Dennis Griffin, Douglas Deur, and Scott S. Williams. La Follette, Cameron, and Douglas Deur. Oregon's Manila Galleon. Special Issue. The majority of her wreckage that is still visible consists of bulkheads, recognizable compared to the top photo by degree of starboard list. On May 18, 1910, for example, the captain and crew of the steamerJ. Marhoffer were enjoying a calm afternoon on the passage from San Francisco to Portland when a gas torch exploded, setting fire to the engine room. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); Sometimes Google Map does not provide correct directions, especially in forest or mountain areas. The Santo Cristo was overhauled and repaired over the winter of 1692-1693. Ran aground in fog on Nehalem Spit, then capsized in salvage operation, killing 17. : E.P. In 2008, storms revealed about 100 feet of the Emily G. Reed on Rockaway Beach, which wrecked on Valentines Day in 1908 The same stormy season also unearthed the George L. Olson on Horsfall Beach in North Bend; the steam schooner struck Coos Bays North Jetty and broke apart in 1944. Most shipwrecks on the Oregon Coast have occurred near the river; nearly 2,000 ships have met their demise here since 1792. It was then decommissioned and sold for scrap in 1919. Patrick Smith was known in the Manzanita area for his persistent treasure hunting, but there were many other seekers as well. The Spanish galleon wreck was recorded in Native history and the story of its survivors passed orally through generations in the Pacific Northwest. New officers were assigned, as most of the 1692 officers had been imprisoned, banished, or had their maritime careers curtailed as punishment for the calamitous return to port. https://www.instagram.com/p/BQBb0BDjC8O/?tagged=pointreyesshipwreck. It was grounded on January 13, 1917, while aiding a grounded submarine. Oyster pirate vessel. The causes of some early shipwrecks remain unknown, including that of a Spanish Galleon which spilled its cargo along the Nehalem Spit, c. 1693-1705. The Steamboats of the Oregon Coast were a small fleet of inland steamboats that ran along the West Coast through the Rogue River, Coquille River, Coos Bay, Umpqua River, Siuslaw Bay, Yaquina Bay, Siletz River, and Tillamook Bay. Here are just 8 of those shipwrecks, from rusted hulls to wooden ribs, scattered along the Oregon coastline. For centuries, mysterious blocks of beeswax and Chinese porcelain have washed up on the Oregon coast, leading to legends of pirates, treasure, and a sunken Spanish galleon. Schurz, William Lytle. Soc. To protect themselves and their ships, people used the Inside Passage from British Columbia to Alaska instead to avoid the bad weather of the open ocean and visit isolated communities along the route. In this capacity she patrolled the coast with the smaller vessels but also served as a patrol unit off the Pacific coast of Mexico. Were Berty and Emily Mandagie, husband and wife travelers, photographers, and journalists! Soc. However, the National Park Service is warning visitors about the ship. All rights reserved (About Us). The Mauna Ala stranded on Clatsop Beach, December 1941. Research Lib., bc001670. Sightings of the hull have been sporadic one in 1813, another in 1926 but a group of researchers have recently tasked themselves with finding the shipwreck. The captain steered toward the rocky shore as fire engulfed the ship, and the steamer went onto the rocks just north of Depoe Bay. 8 shipwrecks that still haunt the Oregon coast 1. After exploring these haunting shipwrecks of the Oregon Coast, rest easy at night with a stay at the Whale Cove Inn. Free shipping for many products! You cant get much closer to the Oregon coasts turbulent maritime history than at Fort Stevens State Park. Found ran aground the next day. The wreck is partially visible each winter due to seasonal sand movement; more than usual emerged April 2010. Commissioned in December 1906, she was placed in reserve in April 1908 and decommissioned in 1910. Research Lib., bc59364, bc001486, photo file 2540. The engine was ripped out, saving the crew by lightening the ship. Soc. Fishing Paradise in Oregon; American Shad; The remains of the boiler are still visible today when the tide is extremely low. Visitors to Horsfall Beach in North Bend may be able to see the iron skeleton of the Sujameco, a 324-foot steamship that ran aground in 1929. The Columbia River