Come 6:15 a.m. – in the very earliest light of dawn – the constellation Orion, the Mighty Hunter, studded the southern sky just below a waning gibbous moon. Overnight we had sailed from the Snake River onto the mighty Columbia, the Great River of the West. We entered the lock at McNary Dam and down we went. The great barn-door-style gates split before us, and we continued our way downriver. In the morning, we enjoyed presentations by our naturalist Ivan and photo instructor Linda. Our afternoon destination was Crow Butte Island where we hiked and launched our kayaks for some quality paddling. Crow Butte Island has an arid sagebrush steppe climate with many interesting plants adapted to this environment.
4/27/2024
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National Geographic Sea Bird
Astoria, Oregon
We reached the penultimate day of our journey in Astoria, Oregon, where the Columbia River collides with the open ocean. We were met with a typical Pacific Northwest day of gentle rains punctuated by moments of sunshine. The guests were divided to conquer this gem of a city, nestled under bridges; half headed across the river to Washington to visit the Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center at Cape Disappointment, while the other half visited the Columbia River Maritime Museum and Astoria Column. The museum and the interpretive center are both excellent examples of what the west coast can offer with regard to history and culture. Each has thoughtful exhibits that cover broad swaths of topics, and are staffed with informative and helpful faculty. After a hearty lunch on board, the groups swapped in order to have the best of both worlds. Finally, all met back aboard for the week’s final recap and guest slideshow.
