Roaming the Gorge

Yesterday I spent a day rambling through the Columbia River Gorge, one of my favorite spots. Between the river, waterfalls, massive basalt cliffs, verdant forests, and amazing geology and meteorology, the Gorge is endlessly fascinating. Here's a good example...the trail to Ponytail Falls goes behind it!


Farther downstream, Horsetail Falls descends beyond the graceful arches of the old Columbia River Highway, built around 1915..a thoroughfare and a work of art.


Basalt rises above the river, forming the walls of the gorge. 12-15 thousand years ago, the gorge was sculpted by the catastrophic Missoula Floods...I've blogged the floods before. Now, wind is a major player, shaping the vegetation dramatically.

This view from between Hood River and The Dalles shows the drier eastern end of the gorge. To the left center of the pic is the Washington town of Lyle, built on a gravel bar deposited by the Missoula Floods. From just west of Hood River to just east of The Dalles, a distance of about 30 miles with negligible elevation change, the gorge transitions from lush Doug Fir forest to barren sagebrush desert. I know of no other place in the world like this.

Wind blasts through the gorge year round. West winds bring marine air from the ocean, moderating the temperature; east winds bring continental air from the interior, resulting in extreme temperatures. Here, at the western end, these trees have almost no branches on their east sides. 40 miles farther east, at Hood River, the trees are branchless to the west.