Maritime Museum in Astoria has in its collections beeswax and a rigging pulley from the wreck found at the end of the nineteenth century. The Shark on a Mediterranean Cruise, 1935-8; watercolor by Francois Roux. Went ashore on north spit of Tillamook Bar. More information on the Bella can be found at The Pioneer Museum in Florence. Jetty at the mouth of the Columbia River, 1910. Media related to Shipwrecks in Oregon at Wikimedia Commons. This blog lives to inspire outdoor adventure, inspired by our home in the rainy Pacific Northwest. Previously ran afoul of Columbia Bar after rudder came loose. The group of vessels were successful freight ships owned by private transportation companies that traveled along the West Coast. Smith, Silas B. Soc. Courtesy Oregon Hist. Views Across the Pacific: The Galleon Trade and Its Traces in Oregon. Special Issue. Abandoned Quite a different hike down to the remains of the SS Dominator shipwreck yesterday. A pier was then built out to the ship, which had itself become a popular attraction, particularly right after her grounding. It's also the home of the Lightship Columbia, one of the most interesting maritime attractions in the state. A sign at the trailhead issues warnings about collecting sea life, but makes no prohibition on public access. Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site. Anybody know this barge's backstory? Northwest Power & Conservation Council. The morning mist along Clatsop Spit, for example, confused the captain of Peter Iredale, which found itself in the breakers in October 1906. A storm in November of 1918 broke the ship apart. After running ashore, it was refloated and renamed the. Warren Vaughn mentioned the two traditions as separate, the latter having occurred more recently than the galleon wreck; but Samuel J. Cottons Stories of Nehalem, published in 1915, contained an account that conflated the two tales. The ships cook, Frank Tiffany, was the sole victim of the wreck. High winds and twenty-six-foot swells drove the ship onto Horsefall Beach, leading to one of Oregon's worst oil spills. One of the most well-known and easily accessible Oregon Coast shipwrecks is the Peter Iredale, which is still visible in Fort Stevens State Park in Astoria, Oregon! Spains Men of the Sea: Daily Life on the Indies Fleets in the Sixteenth Century. La Follette, Cameron, and Douglas Deur. If your imagination is piqued by shipwrecks, be sure to visit the Columbia River Maritime Museum in Astoria. The schooner Bella lurks under the shallow waters of the Siuslaw River in Florence. For centuries, beachgoers near Manzanita, Oregon have picked up porcelain and chunks of beeswax that local legend claimed came from a shipwreck dubbed the Beeswax Wreck. Now, archaeologists have churned up an even greater treasure timber from the doomed ship itself. The most renowned is probably the British sailing ship Peter Iredale, which ran aground off Clatsop Beach in 1906 and instantly became a local attraction. The hurricane-force winds reach up to 73 miles per hour, forcing the ship into dangerous territory on its voyage. Instead, the vessel ended up shipwrecked off the coast of Oregon, becoming one of roughly 3,000 ships lost in the region to date. Some tellers and newspapers conflated the shipwreck with a less-identifiable account of a ship that anchored offshore, from which men rowed ashore and buried a box near Neahkahnie Mountainin some versions killing a crew member and leaving his body atop the buried boxbefore rowing away. Not technically a shipwreck, the historic Mary D. Hume is nevertheless one of the most visible abandoned ships on the Oregon coast. WebIts been dubbed the Niagara Scow. The 639-foot freighter ran aground on its way to Coos Bay Harbor in 1999. This focus led to a trickle, and then a procession, of treasure-seekers visiting the northern Oregon coast, reach - ing full crescendo by the mid to late twentieth century. Peter Iredale. Theres something ghostly about shipwrecks in nature. It got me wondering what other shipwrecks are visible from land. amzn_assoc_ad_mode = "manual"; Lanham, MD: Rowman and Littlefield, 2015. Research Lib., Frank Abell, photographer, Orhi141, bc001879, photo file 2533, Courtesy Oregon Hist. There were also sixteen passengers, including six priests of the Augustinian, Dominican, and Jesuit orders, as well as merchants and military men. Soc. Wrecked on Tillamook