Click to play short video clips (Less than 2 minutes) ... Shot earlier this month during a cold weather hike in the Palouse River Canyon. Always nice to have this place all to yourself! Just don't fall in!
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Drumheller Channels - Near Othello, WA
Sure enjoyed hiking in Drumheller Channels last Saturday. It was a super clear day! Not many animals or birds but plenty of basalt thrashed by Ice Age Floodwater flowing out of Quincy Basin and Lind Coulee.
Click to enlarge old photo - (4 days old)
I'll save most of the Saturday photos for another day. I want to figure out how to make new photos look old. Haven't had time to really mess with them yet. If you enlarge this image, you'll see my first attempt. I think scabland photos will look pretty cool in B&W.
The Stuart Range from Drumheller Channels
See what I mean? It was a very clear day.
A shot for the growers
Blue line marks approximate Ice Age Floods trimline. If you're not in a big hurry ... maybe enlarge this one too. Scabland below the line and farming above. High ground shown above the Drumheller Channels in this shot is the east end of the Frenchman Hills. Important growing area for organic crops.
Nope ... No pea planting this week!
Had to throw this in. Organic pea planting over the crest of the Frenchman Hills in early April this year. Nice views of Quincy Basin from the top.
Channeled scabland maze and Othello, WA
Some parts of Drumheller seem remote ... other parts ... not so much. I couldn't smell french fries and tater tots Saturday, but could see plenty of steam from peelers and condensers at the Othello potato processing plants
Nick Zentner going old school.
Gotta hike with a giant chalkboard in case you want to do a little teaching along the way. Nick and I met up in Othello this afternoon and headed out into the Drumheller Channels to shoot a quick video on volcano types.
When I have questions in the field ... it's nice that Nick has the chalkboard along. I do better when illustrations accompany the explanation.
Great place to talk about lava flows!
The squirrels had to love seeing these signs go up!!!
I felt fortunate to be allowed to join a group of six other Ice Age Floods enthusiasts on a hike along the east rim of the Palouse River Canyon. The area is privately owned and has been maintained in a pristine condition by a family that obviously appreciates this unique and spectacular landscape.
Lloyd Stoess organized the hike and arranged for our entry with the landowner. I can't thank him enough for letting me tag along. The arrow-straight upper channel of the Palouse River Canyon and Winn Lake Canyon are Ice Age Floods features I've always wanted to view.
- Click any image to expand -
Our hike began in the rolling Palouse hills several miles east of the canyon. These windblown loess deposits on top of the basalt, have accumulated at depths up to 250 feet. This image was taken near the margin of a huge channel swept by the Ice Age Floods.
Wheat farming ends where the floods stripped away the soil. Mounds shown beyond the wheat are Streamlined Palouse hills that withstood the floodwaters. These large mounds are erosional remnants of Palouse hills.
Another Streamlined Palouse hill along our route. Note exposed basalt bedrock between fence and loess island.
"The 'islands' of loess which make striking features on many broad scabland tracts are almost invariably elongated with the gradiant of the tract and are almost invariably scarped on the sides and upgradient end ... Many such hills or hill groups are separated by narrow scabland channels. Some stand alone in the scabland, miles from others of their kind."
J Harlen Bretz (1928)
View east - back to the wheat fields.
In early October, Findley Lake looks better on the GPS and maps than it does in person.
Findley Lake
Animal trail to seasonal water
Scabland
Palouse hills east of channel
Google Map terrain view shows one of the Streamlined Palouse hills in the area. Use mouse to navigate map.
Lloyd leads the group through several miles of scabland on our way to the Palouse River Canyon.
I shot a few short videos during the hike. Click arrow to play. Sorry I'm not very steady with the camera. The tripod was home in closet.
Amazing place when you try to visualize the floodwaters that created these features.
The floods scoured out many depressions in the channel that today serve as seasonal water sources for livestock and wildlife.
Google Earth view of the upper Palouse River Canyon. Note deep tectonic fractures in the area that were eroded and scoured out by the Ice Age Floods. The view in this image is to the north ... Arrow marks Palouse Falls ... Washtucna Coulee runs east to west at top. During some Ice Age Flood events, Washtucna Coulee was too small to carry the floodwater. When the torrent overtopped the coulee rim, it flowed south to the Snake River carving the Palouse River Canyon.
Another Google Earth image. View looking south from Washtucna Coulee. The straight 4.5 mile trench in the upper canyon sure is facinating.
View from canyon rim looking north - Up the 4.5 mile trench.
Railroad bridge in upper canyon.
Union Pacific equipment on west side of canyon. Bruce Bjornstad hiking along east rim.
