The Columbia River Gorge is a

canyon A canyon (; archaic British English spelling: ''cañon''), gorge or chasm, is a deep cleft between escarpments or cliffs resulting from weathering and the erosive activity of a river over geologic time scales. Rivers have a natural tendency t ...

of the

Columbia River The Columbia River (Upper Chinook language, Upper Chinook: ' or '; Sahaptin language, Sahaptin: ''Nch’i-Wàna'' or ''Nchi wana''; Sinixt dialect'' '') is the largest river in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. The river headwater ...

in the

Pacific Northwest The Pacific Northwest (PNW; ) is a geographic region in Western North America bounded by its coastal waters of the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains to the east. Though no official boundary exists, the most common ...

of the United States. Up to deep, the canyon stretches for over as the river winds westward through the

Cascade Range The Cascade Range or Cascades is a major mountain range of western North America, extending from southern British Columbia through Washington (state), Washington and Oregon to Northern California. It includes both non-volcanic mountains, such as m ...

, forming the boundary between the state of Washington to the north and

Oregon Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...

to the south. Extending roughly from the confluence of the Columbia with the Deschutes River (and the towns of Roosevelt, Washington, and Arlington, Oregon) in the east down to the eastern reaches of the Portland metropolitan area, the water gap furnishes the only navigable route through the Cascades and the only water connection between the

Columbia Plateau The Columbia Plateau is an important geology, geologic and geography, geographic region that lies across parts of the U.S. states of Washington (state), Washington, Oregon, and Idaho. It is a wide flood basalt plateau between the Cascade Range a ...

and the

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five Borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is ...

. It is thus that the routes of Interstate 84, U.S. Route 30, Washington State Route 14, and railroad tracks on both sides run through the gorge. A popular recreational destination, the gorge holds federally protected status as the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area and is managed by the Columbia River Gorge Commission and the U.S. Forest Service.

Description

The Columbia River, Klamath River in

northern California Northern California (commonly shortened to NorCal) is a geocultural region that comprises the northern portion of the U.S. state of California, spanning the northernmost 48 of the state's List of counties in California, 58 counties. Northern Ca ...

, Pit River in northern California, and

Fraser River The Fraser River () is the longest river within British Columbia, Canada, rising at Fraser Pass near Blackrock Mountain (Canada), Blackrock Mountain in the Rocky Mountains and flowing for , into the Strait of Georgia just south of the City of V ...

in southern

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

are the only four rivers connecting the watersheds on the east side of the

to the

. Each river has carved out a gorge through the Cascades. The Columbia River Gorge marks the state line between Oregon and Washington, and its wide range of elevation and precipitation makes it an extremely diverse and dynamic place. Ranging from to sea level, and transitioning from of precipitation to only in , the gorge provides the setting for a diverse collection of

ecosystem An ecosystem (or ecological system) is a system formed by Organism, organisms in interaction with their Biophysical environment, environment. The Biotic material, biotic and abiotic components are linked together through nutrient cycles and en ...

s, from the temperate rain forest on the western end—with an average annual precipitation of —to the eastern grasslands with average annual precipitation between , to a transitional dry woodland between Hood River and The Dalles. Isolated micro-habitats have allowed for many species of

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...

plants and animals to prosper, including at least 13 endemic wildflowers. The gorge transitions between temperate rainforest to dry grasslands in only , hosting a dramatic change in scenery while driving along Interstate 84. In the western, temperate rainforest areas, forests are marked by bigleaf maples, Douglas fir, and western hemlock, all covered in

epiphyte An epiphyte is a plant or plant-like organism that grows on the surface of another plant and derives its moisture and nutrients from the air, rain, water (in marine environments) or from debris accumulating around it. The plants on which epiphyt ...

s. In the transition zone (between Hood River and The Dalles), vegetation turns to Oregon white oak, ponderosa pine, and cottonwood. At the eastern end, the forests make way for expansive

grassland A grassland is an area where the vegetation is dominance (ecology), dominated by grasses (Poaceae). However, sedge (Cyperaceae) and rush (Juncaceae) can also be found along with variable proportions of legumes such as clover, and other Herbaceo ...

s, with occasional pockets of lodgepole and ponderosa pine.

