The Columbia River Gorge
Today we hurried out on deck while it was still dark in order to watch the National Geographic Sea Bird enter our first lock at Bonneville Dam. Although the lock chamber we used to rise 88 feet was completed in 1993, its predecessor was finished in 1938, the first on the Columbia.
After passing through, we marveled at the size of the two powerhouses and the spillway, and got a glimpse of Beacon Rock (named by Lewis and Clark) down river. After a quick breakfast, we boarded a bus at Cascade Lock for a trip back downriver to visit the famous, 620-foot tall Multnomah Falls. The most energetic among us even made it all the way up the trail to the top of the falls. Others viewed the falls from the bridge part-way up the trail. We loved the combination of water, basalt, and fall trees.
We rushed back to the National Geographic Sea Bird to pack our luggage, have a quick lunch, say goodbye to the ship and crew at Hood River, and board buses for our afternoon adventures.
The liveliest among us hiked or biked along a pedestrian section of the Columbia River Historic Highway while the rest of us drove to Rasmussen’s Orchard to view and sample a wide variety of apples, pears, pumpkins, and squash. The groups reconnected at Rowena Crest where we had spectacular views up and down river. As we moved up river, we noted the abrupt transition between the green slopes of temperate rain forest to aired grasslands, due to the rain shadow of the Cascade Range.
Our final shore stop was at the Columbia Gorge Discovery Center in The Dalles, where we learned about the geologic, natural, and cultural history of the river and gorge. The buses then took us upriver to the John Day Lock and Dam where we boarded our new ship, the Spirit of the Columbia for the rest of our explorations in the wake of Lewis and Clark.
