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Beacon Rock State Park is a state park of Washington, USA, in the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area, on Route 14 about east of Vancouver, Washington. The park takes its name from Beacon Rock, an monolith next to the Columbia River. On October 31, 1805, the Lewis and Clark Expedition arrived here and first measured tides on the river, indicating that they were nearing the ocean.〔 ==Beacon Rock== Beacon Rock is a monolith on the north bank of the Columbia River. It was named by Lewis and Clark in 1805; they originally referred to it as ''Beaten Rock'', later as ''Beacon Rock''. They noted that the rock marked the eastern extent of the tidal influence in the Columbia. The rock was later known as ''Castle Rock'', until 1915 when its name was changed back to ''Beacon Rock''.〔 〔GNIS says its decision to rename was in 1915: 〕 Beacon Rock is tall and is composed of basalt. Henry Biddle purchased the rock in 1915 for $1 and during the next three years constructed a trail with 51 switchbacks, handrails and bridges. The three-quarter mile trail to the top, completed in April 1918,〔 leads to views in all directions. It is a popular hiking destination. The United States Army Corps of Engineers planned to destroy the rock, to supply material for the jetty at the mouth of the Columbia (see Columbia River Bar), and dug three caves on the rock's south side. During this time, Biddle's family tried to make it a state park. At first Washington refused the gift, but changed its position when Oregon offered to accept. It has been variously claimed to be the second largest free standing monolith in the northern hemisphere, or in the world, just behind the Rock of Gibraltar, Stone Mountain, or Mount Augustus, the latter two being very much larger than either of the first two. The assertion depends on how one defines the term "monolith." For example, Devils Tower National Monument in Wyoming is larger than Beacon Rock, but is considered an igneous intrusion rather than necessarily a "single rock." 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Beacon Rock State Park」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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