Clarkston, Washington: Are we still in Clarkston? The smoke was a lot better this morning, and is predicted to be down around 70 by this afternoon. Still not good.
A few weeks ago a jet boat trip with Beamers Hell's Canyon Tours was booked to take us on a day-long boat trip up the Snake River. This is something we have been wanting to do for years, so today was the day. We took a scenic float trip on the Snake River near Grand Tetons two years ago, and have driven a portion above the river on the very eastern border of Oregon. These notes only make one realize how long the Snake River is: 1,080 miles. The river forms just inside Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming and travels basically northwest until it joins the Columbia in Washington near the Tri-Cities area. That's a lot of water, people.
In Clarkston/Lewiston, the Clearwater River joins the Snake River. The Clearwater is has the largest flow of the 20 rivers that join the Snake on it's journey to the Pacific. This port is also the largest ocean port (lots of dams on the Columbia River) in the Pacific Northwest and Whitman County is the largest grain producer in the Palouse of Washington. Now you know.
Today we took a guided 42-foot jet boat through Hell's Canyon - the deepest river gorge in America (2000 feet deeper than the Grand Canyon), where the Snake River divides Washington/Oregon and Idaho. Several trips are offered, but we chose the 6 hour trip v the 11 hour trip - because 11 hours just seems like a very long day for two old people. The trip was a bit expensive - about $275 per person - with all the Forest Service usage fees & taxes. However, the boat stops at a lodge (they own) and a boxed lunch is provided.
The jet boat left from exactly the length of a driving range between our RV and the boat dock. Could have not been more convenient. Boarding was easy and we headed up the river at 9a. Our group of fellow travelers were all American, but from every corner of our nation, and the boat was about 80% full. The first mile or so is not very interesting (save for the osprey nest we have seen on our bike rides), but as the boat entered deeper up the canyon magic appeared.
One of the first things our guide stopped to show us was a 4,500 year old (-ish) petroglyph carved by the Nez Perce depicting a good sheep hunting trip (?).
From reading the boat trip reviews, we knew sightings of Rocky Mountain Big Horn Sheep would be common, but we were surprised at how many small groups (herds?) we saw!
We also saw many eagles, osprey, herons, American (white) Pelicans, turkeys, and deer. Also many youngsters of the previously-mentioned species.
After a while, civilization disappears. There is a road along the Washington side of the river, but much of the Idaho side is accessible only by boat. This fact has not stopped people from building very very nice "cabins" along the river. The homes may be fancy, but they still have outhouses. When the river leaves Washington on the west side and enters Oregon, there are no houses. Oregon forbids private ownership along the Hells Canyon National Recreational Area. (Duh.)
As we continued up the canyon, the smoke became quite strong. Dave and I were worried about Leo's friend, Frank, who is on his family farm near Joseph (Oregon) helping with the haying. Lisa checked for us and they are suffering miserably from smoke, but are not in danger of fire. We were so close - yet so far - from Frank today.
We stopped at a lodge owned by Beamer's for a snack and bathroom break and continued up the smoky canyon. More sheep and we passed so many guided days-long rubber-raft float trips heading towards Clarkston/Lewiston. Maybe a bit rough for our travel tastes (and everyone seemed to be in their 20s), but everyone was having a lot of fun.
Just as the canyon enters Oregon we passed the long-abandoned Eureka Bar Copper mine. Workers carved a 500 foot tunnel to mine copper. Maybe it would have been the greatest copper mine the world has ever known, but after all the investment and work, the boat which was to bring the harvest to the port of Lewiston sank in a rough spot on the Snake River and the ore was abandoned. (All crew were saved; ship is still on the bottom of the river.)
We were supposed to stop at Cache Creek Ranch for our lunch break, but the dock was full with other boats (charter and personal) so we went back to the spot owned by the jet boat. Fine - it was air conditioned and had flush toilets. Deli turkey sandwiches, veggie snacks, chips, cookies and sodas. It was fine.
And looky what we saw on our way back to Clarkston:
On the return trip, we were also shown a spot of white ash leftover from the eruption of Mt. Mazama 7,000 years ago. Sound familiar? The collapsed crater of Mt. Mazama in southern Oregon is now known as Crater Lake National Park, which we visited last month. The volcano is nearly 500 miles from Clarkston.
This was much of our ride back to Clarkston. Our Captain drove so fast. No stopping!
We really had a great day, but with all the smoke, am so happy we did not opt for the 11 hours trip! We arrived back to the RV in time to watch the Dodgers win, and for DT to catch-up with the Tour de France. I boiled 3/4 cup penne, sautéed a handful of baby tomatoes with garlic and basil in olive oil, and plated it all with just grated Parmesan. Half an avocado each for salad.
Until my next update, I remain, your Snake River correspondent.
Campground Information: Premier RV Resorts Clarkston