Pat Courtney Gold

The Long Narrows

The Forgotten Geographic and Cultural Wonder

FOR MORE THAN 12,000 YEARS, the Columbia River People lived along the Wauna (Columbia River). Wauna is the Columbia River People's name for the river and is more than a name; it is a living entity. It can be compared to an honored Elder who has been a part of us for generations. Wauna provides nourishment, connects us with our upriver People, and shares its songs with us. The songs change with the seasons and offer comfort to us. Wauna's gurgles, roars, and river laps are our river songs.

Approximately fifteen miles upriver from The Dalles area is the ghost of Celilo Falls. The area from The Dalles upriver for approximately eight miles was a geographical area called "The Long Narrows" or sometimes "Five Mile Rapids." The basalt rock formation in that place forced the mighty Columbia River "to turn on its side," roaring and churning through the channel.¹ From about 1,000 feet wide, Wauna was then forced into a channel approximately 180 feet wide. The eddies along this area, called The Narrows, were popular fishing places. There were more fisherpeople lined up there, almost shoulder to shoulder, than at Celilo Falls. As a result, The Narrows was the center of commerce, where people traded processed salmon, the "gold" of all trade items.

In 1957, The Dalles Dam flooded these traditional homelands of the Columbia River People. Both Celilo Falls and The Narrows sustained the People and the salmon, and the dam devastated the salmon and obliterated forever the Native lifestyle and the beautiful, unique basalt rock formations along the Columbia River.

The author's ancestors lived at the fishing village Wac'uqs, located on the left bank about a half-mile downriver from this view, near The Dalles along The Narrows.

OHS neg., OrHi 21646

Much is known about Celilo Falls, but perhaps the greater fishing sites and a larger trade market existed along The Narrows. "The late Long Narrows, where the Columbia River turned on its side," wrote Chuck Williams (Cascade), "was the best fishing spot of all. Countless salmon filled the eddies around these constrictions."² Historically, The Narrows attracted more fishing people than Celilo, and the many tons of salmon caught there were also traded in the area.

The Narrows was a spectacular sight, where a stretch of basalt rock, with its rough, twisty texture, channeled the Columbia River into a narrow, swift-flowing river. The geological history of The Narrows is a dramatic one. Fifteen million years ago, there were many volcanoes, floods, and lava flows in what is now Eastern Oregon, including The Dalles area. Huge lava flows erupted from large fissures in the earth. "One of the biggest flows ... contains about seven times the volume of Mount Rainier."³

These rivers of lava — the hot liquid basalt — occurred intermittently throughout millions of years from 15 to 12 million years ago. Layers of basalt were deposited, and layers can be seen today in areas around the Columbia River Gorge. The Narrows were about 95 percent basalt rock, with areas of smooth, swirly lava formations. The Wascos, who lived in this area, had Coyote legends about the lava formations. Coyote is part god, human, clown, teacher, and buffoon.

The Narrows and the dramatic basalt lava rocks on both sides of Wauna are described in the legend "Coyote and the Badger."

OHS neg., OrHi 5981

Long time ago, Coyote was walking along the south side of Wauna when he spotted some motion ahead of him. His curiosity got the best of him, and he quickly ran to see what was going on. Badger was dipnetting and growling at his bad luck. Coyote watched and commented on Badger's technique, which angered the bad tempered Badger. "Mind your own business, Coyote," snarled Badger. But, minding other people's business is Coyote's business. "Get lost, Coyote," said Badger, as he moved to a new fishing site. Coyote followed, much to Badger's annoyance. Badger quickly lost his temper and, snapping and snarling, attacked Coyote. Coyote is nimble, and quickly maneuvered out of Badger's way. Badger's claws left deep scars in the rocks. This sparring went on, up the river, and Coyote started tiring. Badger swung his huge claws at Coyote, who tried to jump out of his reach but was tired and too slow. Badger's huge curved claws caught Coyote's stomach, ripping it and exposing Coyote's intestines. The two continued their battle as they moved up and down Wauna. Eventually, they both tired. Coyote resumed his walk up the river, leaving Badger to resume his fishing and grumbling.

