I found myself thinking about the Peter Iredale shipwreck the other day.1 The ship ran aground near Fort Stevens (Oregon) in 1906 as it attempted to enter the mouth of the Columbia River. It remains at what is now known as Fort Stevens State Park.2
The shipwreck isn’t just rusty but crusty as well, since numerous parts of its interior have been colonized by our first group of special guests, barnacles. I was mesmerized by the up-close details of the areas where rust and barnacles appeared to have become a single organism.3
Our other special guest is a New Mexican snail. I’m sure it has a much more specific Latin name, but I know it simply as one of those snails that comes out right after heavy thunderstorms in the summer.
The rust in the image above is on a small iron cover over a sidewalk near my house. Rust actually isn’t all that common in New Mexico — moisture generally evaporates pretty quickly here — but the cover is in an area where water sometimes pools, which is probably why the snails are drawn to it.
Here’s a history, in photos, of the Peter Iredale, starting with 1900.
The mouth of the Columbia River is also bordered by Fort Stevens State Park.
I was there at low tide. The wreck is partially covered with water at high tide.