Columbia River
Cruising up the Columbia River one is struck by the changes in the shape and the character of the land. The lush greenery of Portland gives way to the rolling sagebrush steppes of eastern Washington and Oregon. In the rain shadow east of the Cascades we find few trees with the exception of fruit orchards and the introduced species that line the water’s edge. The Sea Lion cruised slowly through the Umatilla Wildlife Refuge where we spotted great blue herons, white pelicans, coots, geese, and ducks by the thousands. The browse line on the willow trees are evidence of a deer population in residence. A lone raptor witnessed our passing from a tree now empty of leaves. On this crisp autumn day the river surface is disturbed only occasionally by passing tug and barge traffic. We almost have the river to ourselves.
While the Columbia today hardly resembles the one that Lewis and Clark traversed, many of the distinctive landforms remain. On the 19th of October in 1805 the Corps of Discovery passed this section of the Columbia River. Clark noted in his journal, “a rock in a Lar’d bend resembling a hat”. Hat Rock remains unchanged, standing above the river for us to make our connection with Clark and Lewis.
Hat Rock State Park is spread out in the shadow of the rock formation. We land our Zodiacs and stretch our legs on the paths that lead up hill or along the shore of the lake. The afternoon light is fine for our photographs
The journals indicate that on this day the Corps purchased dogs from the local tribes for their evening fare. For Sea Lion guests however, Judy, our Hotel Manager has organized a wine tasting event complete with a variety of locally prepared treats to be followed by a sumptuous dinner in the comfort of the ship’s dining room.
Cruising up the Columbia River one is struck by the changes in the shape and the character of the land. The lush greenery of Portland gives way to the rolling sagebrush steppes of eastern Washington and Oregon. In the rain shadow east of the Cascades we find few trees with the exception of fruit orchards and the introduced species that line the water’s edge. The Sea Lion cruised slowly through the Umatilla Wildlife Refuge where we spotted great blue herons, white pelicans, coots, geese, and ducks by the thousands. The browse line on the willow trees are evidence of a deer population in residence. A lone raptor witnessed our passing from a tree now empty of leaves. On this crisp autumn day the river surface is disturbed only occasionally by passing tug and barge traffic. We almost have the river to ourselves.
While the Columbia today hardly resembles the one that Lewis and Clark traversed, many of the distinctive landforms remain. On the 19th of October in 1805 the Corps of Discovery passed this section of the Columbia River. Clark noted in his journal, “a rock in a Lar’d bend resembling a hat”. Hat Rock remains unchanged, standing above the river for us to make our connection with Clark and Lewis.
Hat Rock State Park is spread out in the shadow of the rock formation. We land our Zodiacs and stretch our legs on the paths that lead up hill or along the shore of the lake. The afternoon light is fine for our photographs
The journals indicate that on this day the Corps purchased dogs from the local tribes for their evening fare. For Sea Lion guests however, Judy, our Hotel Manager has organized a wine tasting event complete with a variety of locally prepared treats to be followed by a sumptuous dinner in the comfort of the ship’s dining room.
