Scratchpad: The Monthly Stack, Beards Hollow, continued
Apr. 26—Much of the sand-filled Beards Hollow seen in the photographic archives of the Columbia Pacific Heritage Museum is now covered by a wetland habitat, growing coastal forest and even paved sections of the Discovery Trail.
That's thanks to a coastline throughout Cape Disappointment State Park that has retreated far from where it once met high cliffs, and notable sea stacks of the area — O'Donnell Island, Harp Rock and others — offer landmarks to compare the past and present.
What hasn't changed in those decades of receding shoreline is that cars are still driving on the sand. From a practical standpoint, it makes sense, the beach was — and is — a sensible way to get around coastal towns. There's also something just laughable about driving casually past a flock of gulls and a sea stack.
For many months, I was hesitant to try it. I'd been told about the towing situations, the soft sand and the poorly-timed tides, but eventually I did. One bright blue day in early September I drove out to the sea stacks at Beards Hollow. In the following weeks, I tested out the sand at other beaches on both sides of the river. So began the beach driving season.
In December, on a blue hour drive with a new camera, I set out to catch sight of a meteor shower, turning south from the Seaview Beach Approach. Skies were clear, the tide was going out, but there was an unfortunate run-in with (what I later learned was called) Holman Creek. So ended the beach driving season. The photo, on film, never developed correctly. But I'll still be visiting the sea stacks.
