Capt. William Clark’s footsteps relatively easy to retrace at Ilwaco park site First of all, I would like to commend Nancy Butterfield for excellence in reporting local news responsibly and accurately. Nancy is one of the best at what she does. In the case of the article about the Ilwaco Heritage Museum’s expansion plans, what Nancy reported is substantially correct. There was, however, a slight misinterpretation about the museum site being one of the few places in the country we can say the members of the Lewis and Clark expedition were. There are in fact a great many places in the country that can make that statement, including Long Beach, Station Camp, and Fort Clatsop. The real issue is that most of the places the Corp of Discovery visited are difficult to pinpoint with any accuracy. Take for example Station Camp. Despite the high profile reenactment by the Washington State Historical Society a couple years back, there are significant problems in recreating the triangulations of Clark’s survey of 24 November 1805; namely, the points of reference have been altered. Clark’s Point William, today’s Tongue Point, was quarried for rock and gravel from the 1880s though the 1930s, first as a county prison farm, then by Brookfield Construction Company. On the eve of World War II, the Navy blasted a chunk off the end of the point to fill in a deep hole that caused a whirlpool to form there. Similarly, Clark’s Point Meriwether, today’s Smith Point, was graded for fill when the Port of Astoria was constructed in the early 1920s. Historic Point Adams is barely even recognizable, due to accretion cause by construction of the south jetty. So, exactly what is a surveyor supposed to be sighting? And from where? There is substantially less beach at Station Camp than there was 200 years ago. The last remnants of historic Chinook Point and the site of the Chinook village washed away in the hurricane of 1934. The same sorts of observations can be made about most of the other places we know Lewis and Clark visited. We know Lewis and Clark were in Long Beach on Nov. 19, 1805, but exactly where is largely a matter of speculation. The location of Fort Clatsop was selected by consulting Silas Smith, whose mother, Celiast, was there as a child. Repeated attempts to find hard evidence linking the site to the Corps of Discovery, however, have proven fruitless. Recent efforts have focused on locating the latrine, by looking for traces of mercury. In any case, we know that the replica is close to the right spot, even if there isn’t hard proof of it. What is unusual about the site behind the Ilwaco Heritage Museum is that it is a place where one can pinpoint within about 50 feet that Clark was on Nov. 18 and 19, 1805. The old shoreline of Baker Bay at the time was along the south side of Ilwaco’s Main Street. And the location of the Holman house, at the center of the small clearing around which the little town of Unity developed, was where our collections storage building is now. It is evident from examining Clark’s map that he walked right through the same spot we have been planning to build a small memorial park: it’s right where the dotted lines on Clark’s map come together. Thanks again, Nancy. Keep up the good work. Hobe KytrDirector,Ilwaco Heritage MuseumPeninsula landowner/RVer resents county’s land use rule revisions I live in Brush Prairie, Wash., a suburb of Portland, and I have owned a one-acre lot in Ocean Park for four years. My family enjoys pulling our RV down there every summer and frequently makes the two and a half-hour trip to enjoy the Peninsula. Our lot is in a part of Ocean Park that is mixed houses/RV lots. I am guessing that the input from the workshops has been primarily from local homeowners, due to the fact that RV lot owners (for the most part) live in Seattle, Portland, etc. I would like to ask the county to justify changing the rules on RV usage. Will there be a “grandfather clause,” pertaining to any changes, meaning if you own a RV lot prior to the changes, will these changes be required of that property owner? I find it ridiculous to possibly impose rules on RV lots pertaining to “garbage.” Will a rule regarding garbage on property with houses be enacted at the same time, with the same penalties? Have these people complaining about garbage on RV lots taken a walk around town and seen their fellow homeowners’ garbage? I fail to see the difference between lots with homes and lots with RVs. They are just pieces of land. Some have permanent buildings, while others are for camping. I am not a lawyer, but I can’t believe changing rules county-wide on property that some people have owned for decades can be legal. I am one RV landowner that will look into the legal issues, if the county deems it necessary to listen to a one-sided homeowner argument. Mike Niehaus Brush Prairie County meeting set on septic tanks There will be a meeting of the Pacific county commissioners at 11 a.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 12. This meeting will be in regard to an amendment of the on-site sewage treatment and disposal regulations – septic tanks. This amendment will prove to be very costly to the citizens of our area, in particular those who have metal septic tanks. Steel tanks have been judged to be sub-optimal and must be replaced at the time of transfer of deed or sale of property. It must be done at the owner’s expense. This amendment is based on an assumption of imminent failure. Regardless of the fact a metal septic tank may be working perfectly well and has never been a problem, you will be forced to have it replaced. There are those who must sell their property because of the need to downsize or due to economic reasons, ill health or age. If you combine this cost with the Washington excise tax, closing costs and other expenses it seems an exorbitant burden to place on their shoulders. If you wish to voice your opinion the meeting will be held at the Pacific County Commissioners/ Board of Health Board Room located in the Pacific County Courthouse Annex, 1216 West Robert Bush Drive, South Bend. Pat Gardner Ocean Park Letters of ThanksA heartfelt thanks We would like to extend a heartfelt thank you to Officer Rick Houston, Long Beach ambulance, Ocean Beach Hospital emergency staff and Dr. Bell of Ocean Beach for the care and professionalism in a medical emergency. Our daughter and sister Denise Carlson is recovering well at OSHU.The Hayes FamilyJohn, Debra, John Jr.Haunted Bunker ILWACO – The Haunted Bunker again this year was a huge success at Station Cape Disappointment. Coast Guard personnel assisted by the Coast Guard Auxiliary, spent hundreds of hours putting together the Haunted Bunker to give kids as well as young adults and their parents a safe place to go and have fun this Halloween. Over 1,000 people came to see and enjoy the festivities. This marks the third year and we hope to continue in the future and improve each year. Thank you to all the fine and dedicated men and women of the Coast Guard and Auxiliary for their hard work