Enlarge

Like many before them, Captain John Meares and his crew fell victim to the Columbia’s sand bar on July 6, 1788 (if only George Flavel were there to save the day!). After an unsuccessful navigation, the Captain sought shelter from the ensuing weather near the River’s north headland. Distrought, he named the area Cape Disappointment. Captain Robert Gray was the first modern day explorer to successfully navigate the mouth and thus had the privledge of naming the river after his beloved ship, the “Columbia Rediviva.”