The Volcanoes of Lewis and ClarkOctober 21, 1805
|
|
Home
-- The Volcanoes of Lewis and Clark Map of the Journey -- Volcanoes, Basalt Plateaus, Major Rivers, etc. CALENDAR of the Journey -- October 1805 to June 1806 Along the Journey -- Pacific Northwest Maps - Columbia River, Volcanoes, Flood Basalts, Missoula Floods, Geology, etc. The Corps of Discovery -- The Journey of Lewis and Clark About the Reference Materials -- The Journals, Biddle/Allen, DeVoto, Gass, Moulton, Topo Maps, and others USGS Lewis and Clark Links -- Links to USGS Websites highlighting the Lewis and Clark Journey Resources Publications Referenced and Websites Visited |
PREVIOUS
October 20 Islands and Rapids, Umatilla NWR to Roosevelt and Arlington |
October 21
Islands and Rapids Roosevelt and Arlington to the John Day Roosevelt and Arlington, Rapids and more rapids, Rock Creek and Rock Creek Rapids, John Day River and John Day Rapids, John Day Dam, LePage Park, Mount Hood |
CONTINUE
October 22 "Great Falls of the Columbia", Deschutes to the Dalles |
| On October 7, 1805, Lewis and Clark and the "Corps of Discovery" began their journey down the Clearwater River and into the volcanics of the Pacific Northwest. The Corps travelled from the Clearwater to the Snake and down the "Great Columbia", finally reaching the Pacific Ocean on November 15, 1805. Along the journey they encountered the lava flows of the Columbia Plateau, river channels carved by the great "Missoula Floods", and the awesome beauty of five Cascade Range volcanoes. |
| The Volcanoes of Lewis and Clark |
| To the Pacific - October 1805 |
|
Islands and Rapids Roosevelt and Arlington to the John Day |
| Lewis and Clark's camp of October 20, 1805 was on the Washington side of the Columbia River, near today's town of Roosevelt, and across from today's town of Arlington, Oregon. |
|
|
Roosevelt, Washington:
Arlington, Oregon:
Arlington, Oregon: Arlington was first settled in 1880, after the area was used through much of the previous decade as a meeting point where cattlemen would gather their cattle for sale. Originally named Alkali (after the Alkali Canyon, which it was located at the mouth of), the name was changed to Arlington in 1885 when the town was incorporated. The origin of the name Arlington is uncertain - it is presumed to be either after a prominent resident, Nathan Arlington Cornish, or after Arlington, VA in honor of that town's prominent resident of the day, southern General Robert E. Lee. The entire town of Arlington was relocated just uphill between 1953 and 1973, when the building of the John Day Dam drowned (on January 2nd, 1968) old Arlington for good. -- Washington State University Library Collections Website, 2002 |
| The morning was cool, and the wind from the southwest. At five and a half miles we passed a small island, and one mile and a half further, another in the middle of the river, which has some rapid water near its head [Owyhee Rapids], and opposite to its lower extremity are eight cabins of Indians on the right side. We landed near them to breakfast ...... |
| "... a Small Island at 5 1/2 miles a large one 8 miles in the middle of the river, Some rapid water at the head and Eight Lodges of nativs opposit its Lower point on the Stard. Side, we came too at those lodges, bought some wood and brackfast. ..." [Clark, October 21, 1805] |
| After breakfast we resumed our journey, and in the course of three miles passed a rapid [Blalock Rapids or Four O'clock Rapids ???] where large rocks were strewed across the river, and at the head of which on the right shore were two huts of Indians. We stopped here for the purpose of examining it, as we always do whenever any danger is to be apprehended, and send round by land all those who cannot swim. |
| "... at 2 miles lower passed a rapid, large rocks Stringing into the river of large Size, opposit to this rapid on the Stard. Shore is Situated 'two' Lodges of the natives drying fish here we halted a fiew minits to examine the rapid before we entered it which was our constant Custom ..." [Clark, October 21, 1805] |
|
|
Owyhee, Blalock, and Four O'Clock Rapids:
Owyhee Rapids: These rapids were inundated in 1968 when the John Day Dam was completed. Reportedly named for the steamer 'Owyhee'. -- McArthur, 1982, Oregon Geographic Names |
| Five miles further is another rapid [Rock Creek Rapids, sometimes Rock Rapids], formed by large rocks projecting from each side, above which were five huts of Indians on the right side, occupied like those we had already seen, in drying fish. |
|
|
Rock Creek, Rock Creek Rapids:
