Overnight, National Geographic Sea Lion transited through two locks navigating from Clarkston, Washington to our anchorage at the confluence of the Snake and Palouse Rivers. We awoke to the beautiful rolling hills of Palouse country, fresh with the greens of a newly budding Spring.
Our guests visited the famous Palouse Falls and then adventured up the Palouse River in our small expedition watercraft with their naturalists, enjoying the landscape carved by the cataclysmic Missoula Floods up close and personal. We spotted white-tailed deer and many birds, including red-tailed hawks, ravens, black-billed magpies, American kestrels, red-winged blackbirds, and even golden eagles! Back on board, our guests enjoyed a beautifully crafted lunch by our wonderful chef, Garrett Guenther.
The afternoon kicked off with a leisurely kayaking excursion in calm waters, followed by presentations by Certified Photography Instructor Lisa Hornak and our guest speaker, Sommelier Amanda McCrossin.
But the fun didn’t stop there! We gathered for cocktail hour on the bow as Naturalist Patrick MacQuarrie narrated our transit through the Lower Monumental Lock. Dinner followed, and we finished the most wonderful first day with our first recap. What an exceptional day!