Up to the day before the gates closed on The Dalles Dam, you could see Coyote's entrails zigging and zagging along Wauna with Badger's claw "scars" in the rocks. That is the Wasco story of the lava formation near The Narrows.

THE COLUMBIA RIVER PEOPLE lived here for more than twelve thousand years. "Radio-carbon dating indicates that Indians were living at the head of ... Long Narrows probably 11,000 years ago," explained archaeologist L.S. Cressman.⁴ Along the Washington side of Wauna was probably the "nation's longest continuously occupied village site."⁵ Wakemap Mound, now known as Horse Thief Lake, has a history of approximately two thousand years. Petroglyphs and rock art are plentiful. The Wasco and Wishram people call this place Nixlúidix. Chuck Williams described a nearby site:

Across the river at Five Mile Locks was a similar mound, named the Road Cut Site because highway, railroad and canal engineers got there before archaeologists. Dr. L.S. Cressman excavated this stratified mound, using carbon-14 dating, found that the site had been continuously occupied for more than ten thousand years! Native Americans probably had lived near the Long Narrows even earlier, but the most recent deluge would have removed earlier artifacts — along with their makers.⁶

The Wasco People called this place Win'quat.

This Long Narrows region was a major commerce site and reflected a rich civilization. Trails radiated from there in all directions away from the river, and up and down Wauna. The lifestyles of the People included salmon fishing and commerce. There were two major trade markets in this area: Nixlúidix, a Wishram town located on the north side of Wauna, near what is now Horse Thief Park, and Win'quat, a Wasco town on the south side of Wauna. The Wasco fishing village, Wac'uqs, is nearby and continues to be used as a fishing site. These markets were the financial center of the area, and the Chinookan Wasco nations were very wealthy.

Fishing was very important to the Columbia River nations who gathered at Celilo and The Narrows to harvest the plentiful salmon. This was a mainstay of the Native way of life. Sacred ceremonies were held honoring the salmon that were so important to the Native cultures.

For canoe travel, the river was like Interstate 84 is today for cars. Thousands of people came to trade at these locations during the spring and fall Chinook runs. This was the perfect location for salmon trade due to the dry east winds. To preserve the salmon, it was filleted and hung on scaffolds to dry. It dried in approximately three days. It was then pounded into a coarse powder and pressed into baskets lined with cured salmon skin, which were stored for family uses or for trade. The wealth of these markets was the powdered salmon, "killuk" in the Kiksht language. The pounding forced air out of the salmon, and the killuk could be stored for up to one year. This was a concentrated protein. Many Native people traveled hundreds of miles for this food, which could be a staple in their diet for many months to come. Many trade items were standardized; the baskets used for trade were of two sizes: a quart size and a gallon size. Meriwether Lewis and William Clark described the baskets of dried salmon in 1805:

when full they Secure the open part with the fish Skins across which they fasten tho' the loops of the basket that part very Securely, and then on a Dry Situation they Set those baskets the Corded part up, their common Custom is to Set 7 as close as they can Stand and 5 on top of them, and secure them with mats which is raped around them and made fast with cords and Covered also with mats, those 12 baskets of from 90 to 100 w. [pounds] each form a Stack.⁷

Bertram C. Towne made this photograph in about 1890. The author recalls: "I remember my dad, my uncle, and my aunt fishing along The Narrows. It was difficult walking on the jagged, uneven rocks."

Courtesy Terry Teodtemeier

These markets were more than an economic gathering. The People came together for social gatherings, families came and were united, dancing and songs were shared, young people found prospective partners, and gambling games continued during the nights. This area was a major communication center, where these cultures shared stories, ideas, and politics.

The author notes: "The Long Narrows, Wauna, and the basalt rocks are pictured here as we remember them. The white color on the cliffs on the right bank are due to the spring high water. In the fall, the water is low, as in this picture."

OHS neg., OrHi 21649

Coming from many directions, people brought various articles that were used in trade. From downriver, they brought smoked clams and mussels, dried sea vegetables, whale and cedar items, dentalia and other shells, beads, canoes, plaited cedar baskets, and, after the voyagers arrived, Hudson's Bay Company blankets. People from the south brought twined baskets, obsidian, wocas (water lily seed), Indian tobacco, and slaves. From the Plateau and further east, traders brought animal hides, robes, clothing, dried buffalo and elk meat, dried kouse, pipestone, feathers, and, after the mid-1700s, horses and plains-style garments. Nez Perce and other eastern Plateau Tribes traveled to the Missouri River to trade items from the Columbia River trade sites to midwestern tribes.

