12 October ‘06
We had a blast !!! This morning we jumped aboard a 41 foot aluminum river boat that has 3 powerful jet engines and travels up stream at 35 miles per hour. The ride was smooth, smooth, smooth, even when we shot through the rapids… It was an amazing ride. We would start at one side of the rapid and follow it up about half way and then make a sharp turn and head across to the other side to exit the rapid and land on the flat waters behind. The rapids were rated from levels 2 to 4 which also made it exciting. Right from the dock we were pampered by the crew. From the history of the Snake, Clearwater, and Salmon Rivers, the geology of Hells Canyon, and the people that lived along the shores past and present were just a part. We had a chance to meet some of the volunteers that handled some of the stopping points along the way. One of them gave us a tour of a home that was built in the very early 1900’s, which is also were they stayed during their volunteer time…electricity that was available from a “home made” generator made from a wheel of bells that caught water from a stream. As the “bell wheel” spun with the bells filled with water, the action was transferred to a generator that produced the electrical current. Not only was it functional, it was attractive to look at. We also saw many additional things that made this and other homesteads functional in this area of no roads, electricity, and potable water. I would also like to commend the volunteers that take on this commitment of being the host of each of these sites. Fact is, one of the sites has had and still has a long list of volunteers that will fill the needs for years to come. Now back to our ride up the Snake River and Hells Canyon. Steelhead fishing is going on big time…the rivers have fishermen peppered along the beach and boats that float the river looking for the illusive fish with every known type of lure and bait. We also saw some bird hunters along the shore. Fact is, we saw a fire that was most likely started by one of those hunters. It was burning across the top of the hills with fast abandon. Then there was the unfortunate accident that we came across…a commercial fishing boat (looking for the illusive steelhead) had a motor quit just as they were half way into a large rapid. Before they could get themselves straighten out, they found themselves coming down on a large bolder in the middle of the river…BANG…a hole in the side, bottom, and a water cooling hose destroyed. The destroyed hose put more water into the hull than either of the holes. They were lucky enough to find the bank before it went completely under… We also had the opportunity to see a couple of big horn sheep come down to the water. Those big horns are absolutely unbelievable !!! Then we made a stop along the bank to see some ancient Indian pictographs (pictures painted on the rocks). They had these well protected from the public, we could only see them as we stayed in the boat. That’s ok, it was still worth the effort. As we finished our ride through Hells Canyon we were unanimous in our appreciation of what we saw and how we saw it…it was a kick.
We had a blast !!! This morning we jumped aboard a 41 foot aluminum river boat that has 3 powerful jet engines and travels up stream at 35 miles per hour. The ride was smooth, smooth, smooth, even when we shot through the rapids… It was an amazing ride. We would start at one side of the rapid and follow it up about half way and then make a sharp turn and head across to the other side to exit the rapid and land on the flat waters behind. The rapids were rated from levels 2 to 4 which also made it exciting. Right from the dock we were pampered by the crew. From the history of the Snake, Clearwater, and Salmon Rivers, the geology of Hells Canyon, and the people that lived along the shores past and present were just a part. We had a chance to meet some of the volunteers that handled some of the stopping points along the way. One of them gave us a tour of a home that was built in the very early 1900’s, which is also were they stayed during their volunteer time…electricity that was available from a “home made” generator made from a wheel of bells that caught water from a stream. As the “bell wheel” spun with the bells filled with water, the action was transferred to a generator that produced the electrical current. Not only was it functional, it was attractive to look at. We also saw many additional things that made this and other homesteads functional in this area of no roads, electricity, and potable water. I would also like to commend the volunteers that take on this commitment of being the host of each of these sites. Fact is, one of the sites has had and still has a long list of volunteers that will fill the needs for years to come. Now back to our ride up the Snake River and Hells Canyon. Steelhead fishing is going on big time…the rivers have fishermen peppered along the beach and boats that float the river looking for the illusive fish with every known type of lure and bait. We also saw some bird hunters along the shore. Fact is, we saw a fire that was most likely started by one of those hunters. It was burning across the top of the hills with fast abandon. Then there was the unfortunate accident that we came across…a commercial fishing boat (looking for the illusive steelhead) had a motor quit just as they were half way into a large rapid. Before they could get themselves straighten out, they found themselves coming down on a large bolder in the middle of the river…BANG…a hole in the side, bottom, and a water cooling hose destroyed. The destroyed hose put more water into the hull than either of the holes. They were lucky enough to find the bank before it went completely under… We also had the opportunity to see a couple of big horn sheep come down to the water. Those big horns are absolutely unbelievable !!! Then we made a stop along the bank to see some ancient Indian pictographs (pictures painted on the rocks). They had these well protected from the public, we could only see them as we stayed in the boat. That’s ok, it was still worth the effort. As we finished our ride through Hells Canyon we were unanimous in our appreciation of what we saw and how we saw it…it was a kick.