Palouse River
Just after dawn, National Geographic Sea Bird anchored at Drewyer’s River at the confluence of the Snake River. Named by the captains, Lewis and Clark, for one of their two interpreters George Drouillard; today it is known as the Palouse River.
Having seen a presentation about the glacial Lake Missoula or Bretz Floods just the evening before; being in the midst of the aftermath of these cataclysmic events was even more meaningful. The scoured basalt towers stood like sentinels to the ages with the results of the incomprehensible power of nature right before our eyes.
Even so, wildlife abounds here with sightings of mule deer, peregrine falcon, golden eagle, western grebe and the handiwork of a beaver, although the master craftsman was nowhere in sight. We also observed lichens, vacant mud nests of cliff swallows and a variety of plant life including yarrow, Russian olive, choke cherry and sage.
Some of the guests took the opportunity to kayak on waters so still that the reflections of the surrounding glacial flood scoured basalt were mirror-like in their clarity. Those that went ashore for a quick trip up to the head of the Palouse Falls were treated to a spectacular view.
Back on the ship for a deck barbeque, we basked in the warm sunshine of one of the first of many beautiful fall afternoons on the river. Proceeding west, National Geographic Sea Bird completed her transit of two more locks on the Snake River and slipped into the great Columbia River just as the sun was setting behind the Cascade Mountains still far to our west.
Just like the expedition of Lewis and Clark, we continued ever onward, eager to see what lay around the next bend in the river!