The canyon near Nixlúidix (now Horse Thief Lake / Columbia Hills Park) was filled with hundreds of petroglyphs and pictographs, images created by Native people over thousands of years. Some may have been created by visitors to the trade markets, but most were undoubtedly created by local Wishram and Wasco people. Some images recorded figures in their immediate environment, such as people, mountain sheep, birds, and water beings. When my mother was a child, she and her friends used to race up and down the canyon, looking at the petroglyphs, amazed that Tsagagalal watched them as they ran past Spedis Owl, Mountain Goat image, and Tchik-i-un, or river monster. Unfortunately for all of us, The Dalles Dam flooded and buried forever thousands and thousands of art pieces on the basalt cliffs lining the Columbia River.

For generations, the basalt rocky cliffs along the Wauna were a challenge to the fisherpeople, cantilevered over the boiling rapids, with their dipnets in the eddies. Tons of chinook salmon were caught using this method. This photograph of Downes Channel was published in the Oregonian on September 14, 1952.

OHS neg., OrHi 98034

In 1855, the Wasco and Wishram nations signed a treaty with the United States Government and were forced away from The Narrows to reservations — the Wascos to the Warm Springs Reservation in arid central Oregon and the Wishram to the Yakama Reservation in central Washington.⁸ The change was traumatic, as people were moved from their wealthy social status and economic center along Wauna to the arid regions, where government officials forced them to become farmers and Christians. Fortunately, in the treaty, our leaders reserved the right to fish at all usual and accustomed fishing sites.⁹ Our people went back to Wauna when the salmon were running and at other times for social gatherings.

Our history defines who we are. For generations and generations, my ancestors lived at the ancient fishing site, Wac'uqs, near The Long Narrows. Remnants of this site can still be seen near the Shilo Inn at The Dalles. While The Dalles Dam was built, some of our buildings at Wac'uqs were moved and other buildings destroyed. What remains are the wagon barn, the small "treasure house" where valuables were stored, the horse stables, the Shaker Church — which collapsed in a recent snowstorm — and, surprisingly, an outhouse. The houses that we lived in were all destroyed.

My mother tells me stories of family fishing at The Narrows. When she was a child, about seven years old, her granddad caught a huge sturgeon whose head was the same size as her body. Granddad had to hitch up the two-horse team to the wagon in order to pull the sturgeon up onto the wagon to take it to market. My dad told a story of when he was fishing with an uncle near The Narrows. It was just after the spring run-off, when Wauna was at its fullest height. As they took the boat upriver to fish, they passed a small basalt rock island, where a small rabbit was hopping around a washed up shrub. Dad was worried about the rabbit's future, but Uncle said that the flood waters would go down soon, and the rabbit could then reach the shore.

Wac'uqs was built on basalt rocks, and Aunt's house was built on a basalt bluff. After the Chinook salmon were caught, Aunt and Mom would clean and butcher them. The kitchen window was open, overlooking the bluff and Wauna. They would toss the entrails out the window and before they could land in the sand or the river, seagulls or otters would rescue them for their meals.

Even though our family lived at Warm Springs in central Oregon, during fishing season we would drive to Wac'uqs. If it was spring and Wauna was at flood stage, Wac'uqs was surrounded by water and Uncle Joe would have to come in his boat to take us to their house. In the summer and fall, when the river was low, Dad could drive up the rocky road to the house. Due to the destruction of Wac'uqs during the construction of The Dalles Dam, Wac'uqs only exists in our memories.

In March 1957, when The Dalles Dam was built, it destroyed The Narrows and our fishing sites. For years afterwards, my mother would not go to Wac'uqs or The Dalles. Her pleasant memories of her childhood and of the family gatherings and fishing events were also lost forever. This was a great loss to the history of Oregon, as well. The Narrows was an exciting place during the spring and fall Chinook runs. Hundreds of People lined both sides of Wauna, all catching hundreds of pounds of fish per day per family. The excitement of catching salmon, the laughter up and down Wauna, the women gossiping as they cleaned and butchered salmon, and kids and dogs running and playing.

