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John Day Dam, as seen from Giles French Park, Oregon.
Image taken May 24, 2005.
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John Day Dam ...
Last of the dams ...
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The John Day Dam consists of a navigation lock, spillway, powerhouse and fish-passage facilities on both shores. Construction of the John Day began in 1958 and was completed in 1971. At the time of it's completion, the John Day Dam Powerhouse was the second largest in the world. Completion of the John Day Dam marked the final step in harnessing the lower waters of the Columbia River.
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View from airliner ...
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Columbia River from Miller Island (left) to the John Day Dam (right), including the Deschutes River drainage and the wind turbines on the hills below Goldendale, Washington, as seen from airliner heading towards PDX.
Mid afternoon, clouds, gray, and drizzle.
Image taken April 24, 2012.
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Views ...
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John Day Dam, as seen pullout on Interstate 84.
Image taken October 2, 2006.
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John Day Dam.
John Day Dam, as seen from Giles French Park.
Image taken September 26, 2003.
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John Day Dam, as seen from Giles French Park, Oregon.
Image taken May 24, 2005.
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John Day Dam, as seen from near Giles French Park, Oregon.
Image taken May 24, 2005.
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Lewis and Clark and the John Day Dam ...
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Lewis and Clark's Campsite of October 21, 1805, was on the Washington side of the Columbia River, just downstream of today's John Day Dam.
Their return campsite of April 22, 1806, was also on the Washington side of the Columbia River but this time they camped upstream of today's John Day Dam.
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Campsite of October 21, 1805 ...
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Lewis and Clark's Campsite of October 21, 1805, was on the Washington side of the Columbia River, just downstream of today's John Day Dam.
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"... the river is Crouded with rocks in every direction, after Passing this dificult rapid to the mouth of a Small river on the Larboard Side [John Day River] 40 yards wide descharges but little water at this time, and appears to take its Sourse in the Open plains to the S.E. imediately above & below this little river comences a rapid which is crouded with large rocks in every direction, the pasage both crooked and dificuelt ... imediately below the last rapids there is four Lodges of Indians on the Stard. Side, proceeded on about two miles lower and landed and encamped near five Lodges of nativs, drying fish ..."
[Clark, October 21, 1805]
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" ... we went 32 miles and encamped at some Indian lodges, where we procured wood from the natives to cook with."
[Gass, October 21, 1805]
Lewis and Clark's previous campsite was upstream on the Washington side of the Columbia near the town of Roosevelt. Their next camp was downstream near Wishram, Washington.
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John Day Dam as seen from Washington State Highway 14.
On October 21, 1805, Lewis and Clark camped on the Washington State side of the Columbia River, just downstream of the John Day Dam.
Image taken June 6, 2012.
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John Day Dam as seen from Washington State Highway 14.
On October 21, 1805, Lewis and Clark camped on the Washington State side of the Columbia River, just downstream of the John Day Dam.
Image taken June 6, 2012.
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Campsite of April 22, 1806 ...
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Lewis and Clark's campsite of April 22, 1806, was on the Washington side of the Columbia River upstream of today's
John Day Dam. The route map [Moulton, vol.1, map#77] shows the camp to be almost directly across but yet a bit downstream of the mouth of the John Day River. Oddly, Lewis and Clark make no mention of the John Day River in their journals for this day [vol.7]. The map has two labels for April 22, 1806, but only one "camp flag". On the Washington State side of the river is labeled "Encamped 22d April 1806" and on the Oregon side is marked "Campd 22d April 1806". Their previous camp near the John Day Dam on October 21, 1805, was located downstream of the dam.
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"... we proceeded on up the river about 4 miles to a village of 7 mat Lodges. here our Chopunnish guide informed me that the next villg. was at Some distance and that we Could not get to it to night, and that there was no wood to be precured on this Side. a man offered to Sell us a horse for a Canoe. just at that moment we discovered one of our Canoes on the opposit Side. we concluded to Camp here all night with the expectation of precureing some horses.
..."
[Clark, April 22, 1806]
Lewis and Clark's previous campsite was located two miles upstream of Wishram, Washington at the base of Haystack Butte. Their camp of April 23, 1806, was upstream of Rock Creek, Washington.
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Columbia River as seen from upstream of John Day Dam.
On April 22, 1806, Lewis and Clark camped on the Washington State side of the Columbia River, just upstream of the John Day Dam, and nearly across from the mouth of the John Day River. The John Day River is just visible above the dam.
Image taken June 6, 2012.
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Campsite of Patrick Gass, April 21, 1806 ...
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On the night of April 21, 1806, Patrick Gass and three other men were on the Oregon side of the Columbia and did not make the river crossing to rejoin the main group camped on the Washington side near Haystack Butte. They camped on the Oregon side upstream of the mouth of the Deschutes River, closer to today's John Day Dam and the town of Rufus.
