Willapa Bay is a
bayHeadlands and bays are two related features of the coastal environment.- Geology and geography :Headlands and bays are often found on the same coastline. A bay is surrounded by land on three sides, whereas a headland is surrounded by water on three sides. Headlands are characterized by high,...
located on the southwest
Pacific coastThe Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...
of Washington state in the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The
Long Beach PeninsulaThe Long Beach Peninsula is an arm of land in western Washington state. It is bounded on the west by the Pacific Ocean, the south by the Columbia River, and the east by Willapa Bay...
separates Willapa Bay from the greater expanse of the Pacific Ocean. With over 260 square miles (673.4 km²) of water surface Willapa Bay is the second largest estuary on the United States Pacific coast. Early settlers called the bay
Shoalwater Bay and this name is found on old maps and charts of the region.
Willapa Bay is fairly shallow: more than half of its surface area lies in the
intertidal zoneThe intertidal zone is the area that is above water at low tide and under water at high tide . This area can include many different types of habitats, with many types of animals like starfish, sea urchins, and some species of coral...
, and in fact half of the volume of water inside it enters and leaves with every tide. The bay is an
estuaryAn estuary is a partly enclosed coastal body of water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea....
formed when the Long Beach Peninsula, a long sand spit from the
Columbia RiverThe Columbia River is the largest river in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. The river rises in the Rocky Mountains of British Columbia, Canada, flows northwest and then south into the U.S. state of Washington, then turns west to form most of the border between Washington and the state...
to the south, partially enclosed the estuaries of several smaller rivers. It is a
riaA ria is a coastal inlet formed by the partial submergence of an unglaciated river valley. It is a drowned river valley that remains open to the sea. Typically, rias have a dendritic, treelike outline although they can be straight and without significant branches. This pattern is inherited from the...
, which formed after the rise in sea level at the end of the last ice age flooded several small river valleys. The
North RiverThe North River is a river, approximately long, in western Washington, in the United States. It empties into Willapa Bay, the first large estuary on the Washington coast north of the Columbia River....
,
Willapa RiverThe Willapa River is a river on the Pacific coast of southwestern Washington in the United States, approximately long. It drains an area of low hills and a coastal plain into Willapa Bay, a large estuary north of the mouth of the Columbia River....
, and
Naselle RiverThe Naselle River is a river in the U.S. state of Washington.-Course:The Naselle River originates in the Willapa Hills and flows generally west, passing the community of Naselle before emptying into the southern part of Willapa Bay....
provide most of the freshwater input into the bay. Other rivers that empty into Willapa Bay include the
Bone RiverThe Bone River is a short river in the U.S. state of Washington. It is about long.-Course:The Bone River originates in the hills of the southwestern part of Washington, close to the source of the North Fork Palix River. It flows generally west, emptying into Willapa Bay near Bay Center just north...
,
Niawiakum RiverThe Niawiakum River is a short river in the U.S. state of Washington. It is approximately long.-Course:The Niawiakum River originates in the hills of the southwestern part of Washington. It flows generally west, emptying into Willapa Bay near Bay Center and the mouth of the Palix River. The...
,
Palix RiverThe Palix River is a stream in the U.S. state of Washington. Its tributaries include three forks, North, Middle, and South Fork Palix River, as well as the Canon River. The river's length, including the Canon River, its longest tributary, is approximately ....
,
Naselle RiverThe Naselle River is a river in the U.S. state of Washington.-Course:The Naselle River originates in the Willapa Hills and flows generally west, passing the community of Naselle before emptying into the southern part of Willapa Bay....
, and
Bear RiverThe Bear River is a river in the U.S. state of Washington. Its upper reach is known as Bear Branch.-Course:The Bear River, or Bear Branch, originates just north of the mouth of the Columbia River in the Bear River Range and Willapa Hills. It flows generally north and west, emptying into the...
, among others.
The bay is bordered by several smaller towns and unincorporated communities such as
RaymondRaymond is a city in Pacific County, Washington, United States. The population was 2,975 at the 2000 census and decreased 3.1% to 2,882 at the 2010 census. The town's economy is based on logging and fishing, together with a limited amount of tourism....