When there were no salmon, The Narrows had its own personality. In the spring, Wauna roared and splashed and could be heard a mile away. In the fall, Wauna was a quieter flow of rapids, swirling in eddies. Occasionally, we would see seals sticking their heads up to look at us. And always the seagulls meowing overhead. Weasels and on occasion badgers would venture out, scavenging for food.

How can one capture the smells, the sounds, the feelings of this experience? Now, one sees the dam, the bridge, motel, service station, and the ubiquitous black topping.

Because of construction of The Dalles Dam, archaeologists hastened to excavate and study the Wasco land around The Narrows. C. Melvin Aikens summarized their findings:

The specimens collected indicate that human use of the Roadcut Site was more or less continuous throughout the last ten millennia, though the intensity of occupation may have varied over time. The record for the last 2500 years was quite rich, with artistic and craft items added to the inventory of utilitarian specimens. Small stone sculptures, mortars and pestles with carved ornamental designs, carved bone, nicely shaped charm stones, and ornamental beads of bone and stone, together illustrate growing social and ceremonial concerns during the later occupation.¹⁰

Today, we are keeping our culture alive. We travel from the reservation back to Wauna to fish in our usual and accustomed fishing sites. We still process salmon, some by drying salmon in the traditional way, some by making the killuk, and some by using the modern method of pressure canning salmon. We visit the few petroglyphs that have been rescued and are now on display at the site of Nixlúidix.

My family carries on our fishing traditions at our ancient family village, Wac'uqs, where our ancestors lived and fished for generations. Though the fishing is not as good as it used to be, we still travel from the Warm Springs Reservation to fish during the spring and fall Chinook runs. Some of the elders still recall fishing at The Narrows and share their memories. Soon, they will pass on, and the memories of The Narrows will be forgotten. The Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs has a Cultural and Heritage Committee. One of the programs they have is recording memories of the Elders. Most of the focus is Celilo Falls and Celilo Village. There are a few elders who share their memories of The Narrows. Unfortunately, the stories do not — and cannot — capture the sight, the sound, and the smell of The Narrows; nor the sounds of the excitement of the People during the fishing seasons.

The Elders have preserved our language, our legends and stories, and many of our cultural traditions, such as basketry, fishnet making, dances, songs, and regalia. Some artists are doing contemporary art, using traditional techniques with modern technology such as Lillian Pitt's clay and bronze work, my yuppie Indian baskets and filmmaking to preserve our culture, and Archie Caldera's antler carvings of Native fishermen.

Like many cultures, our future is with the next generation. We must continue handing down our traditions. The Narrows has been an important part of our history, and we can carry the importance of The Narrows in our stories, through elders, parents, and our museum.

This essay is adapted from a talk Pat Courtney Gold gave at the "Celilo Stories" conference in The Dalles, Oregon, in March 2007.

Notes

^1. Chuck Williams, Bridge of the Gods, Mountain of Fire: A Return to the Columbia Gorge (New York and San Francisco: Friends of the Earth; White Salmon, Wash., and Petaluma, Cal.: Elephant Mountain Arts; in cooperation with the Columbia Gorge Environmental Center, Hood River, Oregon, 1980), 71.

^2. Ibid.

^3. Hill Williams, Restless Northwest: A Geological Story (Pullman: Washington State University Press, 2002), 95–96.

^4. L.S. Cressman, The Sandal and the Cave (Portland, Ore.: Beaver Books, 1962; reprint, Corvallis: OSU Press, 1980), 21–22.

^5. Williams, Bridge of the Gods, 71.

^6. Ibid.

^7. William Clark, October 22, 1805, in Gary E. Moulton, ed., The Journals of the Lewis & Clark Expedition (Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 1988), 5:324–25.

^8. Treaty with the Tribes of Middle Oregon.

^9. See Charles J. Kappler, ed., Indian Affairs: Laws and Treaties, vol. 2 (Washington, D.C.: GPO, 1904), 715, article 1, paragraph 4.

^10. C. Melvin Aikens, Archaeology of Oregon (Portland, Ore.: Bureau of Land Management, Department of the Interior, 1983), 715.

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