Bar. Ever wondered how Boiler Bay north of Depoe Bay got its name? Research Lib., Orhi103032, photo file 267. In 1693, the Santo Cristo de Burgos, loaded with cargo of beeswax, met its end near Nehalem, Oregon. WebWelcome to Visible Shipwrecks. Its since been reburied by sand, but odds are it will show up once again. The Oregon History Wayfinder is an interactive map that identifies significant places, people, and events in Oregon history. For all these reasons, Oregonians continue to be fascinated by the Manila galleon that came to grief on or near Nehalem Spit centuries ago. The causes of some early shipwrecks remain unknown, including that of a Spanish Galleon which spilled its cargo along the Nehalem Spit, c. 1693-1705. a number of beaches along the Oregon Coast between Coos Bay and No lives were lost thanks to quick efforts by the Coast Guard. The most renowned is probably the British sailing ship Peter Iredale, which ran aground off Clatsop Beach in 1906 and instantly became a local attraction. QUETTA, Pakistan (AP) A Pakistani national soccer team player who died in a migrant shipwreck off of Italys southern coast embarked on the voyage to find medical treatment for her disabled Indeed, the Oregon Coast is known for its angry waters, and the exhibit takes a closer look at a few of the nearly 3,000 wrecks off its shores. Foundered off Neahkahnie, washed ashore and covered by sand. WebAmerican oral traditions of shipwrecks in Tillamook County, increasingly focusing the stories on buried treasure. Tore hole in bottom and sank in ten feet of water. Most shipwrecks were scrapped soon after it was determined that they wouldnt make it back out to open water, others buried so deep beneath the water or sand that nothing short of archeological digs will resurface their remains. Towed by the, Filled with rocks and sank as extension of the south. For two days the Coast Guard and tugboats attempted to save the ship, but gave up when heavy seas and high winds only forced the ship higher onto the rocks. Grounded several times before being sold. The Steamboats of the Oregon Coast followed tons of historic routes in the 19th century until many ships in the fleet retired due to shipwreck, abandonment, and lack of use. The Sujameco was a 300+ foot steamship that ran aground in 1929 when it got lost in heavy fog and made its fateful crash. This map was created by a user. The freighter, New Carissa, grounded on the North Spit near North Bend, on February 4, 1999. Of all the ships in the Steamboats of the Oregon Coast, the wreck of Mary D. Hume (largely still intact!) In 1998, just before the Treasure Trove law was repealed, LaVerne Johnson sought unsuccessfully to negotiate a contract with the state for a division of the treasures he hoped to locate on the wreck. Struck bar previously in 1891 at same location. The hulk is still visible on the Missouri side of the river. Lost for good later at Punta Maria, California. Courtesy Oregon Hist. #palosverdes, A post shared by RYAN BANG$UND (@ryan_bangsund) on Jul 31, 2016 at 10:19am PDT. Ship drifted south and ran aground at Tillamook Head. The Peter IredaleThe Peter Iredale, a four-masted steel barque sailing vessel, wrecked on the Oregon shore on October 25, 1906. All rights Reserved. In 2008, a mysterious shipwreck emerged from the sands of Horsfall Beach, drawing tourists and archeologists alike. WebIt was abandoned on Clatsop Spit near Fort Stevens in Warrenton about four miles (6 km) south of the Columbia River channel. [wp_my_instagram username="themandagies" limit="6" layout="6" size="large" link=""], TV shows that are set in the Pacific Northwest, The 16 Best Pacific Northwest Podcasts To Listen To On Your Next Drive, How To Spend an Incredible 24 Hours in Vancouver, Canada. It has since been buried again, but odds are someday another winter storm will expose its rusted remains. Started breaking up 100 miles (160km) offshore. I first read the story of the J. Marhoffer in 2017, while doing research for a story on shipwrecks on the Oregon coast. Learn how to create your own. We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. Lost in a gale due to being overloaded. Tours are available from April 1 to October 31, Wednesdays through Mondays from 10 am to 3:30 pm. Back on the bluffs, now aware where to look, I could see the rusty boiler poking out from the rocks. Vazlav Vorovsky, Cape Disappointment, 1941. WebApproximately