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The station’s primary missions include providing search and rescue to commercial and recreational mariners within 50 nautical miles of the Columbia River entrance and upriver to Puget Island, and also providing a maritime law enforcement presence near th
e approaches to the Columbia River. This area is regarded as one of the most treacherous river bars in the world. Because of the large number of shipwrecks near the river entrance it is often called "The Graveyard of the Pacific." During winter storms, wind-driven ocean swells often reach a height of 20-30 feet at the entrance of the bar. With the culmination of strong outgoing tides and large incoming swells, large surf conditions can exist in and around the bar entrance.
Station Cape Disappointment conducts an average of 120-150 search and rescue cases a year.
HISTORY
The first U. S. Life Saving Service station at Cape Disappointment was built on the site of Fort Canby in 1877. The existing station was first occupied in February 1967 and is currently the site for Station Cape Disappointment and the National Motor Lifeboat School. Coast Guard Station Cape Disappointment, situated at the mouth of the Columbia River, is the largest Coast Guard search and rescue station on the Northwest Coast, with 48 crewmembers assigned. Cape Disappointment is also the site of the oldest search and rescue station within the Thirteenth Coast Guard District. The station has five search and rescue boats, including: three 47-foot motor lifeboats and two 29-foot response boat.
Mailing Address:
Commanding Officer
322 Coast Guard Road
Ilwaco, Wash. 98624
(206) 815-6678
Station Cape Disappointment Factsheet
Last Updated: April 2025