We woke this morning to a beautiful blue sky, cold autumn air, and a waning hunter's moon as the Sea Bird entered the lock at John Day Dam. The guillotine-like gate closed behind the ship and suddenly the water beneath us began to rise. Fortunately our little craft rose, too. Soon we were almost 100 feet higher and level with the reservoir behind the dam. We could then continue our journey up the Columbia.
After a mandatory safety drill, naturalist Jerry Igo presented a fascinating video that he had filmed and narrated about the many types of plants and animals that Lewis and Clark had discovered during their exploration and still exist today. Then we were back out on the ship's bow taking in the igneous scenery and searching for wildlife. All those keen eyes paid off with the sighting of white pelicans in addition to Canada geese, double-crested cormorants, and many ducks, such as northern pintails.
Following lunch, we docked in Umatilla and broke into small groups to walk through the McNary Wildlife Nature Area. During our walk around the ponds surrounded by thickets of Russian olive, willow, and blackberries, we were delighted to see wood ducks, American widgeons, belted kingfishers, northern flickers, yellow-rumped warblers, a great blue heron, and a black-crowned night-heron.
Back on board, we set sail and passed through the McNary Dam lock before proceeding upstream. An informal wine tasting party concluded the afternoon.
