Palouse and Snake Rivers
Spirits were flying high as the great weather we have experienced all week continued today on the Palouse River. In tandem with our mood, the raptors flew high. Zodiac cruisers heading up the Palouse pointed their binoculars to the sky and found a pair of golden eagles soaring along the upper reaches of the basaltic cliffs.
Down at river level we investigated the intricate work performed earlier this spring by cliff swallows. At first the structures seemed to be giant barnacles attached to the undersides of the basalt columns. Upon further investigation we found the rotund protuberances to be muddy gourd-shaped nests made to keep eggs and chicks safe. The industry of these small birds was admirable. As we studied the nests, you could see the hundreds of tiny dabs of mud, carried in one beak-full at a time, built out to eventually create a safe home and haven.
The swallows were not the only animal of industry. A beaver had been quite busy in the river cutting poles of willow on one of the larger islands. A huge shore-side lodge was surrounded by stacks of poles, all bearing the distinct incisor marks of North America’s largest rodent.
Not everyone investigated the waterways by Zodiac, many decided to set their own pace and direction with a leisurely kayak up the Palouse River. Western grebes played hide-and-seek at water level while a few canyon wrens ducked amongst the sagebrush-dotted talus slopes. A bleached pile of bones was found on the shore, later determined to be the remains of a mule deer.
With a short motor coach ride up and around the hill we came to Palouse Falls; hidden between steep canyon walls, this 185-foot ribbon of water spills over a precipitous edge into an enormous plunge pool. The waterfall tells a fib, it did not create the tremendous pool at its base; the pool is a result of the humongous floods which occurred in this area some twelve to fifteen thousand years ago, inundating and carving through the area that was laid out before us. This fall may have been a mere “bump” in the flow as floodwaters tore through and over the canyon walls.
On board for the afternoon, we continued westward. Exiting our last lock on the Snake River— Ice Harbor— we found a few American white pelicans bobbing around on the gentle current; a serene and lovely ending to a balmy autumn day.
