Columbia and Snake Rivers

Sail to the mouth of the Columbia River at Astoria, Oregon. Explore the Lewis & Clark Interpretive Center at Cape Disappointment, where the explorers first sighted the Pacific in 1805. Enjoy views of the Cape Disappointment Lighthouse and the north jetty at the mouth of the Columbia River. At the Columbia River Maritime Museum, learn about the history of navigation on the river. Venture into downtown Astoria and explore this historic city, the first permanent United States settlement on the Pacific coast.

Please Note: Instead of visiting Astoria, April departures will visit Walla Walla, Washington, where we will drive through bright, rolling green fields of sprouting wheat, asparagus, and the famous Walla Walla sweet onions. Enjoy a special lunch and tasting at one of the city’s celebrated wineries.

Continue east on the Columbia River, which forms the border between Washington and Oregon. Deepening canyons signify the beginning of the 100-mile stretch known as the Columbia River Gorge. Learn about the region’s natural and cultural history at the Columbia Gorge Interpretive Center in Stevenson, Washington. Hike up the towering monolith of Beacon Rock, where Lewis and Clark camped on their way west and first noted the effect of the ocean’s tides on the river. Continue through the gorge to the city of Hood River, situated at the foot of majestic Mount Hood. Enjoy the fruits of the valley’s orchards at a farm-to-table lunch, then choose to visit the Western Antique Aeroplane & Automobile Museum (WAAAM), home to one of the largest collections of still-functioning antique cars and planes in the country, or explore the hiking through the historic Twin Mosier Tunnels where the trail is bordered by desert parsley, balsamroot, and colorful maples.

Today we cruise past some of the most scenic and geologically interesting stretches of the Columbia River, including the Columbia Plateau. Our onboard geologist and naturalists will illuminate the natural phenomena of the Columbian Basalt lava flows and the Missoula Floods, which sculpted the landscape between 13,000 and 15,000 years ago. We then sail up the Snake River, the Columbia River’s largest tributary, which is over a thousand miles long.

Explore the still waters of the Palouse River—a tributary of the Snake River—by Zodiac or kayak. Disembark to get up close to the steep basalt cliffs and the 200-foot cascade of Palouse Falls. The surrounding canyon is part of the Channeled Scablands, geographical features carved by the periodic Missoula Floods that once swept across the region. Relive heroic tales of the Corps of Discovery during informative talks, photograph stunning landscapes from the top deck, or unwind with a massage from our wellness specialist.

Cruise past the confluence of the Snake and Clearwater Rivers at Clarkston, Washington. Named for William Clark, the city is located directly across the river from Lewiston, Idaho—named for Meriwether Lewis. Travel by jet boat into spectacular Hells Canyon, North America’s deepest river gorge. As you zip across eddies and rapids, your knowledgeable driver will point out pictographs and petroglyphs created by the gorge’s first inhabitants, the Nez Percé tribe. Later, gather in the ship’s lounge to hear songs and stories performed by a local Nez Percé storyteller. In the evening, welcome a winemaker onboard and sip local vintages while learning about the characteristics of the Lewis-Clark Valley AVA, the newest American Viticultural Area (eastbound departures only).

Disembark in Clarkston and transfer to Lewiston, Idaho or Spokane, Washington for your flight home.