three thousand ships have met their fate in Oregon waters. Silas B. Smith, grandson on his mothers side of Clatsop chief Coboway and son of pioneer Solomon Smith, wrote the longest account of the Beeswax wreck, as it was called. At low tide in particular, Ripple Rock produces turbulent eddies that make it difficult for ships to navigate. WebThe Outer Banks of North Carolina is known as The Graveyard of the Atlantic with a number of visible shipwrecks that you can view during your visit to North Carolina's Outer Banks. Legendary Spanish galleon shipwreck discovered on Oregon coast In 1693, a ship carrying silk and beeswax from the Philippines to Mexico mysteriously vanished. The ribs of the boat are occasionally seen when revealed by winter storms. Proceedings of First Conference on Coastal Engineering, Long Beach, California, October, 1950. Soc. By the way: This is an excellent first stop on your Oregon Coast road trip, driving from Astoria all the wya down to Brookings! To keep vessels safe from the deathly Graveyard of the Pacific, the United States Lightship Columbia guided vessels across the Columbia River Bar! The Lupatias only survivor was the ships dog. For hundreds of years, steamers, schooners, square-riggers, freighters and tugs vessels of every stripe and from all over the globe have met their fate off the Oregon Coast. The ship ran ashore on Clatsop Spit, south of the Columbia River channel on October 25, 1906. Sailed into the rocks at the base of Neahkahnie Mountain, on a clear day. Its held its shape over the years, and compared to photos taken in 1972 and 1983, looks not much worse for the wear. The Great Republic in San Francisco Harbor. USS Milwaukee // Samoa Beach, California The USS Milwaukee was once a St. Louis-class protected cruiser in the United States Navy. Soc. The ships port screw snapped off and forced it onto a sandbar at the entrance to Tillamook Bay. When the ship attempted to cross the Coos Bay bar in February 1943, the captain tried to come about in the channel when the minesweeper was rolled over on her beam and smashed into the sandbar. "Long-sought Spanish Wreckage Found by Fisherman," Chinook Observer, June 22, 2022. One of the rocks used to build the jetties at the mouth of the Columbia River, 1908. Federal Tax ID 93-0391599. It seems likely that the shipwreck left many survivors who lived next to the Nehalem-Tillamook and may have been dependent on them until misunderstandings and tensions caused them to kill the castaways. You can see it from the Niagara Parkway next to the unused Toronto Power Generation Station at 7530 Niagara Pkwy, Niagara Falls, ON or while standing on Three Sisters Island on the USA side. amzn_assoc_tracking_id = "actilivi0d5-20"; The U.S. Navys minesweeper YMS-133 learned the lesson of treacherous swells where the river meets the sea. #gakohler #capehatterasnationalseashore #shipwreck #shipwreckbeach #salvo #darecounty #graveyardoftheatlantic *=stock photo not taken by me, obviously. Created 2020-02-07 based on Wikipedia references plus James Gibbs' Pacific Graveyard. Photo courtesy of the Oregon Coast Aquarium, in Make a trip out to see the area: Plan a 1-week Vancouver Island road trip! The ship was a total loss, and the remaining hull is a tourist attraction at Fort Stevens State Park. Baltimore, MD: John Hopkins University Press, 2005. Boiler Bay (then known as Briggs Landing) was named after the discarded boiler from the J. Marhoffer that washed ashore! Leading down into Boiler Bay, this area is officially a research reserve protected by the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, used to study intertidal life. Once EuroAmerican settlers built communities on the north coast, the cultural transmission of the tradition began to take on new facets. After running aground, oil cargo was burned out. It is likely that the ship encountered several gales in the North Pacific and then storms closer to the Oregon Coast. Starting with a global perspective, the exhibition shows how we find, explore and conserve shipwrecks. He left the engine room under the watch of the first assistant engineer, who that day was laboring over a blow torch that refused to light. Ran aground on the beach near the Tillamook Bay north jetty. Near the mouth of the Columbia, Peacock Spit is named for the wreck of the U.S.S. The S.S. Point Reyes // San Francisco, CaliforniaThis 380-foot cargo