Cape Foulweather named by Captain Cook for gale force winds

The wind was sharp and so were the colours, when I visited Cape Foulweather, a historic viewpoint on the Oregon coast.

As the sign in the picture says, this outcropping of basalt provides a stunning vista from 500 feet above the ocean.

James Cook arrived here on a stormy day in March 1778. It was his first voyage to the North Pacific coast, and after his and other seafarers' reports, the fur traders soon followed.

For those who aren't deterred by the high winds, which quite commonly blow at a hundred mph, it's also a good place for whale watching.

On the day I visited, the 75-year-old Lookout Observatory and Gift Shop was unfortunately closed.