Atmospheric pressure Atmospheric pressure, also known as air pressure or barometric pressure (after the barometer), is the pressure within the atmosphere of Earth. The standard atmosphere (symbol: atm) is a unit of pressure defined as , which is equivalent to 1,013. ...

differentials east and west of the Cascades create a

wind tunnel A wind tunnel is "an apparatus for producing a controlled stream of air for conducting aerodynamic experiments". The experiment is conducted in the test section of the wind tunnel and a complete tunnel configuration includes air ducting to and f ...

effect in the deep cut of the gorge, generating winds that make it a popular

windsurfing Windsurfing is a wind-propelled water sport that is a combination of sailing and surfing. It is also referred to as "sailboarding" and "boardsailing", and emerged in the late 1960s from the Californian aerospace and surf culture. Windsurfing gain ...

and kiteboarding location. It also creates the right conditions for snow and ice storms during the winter months which also draw very cold east winds toward the mouth of the gorge on the west end. The gorge is a popular destination for

hiking A hike is a long, vigorous walk, usually on trails or footpaths in the countryside. Walking for pleasure developed in Europe during the eighteenth century. Long hikes as part of a religious pilgrimage have existed for a much longer time. "Hi ...

, biking,

sightseeing Tourism is travel for pleasure, and the commercial activity of providing and supporting such travel. UN Tourism defines tourism more generally, in terms which go "beyond the common perception of tourism as being limited to holiday activity o ...

fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment (Freshwater ecosystem, freshwater or Marine ecosystem, marine), but may also be caught from Fish stocking, stocked Body of water, ...

, and

water sports Water is an inorganic compound with the chemical formula . It is a transparent, tasteless, odorless, and nearly colorless chemical substance. It is the main constituent of Earth's hydrosphere and the fluids of all known living organisms ...

. The area is known for its high concentration of

waterfall A waterfall is any point in a river or stream where water flows over a vertical drop or a series of steep drops. Waterfalls also occur where meltwater drops over the edge of a tabular iceberg or ice shelf. Waterfalls can be formed in seve ...

s, with over 90 on the Oregon side of the gorge alone. Many are along the Historic Columbia River Highway, including the notable Multnomah Falls. Trails and day use sites are maintained by the Forest Service and many Oregon and Washington

state park State parks are parks or other protected areas managed at the sub-national level within those nations which use "Federated state, state" as a political subdivision. State parks are typically established by a state to preserve a location on accou ...

Geology

The Columbia River Gorge began forming as far back as the

Miocene The Miocene ( ) is the first epoch (geology), geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about (Ma). The Miocene was named by Scottish geologist Charles Lyell; the name comes from the Greek words (', "less") and (', "new") and mea ...

(roughly 17 to 12 million years ago), and continued to take shape through the

Pleistocene The Pleistocene ( ; referred to colloquially as the ''ice age, Ice Age'') is the geological epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from to 11,700 years ago, spanning the Earth's most recent period of repeated glaciations. Before a change was fin ...

(2 million to 700,000 years ago). During this period the

was forming, which slowly moved the Columbia River's delta about north to its current location. Although the river slowly eroded the land over this period of time, the most drastic changes took place at the end of the last ice age when the Missoula Floods cut the steep, dramatic walls that exist today, flooding the river as high up as Crown Point. This quick erosion left many layers of

volcanic rock Volcanic rocks (often shortened to volcanics in scientific contexts) are rocks formed from lava erupted from a volcano. Like all rock types, the concept of volcanic rock is artificial, and in nature volcanic rocks grade into hypabyssal and me ...

exposed.

Ecology

The Columbia River Gorge is home to a number of plant species that are endemic or found mostly in the gorge and surrounding areas, including '' Heterotheca villosa'', '' Lomatium columbianum'', ''Lomatium klickitatense'', '' Lomatium suksdorfii'', '' Penstemon barrettiae'', and '' Primula poetica''.

History

The gorge has supported human habitation for over 13,000 years. Evidence of the Folsom and Marmes people, who crossed the Bering land bridge from

Asia Asia ( , ) is the largest continent in the world by both land area and population. It covers an area of more than 44 million square kilometres, about 30% of Earth's total land area and 8% of Earth's total surface area. The continent, which ...

