Hell’s Canyon (June 2015)

In June of 2015, I travelled to Clarkston, Washington to take a jetboat tour of Hells Canyon – the deepest canyon in North America. That’s right…deeper than the Grand Canyon (but not nearly as wide). I picked exactly the wrong dates to go, as the area was experiencing all time record high temperatures – 113 degrees Fahrenheit! And yes, it was a dry heat, but that just made the breeze feel like a convection oven.

Somewhere between Spokane and Clarkston, Washington

As intrigued as I was by the name of this park, I really didn’t feel like sticking around to see what kind of people frequent the place.

This was my ride through the stinking hot depths of Hells Canyon.

I hereby dub this rock formation…Bear Poop.

These are the foundations of a long defunct ore mill. I don’t recall what minerals/metals were mined in the area.

Some more of the scenery in Hells Canyon

These two vertical-lift bridges exist because, until relatively recently, it was possible for sea-going ships to travel up the Columbia and Snake Rivers all the way to Idaho. You read that right…IDAHO had a SEA PORT, in the town of Lewiston.

This is the part where I point out that I really shouldn’t wait six and a half years to write up a trip. The day after the jet boat tour through the bottom of the canyon, I went on a hike near the top of the canyon. At this point, I don’t remember the name of the place I went hiking; I just know these next pics are looking down into the canyon from above. Oh, and I remember that it was only 99 degrees Fahrenheit at this higher altitude.