American Cruise Lines Encore - Columbia and Snake River Cruise Day 8/10 – Lewiston, Idaho - Hells Canyon and State Bouncing
Today took us to Idaho, Washington, Idaho, Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Washington, Idaho, and Washington. Got that? Let's see if I can explain.
We docked this morning in Lewiston, Idaho. This was an unscheduled stop, but required as our wastewater tanks were full, and only Lewiston had the resources to pump them out. The good news is that Lewiston, Idaho, is a short hop across the Snake River from Clarkston, Washington, our intended destination. That just meant the tour buses had to make a small deviation. So it was no big deal.
As we ate breakfast, before we docked, we sailed past cattle farms. We're used to traditional cattle farms with pastures. Here, however, the cows make do with the rocky and hilly land.
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| The elusive Idaho mountain cow |
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| If that's where the food is, I guess you figure it out |
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| The port |
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| Kind of funny, since we were nowhere near the sea |
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| There you have it - the whole place |
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| Deck hands, tying us up |
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| An osprey next was on a platform in the port |
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| In short order, the septic truck hooked up and started clearing our tanks |
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| The crew was also loading supplies |
We stepped off the ship for our tour. This put us in Idaho.
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| Ann and Dave joined us so we would be on the same boat for our tour |
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| There are several lift bridges here, reminiscent of our time in college and the lift bridge between Houghton and Hancock, Michigan |
We made the short drive up the road, over the bridge, back down the road, and to the port in Clarkston, Washington. This put us in Washington.
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| Our jet boats were waiting to whisk us to Hells Canyon |
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| We zipped under this lift bridge |
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| On the way to Hells Canyon |
Hells Canyon, on the Snake River, is the deepest canyon in North America. With the highest peaks at about 9,000 feet - 8,000 feet above the river - Hells Canyon is roughly 2,000 feet deeper than the Grand Canyon. Our tour didn't get to the deepest part, but it was plenty deep and plenty impressive.
There are a lot of photos coming. That was because the landscape kept changing. It went from sweeping hills, to columnar basalt, to limestone, to craggy granite. I'll let the photos do most of the talking, but I will insert comments where it makes sense.
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| The start of the rocks |
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| Columnar basalt |
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| These basalt columns were naturally formed, not etched |
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| A pair of bald eagles watching over the river |
As we cruised down the center of the river, we were split between Idaho and Washington. The landscape continued to change.
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| Another of the three tour boats |
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| We spotted bighorn sheep |
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| The terrain kept changing as we went deeper into the canyon |
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| Those layers are natural, not man-made |
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| Limestone formations |
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| Can you imagine trying to cross this terrain? |
We made a stop for refreshments. This put us back in Idaho.
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| The Garden Creek Preserve - there were cherry trees here, but we didn't make it to them |
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| Garry, Arlona, Ann, and Dave, in Hells Canyon |
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| As we departed again, we entered Oregon |
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| The landscape just kept getting more rugged |
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| A small waterfall |
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| Mountain goats (I think) |
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| Taking in the views - the jacket was more for spray and wind than anything |
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| More bighorn sheep |
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| At the confluence of the Salmon and Snake Rivers, where the Salmon empties into the Snake - this was our turnaround point |
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| If you use your imagination, that looks like Mr. Potato Head, playing the piano |
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| We saw a couple of deer hanging out under the tree |
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| Wild turkey |
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| Great blue heron |
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| More osprey |
We made a stop to view some petroglyphs in the canyon that have been dated back 2,400 years. There are multiple petroglyphs scattered through the canyon.
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| 2,400-year-old petroglyphs |
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| The Sun really made the landscape dramatic |
We arrived back at the dock, placing us back in Clarkston, Washington. Hells Canyon was absolutely stunning and well worth the trip. Trying to wrap our heads around the Lewis and Clark expedition trying to navigate this area was difficult after seeing how inhospitable it was. But beauty was hidden in that ruggedness, and we're glad we got to appreciate it today.
We got on the bus and rode it back to the ship, placing us back in Lewiston, Idaho. As soon as we were all back on the ship, it sailed across the river to Clarkston, Washington, placing us back in Washington for the night.
To understand just how silly this all was, look at the photo below. This was taken from our balcony after the ship repositioned to Clarkston, Washington.
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| Look at the horizon - that tan building just right of center is where we were docked all day in Lewiston, Idaho |
To make it even sillier, tomorrow morning, we will board a bus and go back over the bridge to Lewiston Airport to start the journey home.
We joined Ann and Dave for the final dinner. We all enjoyed lobster tail and beef tenderloin surf and turf. A nice way to enjoy our final evening on the ship.
We watched tonight's entertainment in our room. ACL brought on entertainers from the local Nez Perce tribe. They shared their history, traditional clothing, stories, and music.
We finished packing our bags and put the big ones out to be collected and delivered to shore in the morning. We'll be up early to catch breakfast before leaving the ship at 8:30 for the short drive back across the river to Lewiston Airport.
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