, were found in archaeological digs. Excavations near Celilo Falls, a few miles east of The Dalles, show humans have occupied this

salmon Salmon (; : salmon) are any of several list of commercially important fish species, commercially important species of euryhaline ray-finned fish from the genera ''Salmo'' and ''Oncorhynchus'' of the family (biology), family Salmonidae, native ...

-fishing site for more than 10,000 years. The gorge has provided a transportation corridor for thousands of years. Native Americans would travel through the gorge to trade at Celilo Falls, both along the river and over Lolo Pass on the north side of

Mount Hood Mount Hood, also known as Wy'east, is an active stratovolcano in the Cascade Range and is a member of the Cascade Volcanic Arc. It was formed by a subduction zone on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast and rests in the Pacific N ...

. In 1805, the route was used by the Lewis and Clark Expedition to reach the Pacific. Early European and American settlers subsequently established steamboat lines and railroads through the gorge. Today, the

BNSF Railway BNSF Railway is the largest freight railroad in the United States. One of six North American Class I railroads, BNSF has 36,000 employees, of track in 28 states, and over 8,000 locomotives. It has three Transcontinental railroad, transcontine ...

runs freights along the Washington side of the river, while its rival, the

Union Pacific Railroad The Union Pacific Railroad is a Railroad classes, Class I freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Pacific is the second largest railroad in the United Stat ...

, runs freights along the Oregon shore. Until 1997, Amtrak's '' Pioneer'' also used the Union Pacific tracks. The Portland segment of the ''

Empire Builder The ''Empire Builder'' is a daily long-distance passenger train operated by Amtrak between Chicago and either Seattle or Portland via two sections west of Spokane. Introduced in 1929, it was the flagship passenger train of the Great North ...

'' uses the BNSF tracks that pass through the gorge. The Columbia River Highway, built in the early 20th century, was the first major paved highway in the

. Shipping was greatly simplified after Bonneville Dam and The Dalles Dam submerged the gorge's major rapids such as Celilo Falls, a major salmon fishing site for local Native Americans until the site's submergence in 1957. Damaged trees from Eagle Creek fire as seen in May 2023

Damaged trees from Eagle Creek fire as seen in May 2023

In November 1986,

Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...

made the gorge the second U.S. National Scenic Area and established the Columbia River Gorge Commission as part of an interstate compact. The experimental designation came in lieu of being recognized as a

national park A national park is a nature park designated for conservation (ethic), conservation purposes because of unparalleled national natural, historic, or cultural significance. It is an area of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that is protecte ...

, which would require the existing industries in towns along the river to relocate. The designation was initially opposed by residents fearing government encroachment, due to restrictions in the plan for items such as building paint colors, and was also opposed by conservationists who feared additional development in the region. In 2004, the gorge became the namesake of the Columbia Gorge American Viticultural Area, a area located on both sides of the river. In fall 2017, the Eagle Creek Fire burned in the gorge for three months, consuming almost . It reached 100% containment on November 30, 2017, but was not yet completely out.

Gallery

References

External links

U.S. Forest Service
- Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area
Columbia River Gorge Commission''The'' ''Gorge'' Magazine
*
Portland State University Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area Collection
��contains research material used to write the book Planning a New West: The Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area
The River They Saw
Documentary produced by '' Oregon Public Broadcasting'' {{Coord, 45, 42, 17, N, 121, 47, 30, W, display=title, region:US-WA_type:river_source:dewiki Archaeological sites in Oregon Archaeological sites in Washington (state) Valleys of Oregon Valleys of Washington (state) Protected areas of Clark County, Washington Columbia River Protected areas of Hood River County, Oregon Protected areas of Klickitat County, Washington Protected areas of Multnomah County, Oregon National scenic areas Protected areas of Sherman County, Oregon Protected areas of Skamania County, Washington Protected areas of Wasco County, Oregon Mount Hood National Forest Landforms of Clark County, Washington Landforms of Hood River County, Oregon Landforms of Klickitat County, Washington Landforms of Multnomah County, Oregon Landforms of Sherman County, Oregon Landforms of Skamania County, Washington Landforms of Wasco County, Oregon United States Forest Service protected areas Water gaps of Washington (state) Water gaps of the United States