September 14, 2003

Day 26 - Hells Canyon

Near Half.com to rim of Joseph Canyon

Slept in late this morning then re-organized car and re-packed everything to clean up and make more compact. Left camp around noon and headed for the Hells Canyon Overlook. This is also the beginning of the ancestral home of the Nez Perce Indians which I will be crossing through for the next 3 days.

Funny thing about traveling no matter where you are no matter how exotic and different and new it is someone else's same old hum drum place they have lived in forever. This perspective gains respect for those who have come before and the choices they have made. Another thing is how you hear of a place and get there and are disappointed. It is the places I have never heard of that surprise and delight there are no expectations it is a new discovery. Hells Canyon is one of those famous well known must see places that was disappointing, at least my brief visit of it, it is a vast place that I did not have time to give proper credit.

Hells Canyon is the deepest canyon in America. It is deeper than the Grand Canyon however not nearly as dramatic as it is mostly dry brown grass along the slopes to the bottom. Snake River which runs along the bottom can not be seen from the top since the edges are more gradually sloped and cover a long distance, unlike the Grand Canyon with steeper sides one can look almost straight down. I spent a good 2 hours of difficult switch-back mountain driving to the overlook and basically didn't see a whole lot probably a helicopter, raft or horse/hiking trip is the only way to do Hells Canyon this is not a car place (which is a good thing really).

Continued on to the town of Joseph in the valley of the Wallowa Mountains which are called the Swiss Alps of the West. They are majestic, and snow caped and sharp like the Swiss Alps with a big vertical drop, however not nearly as vast. Joseph is an art community but it is Sunday and everything is closed so I continue on. See some Nez Perce Indians here for the first time.

North on Rt.3 and stop for the night at the Joseph Canyon Overlook. There is a wooded area about a quarter mile north of the Overlook where I park right on the valley rim and is one of the more majestic campsites of the trip. Around dusk a car stops along Rt.3 about 100 yards away I can only make out the outline of a pick-up truck, the engine turns off then someone starts making what sounds like moose calls but probably Elk in these parts. It must be some kind of signal and I remain silent and ready to ditch if they start shooting thinking I'm an Elk or worse but as another car starts coming along Rt.3 they start the engine and drive away. Who knows, for the entire trip this was the closest to harassment by another human I came.

Before a dinner of Kimchi and beef I walked down a steep trail to a rock overhang in the canyon and got some great pictures, which of course were since lost. Truly a beautiful place.

Posted by stbalbach at September 14, 2003 01:28 AM
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