steamship was intentionally grounded on a sandbar on the Point Reyes National Seashore. Refloated. Southern Oregon White Salmon: Skip your next trip to Hood River and cross the bridge to White Salmon. A member of the elite Knights of Santiago military order, he went to Mexico in 1686 and was appointed mayor of the Mexican mining town San Luis de Potos, where he oversaw construction of the towns first public works project. A post shared by Sean Titus (@yetipaws) on Mar 1, 2016 at 8:48pm PST. Formerly known as the Hattie Hansen, Sechelt the Steamboat operated along a route between Lake Washington, the Puget Sound (or Salish Sea), and the Strait of Georgia until its sinking near Race Rocks Lighthouse. Use of and/or registration on any portion of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement, Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement, and Your Privacy Choices and Rights (each updated 1/26/2023). WebOther causes of shipwrecks include mechanical failure and rough coastal weather on unforgiving rocky shores. (541) 574-2679 / Toll Free: (888) OCVA-101, 2023 Oregon Coast Visitors Association Privacy. Griffin, Dennis. A project of the Oregon Historical Society, 2020 Portland State University and the Oregon Historical Society, The Oregon Historical Society is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. Read more about The Goonies and other movies set in the Pacific Northwest! Remains are occasionally seen after storms. The Spanish ship, the Santo Cristo de Burgos, is the earliest known shipwrecks along the coast of Oregon! - Oregon Historical Quarterly", "Shipwreck emerges from sand near Coos Bay", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_shipwrecks_of_Oregon&oldid=1093830659, Articles with dead external links from January 2018, Articles with permanently dead external links, Short description is different from Wikidata, Articles with unsourced statements from January 2013, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0. How to Plan a Winter Getaway to Depoe Bay, How to Spot Oregon Coast Wildlife in Depoe Bay. Unfortunately, the flood of 1993, ripped her from her mooring and grounded her a mile downstream. The Barge // Monterey Bay, CaliforniaNot much is known about this barge which blew ashore on a remote beach in Monterey Bay, California, during a storm in 1983. Parts washed up at Nehalem. Use of and/or registration on any portion of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement, Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement, and Your Privacy Choices and Rights (each updated 1/26/2023). As captain, del Bayo sailed the Santo Cristo de Burgos back to the Philippines from Acapulco in the spring of 1691. The USS Inaugural // St. Louis, Missouri The USS Inaugural was once an admiral-class World War II minesweeper active in Okinawa. The mouth of the Columbia River into the Pacific Ocean is known as the Columbia Bar, and it is one of the most dangerous areas for ships in the Pacific Northwest! Wrecked on the north spit at the entrance to Nestucca harbor. Tillamook Rock Lighthouse still stands proud on the jagged sea stack and can be seen from the cliffs of the Oregon Coast Trail in Ecola State Park! The location is the nearest modern community or primary landmark. Archival documents indicate that some, including all the officers, were likely Spanish; but most crew were probably Filipino, as was common on Manila galleons. Loaded with 2,100 tons of coal, the ship ran ashore and broke apart. Sometime ago, before the coming of the whites, he wrote in his influential essay, published in 1899, a vessel was driven ashore in the vicinity of where the beeswax is now found.The vessel became a wreck, but all or most of her crew survived.The crewremained there with the natives several months, when by concerted action the Indian masacred [sic] the entire number, on account, as they claimed, that the whites disregarded theirthe nativesmarital relations. Coastal weather is often foggy and misty, and ships sometimes discovered the rocky shore too late to avoid disaster. WebFind many great new & used options and get the best deals for Shipwreck COIN from SV Peter Iredale sunk Oregon Coast 1906 signed Numbered COA at the best online prices at eBay! From 1967 to 1999, the period when Oregons Treasure Trove law required a permit for treasure-seeking on state-owned lands, 93 percent of the applications focused