Rock Creek: Rock Creek basin consists of several small watersheds and encompasses an area of 223.2 square miles in southeastern Washington. Rock Creek drains into the Columbia River about 12 miles upstream of John Day Lock and Dam. The drainages in the Rock Creek basin originate in the Simcoe Mountains along Bickleton Ridge, which forms the northern boundary of the subbasin and the southern boundary of the Yakama Indian Reservation. Most of the streams flow in a southerly to southeasterly direction to Lake Umatilla, the portion of the Columbia River impounded by the John Day Lock and Dam. The major streams include Badger Gulch, Harrison, Luna Gulch, Quartz and Squaw creeks as well as Rock Creek. Elevations range from 200 feet at the confluence of Rock Creek and the Columbia River to 4,721 feet at Lone Pine Butte. -- Columbia Basin Fish and Wildlife Authority Website, 2002 Geology of Rock Creek Basin: The geology of the Rock Creek basin is dominated by extensive basalt flows having a total thickness of up to 5,000 feet. The basalt in these flows erupted between 14 and 15.5 million years ago, forming fissures along the Snake River where Washington, Oregon, and Idaho join. The erosion-resistant nature of these flows resulted in the creation of deep (500 to 800 feet) steep-walled canyons with ragged outcrops and in severely constrained floodplain development along substantial portions of the streams within this subbasin. Often the period between eruptions was long enough to allow development of lakes and streams on the down-warping basalt surface. These bodies of water deposited layers of sand, silt, clay, and volcanic ash forming sedimentary beds between some of the basalt flows. Also present are a variety of forbs indicative of lithic soils (continuous, shallow soils, usually bedrock). Sediment beds form local aquifers and are seen on the hillsides as light colored bands of soil, or bands of trees and brush running along the open grassy slopes. -- Columbia Basin Fish and Wildlife Authority Website, 2002 |
| One mile below this is the lower point of an island close to the right side, opposite to which on that shore, are two Indian huts. On the left side of the river at this place, are immense piles of rocks, which seem to have slipped from the cliffs under which they lie; they continue till spreading still farther into the river, at the distance of a mile from the island, they occasion a very dangerous rapid [Squally Rapids]; a little below which on the right side are five huts. |
| "... after passing this rapid [Blalock or Four OClock] we proceeded on passed anoothe rapid at 5 miles lower down [Rock Creek Rapids] , above this rapid on the Stard. Side 'five' Lodges of Indians fishing &c.; above this rapid maney large rocks on each Side at Some distance from Shore, one mile passed an Island Close to the Stard. Side, below which is 'two' Lodge of nativs, a little below is a bad rapid [Squally Rapids] which is bad crouded with hugh rocks Scattered in every Direction which renders the pasage verry Difficuelt a little above this rapid on the Lard. Side emence piles of rocks appears as if Sliped from the Clifts under which they lay, passed great number of rocks in every direction Scattered in the river 5 Lodges a little below on the Stard. Side, and one lodge on an Island near the Stard. Shore opposit to which is a verry bad rapid [Indian Rapids] , thro which we found much dificuelty in passing, the river is Crouded with rocks in every direction, ..." [Clark, October 21, 1805] |
| For many miles the river is now narrow and obstructed with very large rocks thrown into its channel; the hills continue high and covered, as is very rarely the case, with a few low pine trees on their tops. Between three and four miles below the last rapid [Squally Rapids] occurs a second, which is also difficult [Indian Rapids], |
|
|
Squally Rapids and Indian Rapids:
|
| and three miles below it is a small river [John Day River], which seems to rise in the open plains to the southeast, and falls in on the left. It is forty yards wide at its mouth; but discharges only a small quantity of water at present: we gave it the name of Lepage's river [John Day River] from Lepage one of our company. |
|
|
John Day River:
