Boulder slams into the bridge over Multnomah Falls

Multnomah Falls the day after

Multnomah Falls, on the Oregon side of the Columbia Gorge, is listed as the second tallest year-round waterfall in the United States. The falls drops in two major steps; the upper falls of 542 feet, then a gradual 9 foot drop in elevation to the lower part of the falls, which drops 69 feet, listing a total of 620 feet.

Unfortunately, water is not the only thing that falls.  An occasional boulder may also careen through space, slamming into the pool at the bottom of the upper falls, or into the Benson Bridge which spans the space between the upper and lower falls.  Yesterday a boulder did a lot of damage to the bridge.  If you look close at the photo above, you can see the yellow caution tap, flapping in the mist bellowing from the falls.  Here is a close up of the bridge.

 

Damage after boulder drops from falls into the bridge 01/09/14

I happened to speak to a New York State Department of Transportation Civil Engineer while I visited today, who told me the bridge is structurally sound.  “Well, let’s see,” she said, “this is January, so I’ll bet they’ll have that repaired by the beginning of summer.”

“Really?” I asked her.  “May I quote you?”

She laughed, but her husband, a history professor, nodded.  “She knows bridges.”

“What about you?” I asked.  “May I quote you, too?”

“I don’t know much about bridges,” he said.

“Well, historically, bridges are often repaired, right?”

“Yes.”

There you have it.  An accurate quote from both a civil engineer and a history professor.  We’ll have our bridge back to normal in no time.  I think my work here is done.

Until then, the trail to the bridge is closed, but you can still see the falls hurling through space, hear the thunder of the cascading water, and feel the mist upon your face.

Up the River without a Paddle

If you have vacation time, and you are looking for something to do for the day, sailing up the Columbia Gorge on a tall ship might be the perfect trip for you.  Board either the Lady Washington or the Hawaiian Chieftain and imagine yourself back in the 1800s.

Lady Washington at dock in Washougal, WA with Hawaiian Chieftain astern

We had our choice of sailing aboard either ship, and although we'd sailed on the  Lady before, we chose her again.

Brig Lady Washington

We Our trip would take us from Washougal, Washington up the Columbia River, through the Bonneville Dam Locks, under the Bridge of the Gods, and end at Stevenson, Washington. Bruce, Ryan and I met at 6am at Starbucks and drove up the Columbia Gorge to drop off a car, and back to Washougal to board.

You see the gangway beside the ship.  That must be hauled in when preparing to get underway.

And we were off, with the Hawaiian Chieftain astern.  The Columbia Gorge is a beautiful drive on either the Oregon or the Washington side, but neither compare with sailing up the river.

Hawaiian Chieftain in the sights of the Lady Washington Stern Chaser

I've been loading some video and hope to have some raising the sails in the next post,