Columbia River Highway's water wonders make it a magnificent 20 miles

I've visited the Columbia River Gorge several times but never managed to tour what many tourists have touted over the years as the most scenic part of this geologic wonder. That would be the stretch on the Oregon side beginning at Cascade Locks (near the Bonneville Lock and Dam) and ending at Crown Point (Vista House) on the historic, narrow, winding Columbia River Highway.

I began my 20-or-so-mile jaunt by first visiting the Bonneville Lock and Dam and fish hatchery just off Interstate 84 in Oregon, west of Hood River. I accessed the dam from the Washington side of the Columbia River by driving across the Bridge of the Gods to reach I-84 westbound on the Oregon side (well worth the 75-cent toll).

The rest of my journey would take me slightly farther west of the dam to the I-84 offramp to the historic Columbia River Highway, which provides public access to a series of some of the most spectacular waterfalls in the country (including the famous Multnomah Falls).

Vista House is the most westerly and highest vantage point on the highway, perched on a 733-foot-high promontory at Crown Point State Park overlooking the Gorge.

Angel Williams, manager of the gift store at the Oregon State fish hatchery at Bonneville Lock and Dam, told me that if I planned to write about Herman the Sturgeon -- one of the dam's most popular tourist attractions -- to be sure to get the facts straight.

Herman is a captive white sturgeon whose age, weight and length, she said, often are misrepresented, along with who operates and maintains the sturgeon viewing area (and the gift store) near the fish hatchery at the Bonneville Locks and Dam.

Herman, as it turns out, is old for a fish -- probably close to 60. He looks much older -- prehistoric almost. Guesses are that the giant weighs in at around 500 pounds and is about 9 to 10 feet long, with a face only a mother could love. Visitors at the below-water-level, glass viewing area can watch the beast gracefully swim about the pond and can get nose-to-nose with the odd-looking fish against the glass if he happens to cruise by.

Captured in the Columbia in 1998, Herman lives a quiet, cloistered life in the beautiful, well-maintained pond operated by the Oregon Wildlife Heritage Foundation. His pond mates are smaller sturgeon and a bevy of giant rainbow trout.

The white sturgeon is the largest freshwater species in the country and, along with the green sturgeon, is native to the Columbia. Herman's kind is known to reach 20 feet long, weigh over 1,000 pounds and live past 100. Those statistics means Herman is, well, middle-age, sort of.

JEFF LARSEN / P-I

A bald eagle flies among the power lines at Bonneville Dam.

The fish hatchery, operated by the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, is accessible to the public as well. But really, who wants to watch salmon fingerlings dart around in their pools when a 500-pound prehistoric monster is swimming around in a pond next door? The gift store, of course, plays off Herman's growing tourism status in the region with some gift items, but also features an interesting mix of fish and wildlife art, wood carvings and, of course, an espresso stand.

Construction of the first phase of the Bonneville Lock and Dam -- now operated by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers -- began as a New Deal project in 1933 and was completed in the 1938. It was the first of eight lock and dam projects on the river. The second phase of the project was completed in 1982. The lock and dam were placed on the National Historic Registry in 1986.

The modern visitor center is accessed on the Oregon side from I-84 with plenty of free parking. Visitors actually drive across the face of a section of the dam to reach the visitor center, which is centrally situated in the project, adjacent to the fish ladders built to aid salmon spawning runs during the year. Displays illustrate not only the history of the dam itself, but the culture and heritage of the region.

Visitors seem to quickly gravitate to the glass-enclosed fish ladder viewing area that is several floors below the interpretive area by elevator. The children I saw were mesmerized as they watched through the glass as several salmon swam against the strong current to bypass the unnatural barrier to their spawning grounds.

JEFF LARSEN / P-I

The approximately 9-foot-long, 500-pound, 60-year-old Herman the Sturgeon is one of the Bonneville Dam's most popular tourist attractions.

Sea Lions also watch the salmon spawning habits. Recently several have been spotted by game officials (and me) hanging out around the fish ladder, waiting for the spring salmon migration to begin.

Dam officials warn that security measures change practically daily, so they advise calling ahead to determine public accessibility.

I've seen dozens of photographs of Multnomah Falls over the years, but none compares to seeing it in person. More than 2 million visitors pay homage each year to the majesty of the falls, which is the second-highest year-round falls in the country. To be able to photograph the falls during early spring, when the water flow is near its most dynamic, was exciting.

Generated by underground springs, the torrent drops 620 feet from its origin on Larch Mountain, past five exposed Yakima Basalt flows. The Benson Bridge, fashioned by Italian stonemasons, is so close to the falls that a number of visitors I saw carried umbrellas for cover from the spray. The bridge is just a short hike from the lodge.

Multnomah Falls Lodge, built in 1925 at the base of the falls on the historic Columbia River Highway, houses a U.S. Forest Service interpretive center, an espresso stand, public restrooms, a dining room, lounge, snack bar and a great view from your dining table. No overnight accommodations are provided.

Eight waterfalls, including Multnomah, are accessible to the public along that short stretch of the Columbia. The 176-foot-high Horsetail Falls, just east of Multnomah Falls, I thought was the most beautiful and dramatic of the bunch at this time of year. Visitors stopped in droves to take photographs.

Vista House at Crown Point is reputed to be the most photographed structure in the Gorge. The best photographic vantage point is about a mile west of the structure at the Portland Women's Forum State Scenic Viewpoint.

Vista House originally was built as an observatory at the highest point on the highway to commemorate completion of the route from Portland to Hood River, called by promoters in 1916, "the greatest highway in America." By the way, drive "the greatest highway in America" with care. Roads were narrower back then because cars were narrower.

The closest lodging is at the Best Western Columbia River Inn at Cascade Locks, 12 miles east of Multnomah Falls and 34 miles east of Portland. Hood River, 28 miles east of Cascade Locks, offers a variety of lodging options as well.

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