Geologists Bruce Bjornstad and Gene Kiver patiently answered our questions about Columbia River Basalt and the Ice Age Floods.
Laminated deposits on the right confused me. I was behind the group when I noticed these.
Here's a shot for Tyler Bradt in case he finds this page. The flow on the day of our hike was much lower than it was when he made his 186-foot kayak drop off the falls to set a world record earlier this year. Link at bottom of this page to interview where Tyler describes his thoughts as he went over the edge.
Not the best lighting with half the falls in shadow.
View across canyon to Palouse Falls State Park viewpoint. I'm standing in line with a fracture in the basalt that's been scoured out by the floods (large cracks on both east and west rim of canyon line up).
The terraced inner-canyon is pretty amazing. The Palouse River Canyon and nearby Devil's Canyon are good locations to examine Columbia River Basalt flows.
Canyon resident
South of the falls we found several interesting basalt towers.
Hikers stand below group of columns that withstood the floodwaters.
Lone column along canyon rim.
Winn Lake Canyon is an incredible Ice Age Floods feature. A classic example of a flood carved coulee. Walking into Winn Lake Canyon was my favorite part of the hike.
Another shot of loess islands in the channel.
Hikers (bottom left) walk around the upstream end of a Streamlined Palouse hill on our way back to the wheat fields.
The glossary in Bjornstad's "On the Trail of the Ice Age Floods" describes loess as:
Windblown silt and fine sand that has collected downwind of sedimentary basins along the floods route, especially in the Palouse country where it accumulated into rolling hills up to 250 feet thick. Loess began forming about the same time as the earliest Ice Age Floods (about 2 million years ago) and continues to form today.
Images below (2) show examples of windblown loess in the Columbia Basin.
Image recorded by NASA on 4 October 2009. Blue circle marks Pasco, WA.
Arrows label Moses Coulee (1), Grand Coulee (2), Telford-Crab Creek (3) and Cheney-Palouse (4) Ice Age Flood tracts that are well defined in this high altitude image.
NASA TEXT:Visibility dropped to zero in parts of eastern Washington on October 4, 2009, as a large dust storm blew through. This image of the storm was captured by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Terra satellite shortly after noon (Pacific Daylight Time). According to local news, the storm brought strong winds gusting to 43 miles per hour in places that propelled the dust across the southeast corner of the state. After numerous multi-vehicle accidents, sections of Interstate 90 near the town of Moses Lake and several local roads had to be closed for several hours. The dust storm persisted for several hours and was still visible when Aqua MODIS flew over the region at 2:00 p.m. local time. The Terra MODIS image shown here is available in multiple resolutions from the MODIS Rapid Response System.
GPS track shows 14 mile hike route. Thanks again Lloyd!!!
At least I know where Hooper is.
These two patrol the streets of Hooper. Bruce has a story about the big one.
The fractures are pretty distinct in this Google Map terrain view. About five clicks of the "Right" arrow will shift view to the Streamlined Palouse hills shown in several images above.
One more look over the lip of Palouse Falls. I'm so impressed with Tyler Bradt's trip over the falls! Link to Tyler Bradt interview below.
Click above to play interview with Tyler Bradt that describes his world record kayak drop over Palouse Falls.
A hike in Ice Age Floods region that I always enjoy is the walk from Lyons Ferry at the confluence of the Palouse and Snake rivers to the Palouse Falls overlook. For several years I'd wanted to explore the Palouse River Canyon but wasn't sure about land ownership so I viewed the canyon from the Palouse Falls overlook and the road (SR-261).
One evening I was talking with Dale Middleton and he mentioned that Lloyd Stoess was leading a hike through the canyon and provided me with contact information. A few days later I was following Lloyd and a large group of Ice Age Floods enthusiasts into the Palouse River Canyon.
The trip distance is about eight miles with several ups and downs. Lloyd does a great job and describes the geomorphology, geology, botany, zoology, Ice Age Floods, early Indian history and local families that have lived and worked in the area for years.
During the Glacial Lake Missoula flood events, Washtucna Coulee was filled beyond capacity. Water began to spillover to the south carving out the spectacular Palouse River Canyon.
Geologist Bruce Bjornstad describes the canyon a "Chaotic maze of coulees, recessional cataracts, abandoned spillways and buttes".
Saturday was the third time I've tagged along on Lloyd's hike ... and even though the weather wasn't the greatest with off-and-on rain, I sure enjoyed the day.