in making this possible. The canned goods and money donated by the public will go to the local food bank. Southwest Pacific County Rotary, who also raised money at this event through food sales, will donate their money to various charities. A special thanks to the Peninsula local businesses who helped sponsor this event. We care!Larry KellisPublic Affairs OfficerUSCG AuxiliaryThanks to LB staff and Volunteers I want to thank the Chinook Observer for reporting about our Washington Reads test scores. I want the public to know that a huge effort by a dedicated staff with many wonderful dedicated community volunteers put us in the top range in all grades. Carol Lynn OckfenPrincipal, Long Beach School Jean and Desi would like to thank all the vendors and the many friendly people who worked and visited at the Elk’s holiday bazaar. Thank you so much. Have a fun season. Jean and DesiLong BeachKindness is appreciated The family of Sharon Friddle wish to thank our family, friends and neighbors for their expressions of sympathy with cards, phone calls, flowers, visits, food and offers of help. Your thoughfulness is very much appreciated. Sam FriddleTeresa ShradarKeith ShradarJean and Sean FriddleObjection to use of term ‘punks’ To read about the owner of Funland calling the local children “punks” was the most appalling name calling I have heard yet from a business that was started I thought for the children. But I see it was started for the tourists and not our local children. That is greed and the most heartless behavior from a business owner and adult. The owner of Funland, in my opinion, lowered himself further than any teenage behavior. I feel he owes every child an apology for using such a foul word. Our children are not punks – they are bored. If the Long Beach police would do their jobs there wouldn’t be this problem of kids hanging around the businesses yelling and calling each other names. My past experience is that this behavior is disorderly conduct and if the police were doing their jobs and issuing citations for this, the children would know better. The business owners need to come down on the local police department and not on the children – kids will be kids. “86” – wow, whose brilliant idea was that? So the business owners start to 86 the local children out of their businesses, which as a owner they have that right but they don’t have the right to say where a child can stand or walk. This is a public sidewalk; children or adults have the right to stand or walk on public sidewalks. Arrest a local, but is the tourist standing next to the local going to get arrested too? No, because they are the money. This has been an on-going problem for the twenty-five years I have lived here. Just when is the boss of Long Beach, Nabiel Shawa, going to get something started for our local children. In my opinion until Nabiel is out and someone with a heart for children comes in, it won’t happen. Why don’t the police just lock up all teenagers until bedtime, because that is to me what all business owners and police want – is the kids to not be seen or heard. I do have to add just one more statement. I had a telephone conversation with the owner of Funland to express my opinion about him calling our local teenagers punks. He denied that statement and said our local newspaper does what they want with the paper. He can’t even admit he said it; he blames the paper. To me, the punk lies there. Kimberly CrockfordSeaview EDITOR’S NOTE: The interview with Mr. Epping of Funland was recorded on tape and all quotes ascribed to him are exact and in context. Butt out, ACLU: Keep sidewalks safe I am writing in response to the article written in the Oct. 23rd edition on whether or not the kids’ civil liberties were violated. Kids standing out in front of buildings smoking, cursing and blocking sidewalks should not be tolerated by police. I pose this question to Doug Honig, Washington ACLU Public Education Director, what about the people who walk by and have to listen to the language, or inhale the smoke; are their civil liberties not being violated? I do, however, agree that they should not be discriminated against based on age. The fact of the matter is that any group of people standing out in front of buildings should not be tolerated. Police have an obligation to not only stop crime that is being committed, but to prevent crime before it happens. I commend the police for there actions and encourage them not to stop because of the ACLU.Beau Hussey Long Beach

We can solve beach litter problem I would like to appeal to everyone who enjoys this wonderful beach of ours to help control the litter. If you leave garbage on the beach after a picnic, party or fireworks, if you toss litter out of your vehicle as you drive along the surf, if you only drop your candy bar wrapper – please stop! The garbage doesn’t magically disappear; it doesn’t float out to sea never to be seen again and it all adds up, spoiling and contaminating our beach. It takes so little effort to take care of our own litter. It makes us responsible citizens and keeps our beach a healthy, beautiful environment – for all of us. We all win! If you want to help even more, do as some of us do and tuck a bag into your pocket when you go for a beach walk. Collect the debris you encounter and bring it home to discard, leaving the beach even prettier than you found it. You might like to participate in a quarterly beach cleanup for a couple of hours, side by side with others who care, and know that you are helping to take care of the environment we all enjoy. Try it; it feels good!Linda BiermaOcean Park Resident and enthusiastic participant in the Grass Roots Garbage GangProvide more recreation opportunities Recently I read a cover article discussing the “problem” with the youth standing in front of Funland and the rides and it quoted Mr. Eppings, owner of Funland calling them “punks” and this whole issue has sparked alot of concern and debate. I think Mr. Eppings’ remark is a perfect example of the prevalent mentality that makes this situation a “problem.” It is because the business owners and folks at City Hall care more about the tourists than they do its own youth. Notice that the area of this problem is one of the only places in Long Beach where kids have to hang out at all, and these “punks” are its year-round supporters. Why can’t all the effort being wasted in this whole situation be directed toward giving the kids more options in this little town, instead of giving them all tickets for skating or violating their rights by making them leave their few places to hang out? Yes, city of Long Beach, youths need places to skate and places to chill. Thank you. Dan Duffy Peninsula Encouragement offered in time of need This is a short note to Tammi, my sister in Christ, know that myself and many others are standing behind her in love and prayer. It’s times like these, you need to know that you are not alone. So hang in there sister and remember that we are with you all the way. Your brother in Christ,Stan HewardSeaview