on the Neahkahnie area. In June 2022, timbers located in a cove just north of Neahkahnie Mountain were removed to the Museum for further testing. Owned by a man named Gardiner, much of the vessel was salvaged and used in the building of the town of Gardiner, Oregon. By the mid-seventeenth century, the Philippine shipyards were turning out galleons that had a 1,000-ton cargo capacity. Research Lib., photo file 2540. The New Carissa may be Oregons most infamous modern-era shipwreck. Stay awhile and receive the best photo tips for your next journey to the PNW. Shark were discovered at Arch Cape in 2008. La Follette, Cameron, Dennis Griffin, Douglas Deur, and Scott S. Williams. Need a good reason? SS Dominator // Pal Verdes, CaliforniaThis freighter was en route to Los Angeles from Vancouver carrying wheat and beef in 1961 when it got lost in fog and ran aground in the South Bay area of California. Portland, Ore.: Binfords and Mort, , 1962. Some dug trenches or deep pits, and others used hydraulic hoses in their search for treasure. La Follette, Cameron, Dennis Griffin, and Douglas Deur. No one on board survived. A project of the Oregon Historical Society, 2020 Portland State University and the Oregon Historical Society, The Oregon Historical Society is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. Courtesy of the Bureau of Land Management. Visitors can get a feel for why navigating the Coast would be a challenge, says Carlin-Morgan. Samuel G. Reed, a Portland businessman who created a development on the flanks of Neahkahnie Mountain, encouraged residents and visitors to dig for treasure, and treasure-hunting continued from the mid-nineteenth century until the late twentieth on both private and public lands. Goods carried by the Manila galleons included embroidered and painted Chinese silks, lacquer furniture, ivory figurines, spices, Chinese fans, and Philippine cottons. John Ordway of the Lewis and Clark Expedition mentioned Clatsop peoples coming to trade bears wax with the expedition members. The popular West Coast Trail (now a backpacking route) was made as a result of this shipwreck, as a way for shipwrecked survivors to find a way along the coast and call for more help and rescue. Also, because the wreck occurred before EuroAmerican settlement and there was no information about it other than Native oral tradition, many stories sprang up to explain the ships fate. There were only two witnesses to the tragic sinking of Sechelt the Steamboat in 1911: Henry Charles and his wife Anna Charles, people of the First Nations living on Beacher Bay Reserve. Research Lib., bc001485, photo file 2540. Crew abandoned ship after she took on 7 feet (210cm) of water. It is likely that the ship encountered several gales in the North Pacific and then storms closer to the Oregon Coast. In 2016, the Maritime Archaeology Society documented the remains. There are several places on the Coast where you can see shipwrecks today some are always visible, while others come and go, ghosts under the shifting sands. The flow of fresh water from rivers into the Pacific Ocean can cause intense and unpredictable sea conditions. Sister ship, the Argo #2, a river steamer, went down at Dixon Entrance in Alaska. Research Lib., Journal, bc002413, photo file 2511, Courtesy Oregon Hist. A solid structure is hard to break #LadiInfinite #PeterIredale #ShipWreak #WreakedShip #ExploreOregon #AbandonedShip #SunsetKiller #ChasingSunsets #pocket_family #justgoshoot #AOV #silhouette #KillerGallery #Killeveryshot #fartoodope #feedissoclean #way2ill #weekly_feature #primeshots #nyc_explorers #icapture_raw #TheVisualShare #ig_oregon #dopeshotbro #AGameOfTones #ArtOfVisual, A post shared by Laci G (@lacigphotography) on Aug 24, 2017 at 9:40am PDT. Coast guard patrol boat. Frankowicz, Katie. 30+ Incredible Things To Do In Point Reyes National Seashore, The 21 Most Haunted Hikes in the Pacific Northwest. Ran aground during storm attempting to enter Coquille River. Bumped ground putting out of the Columbia River. One came ashore in the area now called Cannon Beach. If I hadnt ducked behind a tree I probably would have been smashed by all that hurling debris.. Two survived, but the 60 who were lost make it the worst maritime disaster in Oregon history. Still, the trail down to the bay is very steep, the walk out onto the rocks is extremely slippery, and the tide itself remains a lurking danger.