The Sea Lion headed east up the Columbia River in excellent conditions. She was cruising with a following wind in glorious sunshine, making her way along the cliffs of the channeled scablands of Eastern Washington off the starboard side of the vessel and Eastern Oregon off the port side. The Columbia River cuts a deep path through the Cascade Mountains and continues east towards the confluence with the Snake River before moving sharply to the north.
Our first day following In the Wake of Lewis and Clark found many of us on the bow of the Sea Lion enjoying warm temperatures, listening to the stories related by our natural history staff about the first exploration of this large river system nearly two hundred years ago. From tales of the past we learned of Lewis and Clarks' adventures, and wondered at how the river must have appeared to them so long ago.
Today we saw wineries, orchards, and the large farms that are the mainstay of this fertile land. It was Lewis who pointed out the richness of this country and to his credit, his predictions held a great deal of truth in the landscape we see today. As we continued our slow passage up river, we were also greeted by the migrating birds of fall and the changing colors of foliage along the banks of the river. Then much to our delight a lone wind surfer came roaring across the river enjoying a long pass just behind the stern of the Sea Lion.