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"... At 10 o'clock we set out from the first narrows with 3 horses of our own and one we borrowed, and 2 canoes all loaded heavy. I went with three other men in the canoes, and had dome difficulty in passing the short narrows. About 3 in the afternoon we arrived at the great falls of Columbia, where we met with Captain Clarke and the men that were with him. Here we got another horse; carried our canoes and baggage round the falls and halted for dinner. ... We halted here two hours and then proceeded on again. The party that went by land had to leave the river, and take out to the hill a part of the way. I crossed with my canoe to the south side where there is the best water, and passed a large rock island, opposite to which the Sho-sho-ne river flows in from the south. We went on till dark, and then run our small canoe among some willows, and laid down to sleep. ..."
[Gass, April 21, 1806]
Patrick Gass re-joined the main unit of the Lewis and Clark group the next day and he spent the night of April 22 camped with them on the Washington side of the Columbia upstream of the John Day Dam. A canoe of Colter and Potts however spent the night of April 22 on the Oregon side of the Columbia.
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"... We proceeded on about 3 miles, when the wind became so violent, that we could not proceed any further, and halted and unloaded our canoes. Having remained here two hours, the other canoe came up, and we proceeded on though the wind was high and river rough. At sunset I crossed over, where the party going by land came in sight, and halted at a small village on the north side; but the other canoe kept on along the southern shore ..."
[Gass, April 22, 1806]
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Campsite of John Colter and John Potts, April 22, 1806 ...
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While Patrick Gass spent the night of April 21 on the Oregon side of the Columbia, he re-joined the main unit of the Lewis and Clark group on the 22nd. The canoe of Private John Colter and Private John Potts however couldn't make the crossing and they spent the night of April 22 on the Oregon side of the Columbia River, quite possibly near the mouth of the John Day River.
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"... after Capt Lewis Came up we proceeded on through a open ruged plain about 8 miles to a Village of 6 Houses on the river.
here we observed our 2 Canoes passing up on the opposit Side and the Wind too high for them to join us. I halted at the mouth of a run
above the village near Some good grass to let the horses graze and for the party to dine.
...
after we proceeded on up the river about 4 miles to a village of 7 mat Lodges.
here our Chopunnish guide informed me that the next villg. was at Some distance and that we Could not get to it to night, and that there was no wood to be precured on this Side. ...
just at the moment we discovered one of our Canoes on the opposit Side.
we concluded to Camp here all night with the expectation of precureing some horses. ...
[Clark, April 22, 1806]
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"Tuesday 22nd.
We proceeded on about 3 miles, when the wind became so violent, that we could not proceed any further, and halted and unloaded our canoes. Having remained here two hours, the other canoe came up, and we proceeded on though the wind was high and river rough. At sunset I crossed over, where the party going by land came in sight, and halted at a small village on the north side; but the other canoe kept on along the southern shore ..."
[Gass, April 22, 1806]
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"Wednesday 23rd.
We had a cloudy morning. I went also by water to day, and we had very laborious work in getting along. In the evening we met the party at a large village of the Wal-la-waltz nation, on the north side of the river; where the other canoe had also arrived. Here we halted, unloaded the canoes and encamped. ..."
[Gass, April 23, 1806]
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Union Pacific ...
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Union Pacific 4105 heading east, passing the John Day Dam.
View from driving Interstate 84.
Image taken September 29, 2006.
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- Cliff Park, Washington ...
- Cliffs ...
- Giles French Park Oregon ...
- Lake Umatilla ...
- North Bank Road ...
- North Shore Treaty Access Fishing Site ...
- Rufus, Oregon ...
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Cliff Park, Washington ...
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Cliff Park lies on the Washington side of the Columbia River below the John Day Dam, and presents a great view upstream of the dam, and downstream of Mount Hood, Oregon.
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John Day Dam from Cliff Park, Washington.
Image taken April 24, 2004.
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Looking downstream towards Mount Hood, Oregon, from Cliff Park, Washington.
Image taken April 24, 2004.
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Cliff behind Cliff Park, Washington.
Image taken April 24, 2004.
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Cliffs ...
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Henry Landis wrote in "A Geographic Dictionary of Washington" (1917, Washington Geological Survey Bulletin No.17):
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"Cliffs ... a town on Columbia River and the S.P. & S. Ry., in south central Klickitat County; elevation, 179 ft."
Edmund S. Meany wrote in "Origin of Washington Geographic Names" (1923, University of Washington Press):
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"Cliffs ... a railroad station on the bank of the Columbia River, in Klickitat County. Names after a succession of cliffs in that vicinity."
Robert Hitchman wrote in "Place Names of Washington" (1985, Washington State Historical Society):
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"Cliffs (T3N R17E, Sec.30) ... Railroad station on north bank of Columbia River, 5 miles east of Maryhill, south central Klickitat County. The St. Paul & Spokane Railway [note: in error?, should be the Spokane, Portland & Seattle] named their station at this point for a series of cliffs along the river."
