Fort Clatsop holiday happenings scheduled

Lewis and Clark National Historical Park will offer special programs about the Corps of Discovery's winter at Fort Clatsop on the days following Christmas.

Starting December 26, Fort Clatsop will feature scheduled living history programs by park rangers each day through January 1 from 9:30 a.m., until 4:40 p.m. Costumed rangers will present flintlock muzzle-loading programs at 1:30 and 3:30. Hands-on programs about various aspects of the explorers’ winter at Fort Clatsop will be available at the fort 10:30-12:30 and 2:00-3:00. Ranger-guided walks on the Netul River Trail will be offered at 1:45 most of these days.

There are also movies in the visitor center. “A Clatsop Winter Story,” a 22-minute movie about the 1805-06 winter from a Clatsop Indian perspective, and “Lewis and Clark: Confluence of Time and Courage,” a 34-minute movie about the entire voyage, will be offered each hour.

The park is closed on Christmas Day, December 25.

A unit of the National Park Service, Lewis and Clark National Historical Park, Fort Clatsop is located southwest of Astoria, three miles southeast of U.S. Highway 101. The park, including the Fort to Sea Trail, the visitor center, fort, Netul River Trail, and the parking lots, are open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Lewis and Clark NHP also includes the Salt Works site near the Promenade in Seaside and the Middle Village/Station Camp site just east of Fort Columbia in Washington.

Admission to the Fort Clatsop unit of the park is $5 per adult and includes Netul Landing and the Fort to Sea Trail. Dogs that are leashed are welcome on the walks and at the outdoor programs. There is no admission fee for the Salt Works or Middle Village/Station Camp. Passes to National Park Service sites are accepted for free admission. For further information, call the park at 503-861-4414 or visit the park’s web site at http://www.nps.gov/lewi or find the park on Facebook at LewisandClarkNationalHistoricalPark.