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Reviews
The Lewis and Clark Columbia River Water Trail: A Guide for Paddlers, Hikers, and Other Explorers
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By Keith G. Hay
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Timber Press, Portland, Ore., 2004. Photographs, maps, tables, bibliography, index. 240 pages. $19.95 paper.
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Reviewed by JoAnn Roe
Bellingham, Washington
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| Just in Time for the Lewis and Clark Bicentennial, this needed guide is for those paddlers and hikers who seek to duplicate the explorers' path to the sea. Keith G. Hay has identified all or most of the campsites along the Corps of Discovery's westbound and eastbound routes between today's Bonneville Dam and the Pacific Ocean. From meticulous research, he added tidbits about happenings at the sites. From a hunting camp at the down-river end of Deer Island north of St. Helens, for instance, the Corps' hunters shot seven deer but retrieved only four, "the others having been eaten entirely by the Voultures except the Skin," according to William Clark (p. 98). It is believed that the birds were not vultures but condors, now almost extinct. |
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The book is structured handily, with exact directions to access the sites, most by water, some only by land. Hay includes cautions and inside knowledge of potential problems or delights of each campsite as well as historical information surrounding it. Not forgotten are matters such as trail etiquette, safety, navigational information, and distances between sites. |
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A typical site description gives all the data any paddler will require: "Hornstra Beach. Facilities: Sandy beach. Activities: Launching only. Restrictions: none. From Cathlamet, proceed 3 miles north on Highway 4 toward Skamokawa to the bridge over the Elochoman River. Cross the bridge and turn left to follow the road 3.5 miles to the beach. This road continues through the Julia Butler Hansen National Wildlife Refuge to Skamokawa" (p. 136). A few pages earlier, Hay ties the site to the Corps' visit to the Hunting Islands — now part of the refuge — by quoting from a journal entry for November 7, 1805: "Several Canoes Came allong side with Skins, roots, Etc. to Sell, and had a temporary residence on this island, here we See great numbers of water fowls about those marshey Islands" (p. 132). Such interesting bits from Lewis's, Clark's, and others' journals greatly enliven the book. |
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The book begins with a brief statement about the Columbia River and the Corps of Discovery. Hay goes on to paint a picture of the lower Columbia River in 1805–1806 and today, describing the natural and human-made changes. The lower Columbia River consists of complex waterways among numerous islands, large and small. Hay tells of the Corps' need for assistance from local Indians to find the main channels through this maze of islands. By using Hay's book, today's paddlers will easily navigate the channels through the pleasant islands. Hikers may have to use more imagination and plan a route that uses the local ferries and bridges, although some of the sites are accessible only by water. |
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Hay concludes with information about the Lower Columbia Water Trail Committee, boat rentals, and how to dispose of trash as well as lists of animals and plants noted by the Corps and GPS navigation figures for the expedition's campsites. Surely this book is the best and most reliable guide to the Lower Columbia that any paddler or hiker could acquire. |
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