John Day River: The John Day River in northeastern Oregon is unique - it is the second longest free- flowing river in the continental United States, and its spring chinook salmon and summer steelhead populations are two of the last remaining intact wild populations of anadromous fish in the Columbia River basin. The John Day River has also been kept relatively free of hatchery influences. Many segments of the John Day River have been designated under the federal Wild Scenic Rivers Act and Oregon's State Scenic Waterways Act. Topographically, the John Day Subbasin is an interior plateau bounded by the Columbia River to the north (Lake Umatilla), the Blue Mountains to the east, the Aldrich Mountains and Strawberry Range to the south, and the Ochoco Mountains to the west. The John Day basin drains a large portion of northeast Oregon (nearly 8,100 square miles), flowing 284 miles from its source in the Strawberry Mountains (9,000 feet), to its mouth at RM 217 (200 feet) on the Columbia River. The John Day system contains over 500 river miles and is the second largest undammed tributary in the western United States, after the Yellowstone River. -- Columbia Basin Fish and Wildlife Authority Website, 2002 Geology of the John Day River Basin: The John Day basin is characterized by diverse landforms ranging from loess-covered plateaus in the lower sections to glaciated alpine peaks in the headwaters. Elevations range from 200 feet at the mouth of the John Day River to over 9,000 feet in the Strawberry Mountains. Two major physiographic provinces exist in the John Day basin -- the Deschutes-Umatilla Plateau and the Blue Mountains. A third province, the Columbia Basin, is a minor province along the confluence with the Columbia River. The Deschutes-Umatilla Plateau is in the lower subbasin situated to the north and west. This plateau is of nearly level to rolling land deeply dissected by the mainstem and tributaries. The Blue Mountain Province is in the upper basin to the south and east. The upper subbasin is physiographically diverse, containing mountains, rugged hills, plateaus cut by streams, alluvial basins and valleys. Rock assemblages within the John Day Subbasin include masses of oceanic crust, marine sediments, volcanic materials, ancient river and lake deposits, and recent river and landslide deposits. Major geologic events included volcanic eruptions, uplifting, faulting, and erosion. Volcanic activity in the form of lava flows, mudflows, and ash fall formed and stratified three key formations in the subbasin over the course of approximately 37 to 54 million years -- the Clarno Formation, John Day Formation, and the Columbia River Basalt Group. The Columbia River Basalt Group, a less erodable formation, resulted from a series of flood basalts 12 to 19 million years ago. Columbia River Basalts are the dominant rocks at elevations below 4,000 feet. Igneous rocks are exposed in the higher reaches of the subbasin, while the lower basin exposures are primarily extrusive rocks, ash, and wind-blown loess. After volcanic activity ceased (10 million years ago), erosion and faulting continued to alter the landscape. The Mascall Formation resulted from waterlaid fine volcanic sediments. The Rattlesnake Formation, a thick sequence of sand and gravel, was deposited in the ancestral John Day Valley. A final layer of predominantly unconsolidated silt, sand, and gravel comprises the Quaternary Alluvium. Distribution of the basin's major geologic units was mostly controlled by topographic and structural features developed during the pre-Tertiary period, including the Strawberry and Aldrich Mountains, Blue Mountains, and the Blue Mountain Anticline (a long structural upwarping in the earth's crust. An east-west fault zone exists along the base of the Strawberry and Aldrich Mountains and includes the John Day Fault. -- Columbia Basin Fish and Wildlife Authority Website, 2002 LePage Park, Oregon: LePage Park was named for the Corps' private Jean LePage, whose name Lewis & Clark gave to today's John Day River. Interpretive sign. -- Lewis and Clark Bicentennial in Oregon Website, 2002 |
| Near this little river and immediately below it, we had to encounter a new rapid [John Day Rapids]. |
| "... after Passing this dificult rapid [Indian Rapids] to the mouth of a Small river on the Lardboard Side [John Day River] 40 yards wide descharges but little water at this time, and appears to take its Sourse in the Open plains to the S. E. from this place I proceved Some fiew Small pines on the tops of the high hills and bushes in the hollars. imediately above & below this little river comences a rapid [John Day Rapids] which is crouded with large rocks in every direction, the pasage both crooked and dificuelt, we halted at a Lodge to examine those noumerous Islands of rock which apd. to extend maney miles below ... after passing this rapid which we accomplished without loss; winding through between the hugh rocks for about 2 miles ..." [Clark, October 21, 1805] |
|
|
John Day Rapids
|