Bruce Bjornstad, Gene Kiver and Lloyd Stoess
With his background in geology and understanding of the local history, Lloyd could easily lead these trips by himself but adds two more experts to the mix: Bruce Bjornstad author of "On the Trail of the Ice Age Floods" and Gene Kiver - Professor Emeritus of Geology at Eastern Washington University and Ice Age Floods Institue Executive Committee member.
On this hike you only take a few steps off the pavement before stopping so Lloyd can begin to give you a taste of the incredible history that has taken place in the immediate area. In 1805 the Lewis and Clark expedition visited this site on their trip west.
Lewis and Clark Visit - Nobody's Home
When the Lewis and Clark expedition arrived at the mouth of the Palouse River in October of 1805 they found the village of Palus. The village that appeared to be a "great fishing place" was empty as the Palouse Indians had traveled to the Blue Mountains to gather roots/berries and hunt. After (as Lloyd puts it) "Borrowing a few things" the expedition continued downstream to the confluence of the Snake and Columbia Rivers where many Indians were gathered. At the camp along the Columbia River, Lewis and Clark presented a Jefferson Peace Medal to at least one Native American leader. In 1964 a Jefferson Medal was recovered during the excavation of a cemetery at the confluence of the Palouse and Snake rivers in Franklin County - The starting point of today's hike.
You might have the coin pictured above in your pocket. In 2004 the U.S. mint released a series of coins that commemorates the 200th anniversery the Louisana Purchase. The "tails" side of the first coin in the series features the Jefferson Peace Medal.
In may of 1813 John Clarke of the Pacific Fur Company arrived at the confluence of the Palouse and Snake Rivers (Called Pavion and Lewis rivers at the time). During the visit a silver goblet owned by Clarke was stolen. The theft of the goblet resulted in Clark ordering one of the Palus Indians to be hung on a gallows constructed with the poles of his own lodge. Word of Clarke's action quickly spread through the various tribes in the Mid-Columbia region.
Soon after the violent act, Alexander Ross recorded the words of Tummeatapam (Chief of the Walla Wallas) - "What have you done my friends. You have spilt blood on our lands."
Lloyd always does a great job explaining Lyons Ferry that was in operation at this location for 108 years (under several names) and points out that it was part of the Mullan Road constructed in 1858.
Woolly Passengers on Lyons Ferry: Every year, rancher Mervin DeRuwe crossed 2,000 to 3,000 sheep at a penny a head. The operation took two to three days and required a chase boat to fish out sheep that jumped overboard. -Lewiston Tribune
Viewing the Marmes Rockshelter Site
The Marmes Rockshelter is one of the most important archaeological sites in the Pacific Northwest, unfortunatly the site is now underwater, a result of the construction of Lower Monumental Dam on the Snake River. Evidence obtained at the site suggests human activity in the area dating back more than 11,000 years.
The Ice Age Floods sculpted several nice caves in the canyon. These caves always seem to be a popular stop on the hike. Some of the matting used by Native Americans can still be found in the caves. It was apparently used to cover and protect their food cache. It is believed that the caves were used as storage areas rather than dwellings.
View from cave.
Lunch break on the trail of the Ice Age Floods.
Here's a shot for Gene
Gene Kiver seems to appreciate a nice gravel bar. This shot was taken in the spring and shows a large tongue shaped gravel bar just below Saturday's lunch stop (marked as "L"). Note the buttes in the distance.
Palouse River Canyon buttes
These huge buttes are my favorite Ice Age Floods features in the lower canyon.
Looking upstream Palouse River Canyon
According to a story of the Palouse tribe, the Palouse River once flowed smoothly into the Snake. But four giant brothers, in pursuit of a mythic creature called "Big Beaver" speared the great creature five times. Each time Big Beaver was wounded, he gouged the canyon walls, causing the river to bend and change. The fifth time he was speared, he fought the brothers valiantly and tore out a huge canyon. The river tumbled over a cliff at this point to become Palouse Falls. The jagged canyon walls show the deep marks of Big Beaver's claws. -From WA State Parks site
Almost dark when we arrived at the falls.
J Harlen Bretz interpretive panel.
The new Ice Age Floods interpretive panels recently placed by the Washington State Parks department sure look nice. This one shows a high altitude view of the scablands and J Harlen Bretz who was the first to push the idea of catastrophic flows of water shaping the Channeled Scablands. If you click to enlarge image you might be able to see the mention of James Gilluly. One of Bretz's critics that "saw the light" when he visited the Palouse River Canyon.
Click below for directions to Palouse Falls State Park.
I should mention that Lloyd and Gene are members of the Cheney-Spokane chapter of the Ice Age Floods Institute. If you live in that area I would encourage you to attend one of their chapter meetings.
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