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1957 "Wasco Quadrangle" topographic map detail, showing the Columbia River (Lake Celilo) and Cliffs, Washington, and Rufus, Preachers Eddy, and Schofield Rapids, Oregon.
Original U.S. Geological Survey 1:62500, "Wasco Quadrangle, Oregon-Washington".
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Giles French Park, Oregon ...
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Giles French Park is a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Park which lies on the Oregon side of the Columbia River below the John Day Dam. The park was named after Giles French, a Sherman County historian and for many years the Publisher and Editor of the Sherman County Journal. Giles French was honored in the Oregon Newspaper Hall of Fame in 1994.
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Fishing platforms and Giles French Park, located below the John Day Dam, Oregon.
Image taken May 24, 2005.
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Lake Umatilla ...
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Lake Umatilla, the reservoir behind the John Day Dam, looking towards the mouth of the John Day River.
View from Washington State Highway 14.
Image taken April 24, 2004.
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North Bank Road ...
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The Great Northern Railway and Northern Pacific Railroad, competitors in the transcontinental business, launched the Spokane, Portland & Seattle Railway in 1905 and built a line along the north side of the Columbia River. This line was known as "The North Bank Railroad", "The North Bank Road", "Columbia River Scenic Route", and "The Northwests Own Railway". The tracks were started in October 1905 and completed in February 1908, with a celebration being held on March 11th at Sheridan Point upstream of the Fort Rains Blockhouse location. On March 19th, regular passenger service between Vancouver and Pasco was begun. The journey took eight hours.
STATIONS ON THE NORTH BANK
Between Vancouver and Pasco There Will Be 43 Stops.
"LYLE, Wash., July 24, 1907. -- (Special.) -- Chief Surgeon Irvine, of the North Bank Road says there will be 43 stations about five miles apart on the line between Vancouver and Pasco. From west to east the stations will appear on the new map as Image, Fisher, Bourne, Seal, Cruzatt, Butler, Cascades, Stevenson, Ash, Collins, Cooks, Hood, Bingen, Villa, Lyle, Skadat, Grandalles, Spedis, Avery, Timms, Columbus, Cliffs, Towal, Harbin, Fountain, Sanda, Roosevelt, Moonax, McCredie, Carley, Luzon, Sage, Patterson, Coolide, Gravel, Plymouth, Colbia, Mottinger, Tomar, Yellepit, Hoover and Finley. He also reports the track is being blasted as fast as laid."
Source:
"Morning Oregonian", July 25, 1907, courtesy Historic Oregon Newspapers Archives, University of Oregon Libraries, 2019.
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North Shore Treaty Fishing Access Site, Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission ...
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All four Columbia River treaty tribes enjoy fishing rights along the Columbia from the Bonneville to McNary dams. This 147-mile stretch of the river is called Zone 6.
The Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission (CRITFC) operates and maintains 31 fishing sites (2015, Note: the website map only shows 30 sites) in Zone 6. These sites were set aside by Congress to provide fishing locations to Indian fishers whose traditional fishing grounds were inundated behind dams.
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"For fisheries management purposes, the 292-mile stretch of the Columbia River that creates the border between Washington and Oregon is divided into six zones. Zones 1-5 are between the mouth of the river and Bonneville Dam, a distance of 145 miles. Oregon and Washington manage the commercial fisheries that occur in these zones. Zone 6 is an exclusive treaty Indian commercial fishing area. This exclusion is for commercial fishing only. Non-commercial sports fishers may still fish in this stretch of the river."
[Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission website, 2016]
The Zone 6 sites include
19 Treaty Fishing Access sites
(Bonneville,
Wyeth,
White Salmon,
Stanley Rock,
Lyle,
Dallesport,
Celilo,
Maryhill,
Rufus,
Preacher's Eddy,
North Shore,
LePage Park,
Pasture Point,
Roosevelt Park,
Pine Creek,
Threemile Canyon,
Alderdale,
Crow Butte,
and Faler Road),
five "In-lieu" sites
(Cascade Locks,
Wind River,
Cooks,
Underwood, and
Lone Pine),
two "Shared-use" sites
(Avery and
Sundale Park, for both Tribal use and Public use),
and four "Unimproved" sites with no services
(Goodnoe,
Rock Creek,
Moonay,
and
Aldercreek).
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Rufus, Oregon ...
Rufus is the small Oregon community which lies two miles below the John Day Dam.
[More]
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Columbia River as seen from downstream of John Day Dam, at Rufus, Oregon.
Image taken October 2, 2006.
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From the Journals of Lewis and Clark ...
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Clark, October 21, 1805 ...
Lewis, April 22, 1806 ...
Clark, April 22, 1806 ...
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