| The river is crowded in every direction, with large rocks and small rocky islands; the passage crooked and difficult, and for two miles we were obliged to wind with great care along the narrow channels and between the huge rocks. At the end of this rapid [John Day Rapids] are four huts of Indians on the right, and two miles below five more huts on the same side. Here we landed and passed the night, after making thirty-three miles. [Washington side, downstream of today's John Day Dam]. ...... |
|
|
John Day Dam:
John Day Dam: The John Day Dam is located at the head of Lake Celilo, 216 miles upstream from the mouth of the Columbia River. The dam crosses the river near Rufus, Oregon, about 25 miles upstream from The Dalles, just below the mouth of the John Day River. To get to John Day Dam take exit 109 from Interstate 84. The project consists of a navigation lock, spillway, powerhouse and fish passage facilities on both shores. Various recreational facilities are provided along the shores of Lake Umatilla and on the John Day River (Lake Umatilla, impounded by the dam, extends upstream about 76 miles to the foot of McNary Dam). Construction began in 1958 and was completed in 1971, at a total cost of $511 million. At the time of it's completion, John Day Dam Powerhouse was the second largest in the world. Completion of the John Day Dam marked the final step in harnessing the lower waters of the Columbia River. -- U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Website, 2002 |
| The hills in this neighbourhood are high and rugged, and a few scattered trees, either small pine or scrubby white oak, are occasionally seen on them. |
| "... We went 32 miles and encamped at some Indian lodges, where we procured wood from the natives to cookwith. ..." [Gass, October 21, 1805] |
| "... we proceeded on passed River hills and cliffs of rocks on each side. passed over a number of bad rockey rapids where the River is nearly filled with high dark couloured rocks the water divided in narrow deep channels, bad whorl pools ... we came about 32 miles this day and Camped at some Indian lodges close under high clifts of rocks on the Stard Side a handsome Spring flowed out of the clifts ..." [Ordway, October 21, 1805] |
|
|
Columbia River downstream John Day Dam:
|
|
|
|
The Camp - October 21, 1805:
Camped on the Washington side of the Columbia, downstream of the site of modern John Day Dam. |
| From the last rapids we also observed the conical mountain towards the southwest, which the Indians say is not far to the left of the great falls [Celilo Falls]. From its vicinity to that place we called it the Timm or Falls mountain. [Mount Hood] |
| "... from this rapid the Conocil mountain is S. W. which the Indians inform me is not far to the left of the great falls; this I call the 'Timm' or falls mountain it is high and the top is covered with Snow ..." [Clark, October 21, 1805] |
| Among other things we observed some acorns, the fruit of the white oak. These they use as food either raw or roasted, and on inquiry informed us that they were procured from the Indians who live near the great falls. This place they designate by a name very commonly applied to it by the Indians, and highly expressive, the word 'Timm', which they pronounce so as to make it perfectly represent the sound of a distant cataract |
|
|
Mount Hood:
|
| The country through which we passed is furnished with several fine springs, which rise either high up the sides of the hills or else in the river meadows, and discharge themselves into the Columbia. |
| "... this part of the river is furnished with fine Springs which either rise high up the Sides of the hills or on the bottom near the river and run into the river. the hills are high and rugid a fiew scattering trees to be Seen on them either Small pine or Scrubey white oke. ..." [Clark, October 21, 1805] |
| We could not help remarking that almost universally the fishing establishments of the Indians, both on the Columbia and the waters of Lewis's river [Snake River], are on the right bank [Washington side of the Columbia]. On inquiry we were led to believe that the reason may be found in their fear of the Snake Indians; between whom and themselves, considering the warlike temper of that people, and the peaceful habits of the river tribes, it is very natural that the latter should be anxious to interpose so good a barrier. These Indians are described as residing on a great river to the south [Snake River], and always at war with the people of this neighbourhood. ...... |
Return to:
[Volcanoes and History Menu] ...
[Living With Volcanoes Menu] ...
