Fort Flagler Bears Winter Colors With Grace

Despite trees crashing next to their basecamp, the team heads out to explore the historic batteries of Fort Flagler.

Steve Weileman

Historic Fort Flagler

It’s been a while since we visited our historic Fort Flagler State Park. Ironically, the reason is due to the very thing that makes this park one of our favorites; all the activities it has to offer which in turn makes it a very popular destination. With Covid-19 and the surge of new campers heading to the outdoors along with Washington States online reservation system, there just wasn’t a spot to be had over the summer and fall.

With cold temperatures and soggy skies that problem has alleviated but seems not by much. Still, I can’t complain. Hopefully, this increase in campers translates into more people invested in protecting the outdoors. I’d love to see a turn around the dismal track record we’ve experienced in the last four years under the outgoing administration and their seemingly single-minded focus on rolling back hard-fought protections.

Fort Flager is one of three forts that were planned and build to create a ‘triangle of fire’ which protected the entrance to Admiralty Inlet. For years they had been in the planning stage but it wasn’t until the sinking of the USS Maine in February of 1898 that building started in earnest. The other two forts are Fort Worden and Fort Casey but it was Fort Flagler that was completed and activated first.

Activated on July 27th, 1899 the fort boasted state-of-the-art armament with 6-inch, 10-inch, and 12-inch ‘disappearing guns’; so-called because they disappeared behind the walls of their emplacements during reloading which protect both guns and crew. They became obsolete with the arrival of air warfare and long-range naval guns. An interesting note is that some of the larger guns were shipped to the European front during WW1.

The fort continued to be staffed and transitioned to a new role of training grounds. During the Korean War amphibian tactics were taught and practiced on the shorelines of the fort. On June 30th, 1957 the fort was deactivated and 4 years later Washington State started acquiring the fort for use as a state park.

The fort really has quite a bit to offer; historic buildings and a museum, miles of shoreline and trails to hike, as well as a boat launch. In the summer, it’s always busy but we’ve found until recently that the shoulder-seasons are a great time to visit and beat the crowds.

Wild and scenic rivers

We’re proud to announce we’ve been selected to participate in collecting data for this new science project. Watch for more information to follow soon.

Framed by the five-year window between the 50th anniversary of the WSR Act and the federal Clean Water Act, the U.S. Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management, and National Park Service have partnered with Adventure Scientists to survey water quality on protected rivers across the country, providing needed data at an unprecedented scale.

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Essex Explorers @xexplore ·

16h 1390850204199489539

Storm clouds closing in over the Columbia River Gorge. Just this afternoon we’ve had sunshine, dust storms, lightening and down pour...just missing snow frozen precipitation but the night is young. 🙂 #columbiariver #gorge

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Essex Explorers @xexplore ·

20h 1390797858190893062

Stopped at the Ginko Petrified Interpretive Center on the west side of the Columbia River Gorge.

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Essex Explorers @xexplore ·

7 May 1390733687411646473

Morning on the Potholes Reservoir. From camp this morning I could hear about a dozen different bird calls as they greeted rising sun. #centralwashington #highdesert

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Essex Explorers @xexplore ·

7 May 1390699457029738503

As the world warms, the seasons are shifting - Climate change is bringing earlier, dangerous 'false springs', longer summers and shorter winters https://bit.ly/3nViqCy

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Essex Explorers @xexplore ·

7 May 1390477403005366278

It’s good to be back in Washington, but this weekend, we’re not in our usual coastal haunts. We crossed over the Cascade to the desert of Potholes. We’re hoping to explore Ancient Lakes.