,
South BendSouth Bend is a city in Pacific County, Washington, United States. It is the county seat of Pacific County. The population was 1,637 as of the 2010 census, a decrease of 9.4% from the 2000 census figures. The town is widely known for its oysters and scenery....
, and
TokelandTokeland is a census-designated place in Pacific County, Washington, United States. The population was 151 at the 2010 census, a sharp decrease from the 194 at the 2000 census.The town was named after Chief Toke, an Indian chief of the 19th century....
. The bay is entirely located within
Pacific County, Washington and is home to a local
oysterThe word oyster is used as a common name for a number of distinct groups of bivalve molluscs which live in marine or brackish habitats. The valves are highly calcified....
and
seafoodSeafood is any form of marine life regarded as food by humans. Seafoods include fish, molluscs , crustaceans , echinoderms . Edible sea plants, such as some seaweeds and microalgae, are also seafood, and are widely eaten around the world, especially in Asia...
processing industry: approximately 9% of all oysters in the U.S. are
grownOyster farming is an aquaculture practice in which oysters are raised for human consumption. Oyster farming most likely developed in tandem with pearl farming, a similar practice in which oysters are farmed for the purpose of developing pearls...
there.
Willapa Bay is known for its amazing
biodiversityBiodiversity is the degree of variation of life forms within a given ecosystem, biome, or an entire planet. Biodiversity is a measure of the health of ecosystems. Biodiversity is in part a function of climate. In terrestrial habitats, tropical regions are typically rich whereas polar regions...
and much of it, including the entirety of
Long IslandLong Island is an uninhabited island lying in the southern part of Willapa Bay in Pacific County, Washington, USA. It is the site of the Willapa National Wildlife Refuge, part of the United States National Wildlife Refuge System. The island has a land area of 21.666 km² .-References:* United...
, has been set aside as part of the
Willapa National Wildlife RefugeWillapa National Wildlife Refuge is a National Wildlife Refuge located on the shores of Willapa Bay in Washington, USA. It comprises of sand dunes, sand beaches, mud flats, grasslands, saltwater and freshwater marshes, and coniferous forest...
. The oyster beds help the ecosystem by providing habitats and filtering water, improving the quality of the water. The bay's ecology was threatened in the 1990s by the rapid spreading of
atlantic cordgrassSpartina alterniflora is a perennial deciduous grass which is found in intertidal wetlands, especially estuarine salt marshes. It grows 1-1.5 m tall, and has smooth, hollow stems which bear leaves up to 20-60 cm long and 1.5 cm wide at their base, which are sharply tapered and bend down...
(
Spartina Alterniflora), a non-native species of grass introduced possibly to help preserve wetlands and marsh areas, and possibly simply by accident, as packing material in crates of oysters from the East Coast. The State of Washington has been spraying an herbicide thought not to threaten other species since the middle of the first decade of the new century, and the spartina threat is much reduced.
See also
- Pacific County, Washington
- Oysterville, Washington
Oysterville is an unincorporated community in Pacific County, Washington, United States.-History:Oysterville was first settled in 1841 by John Douglas, who married a local Chinook woman. Oysterville was established and named in 1854 by J.A. Clark. It was a hub of oyster farming as the name suggests...
- Shoalwater Bay Tribe
Shoalwater Bay Tribe is a Native American tribe in western Washington state in the United States. They are descendants of the Willapa Chinook, Lower Chehalis, and Willapa Hills tribes...
- Steamboats of Willapa Bay
Willapa Bay is a large shallow body of water near the Pacific Ocean in southwestern Washington. For a number of years before modern roads were built in Pacific County, Washington, the bay was used as the means of travel around the county, by powered and unpowered craft. This article discusses...
- Ilwaco Railway and Navigation Company
The Ilwaco Railway and Navigation Company operated a narrow gauge railroad ran for over forty years from the bar of the Columbia River up the Long Beach Peninsula to Nahcotta, Washington, on Willapa Bay. The line ran entirely in Pacific County, Washington, and had no connection to any outside rail...
External links