Scootney Reservoir Sunset – Othello, WA
After a chilly late afternoon / early evening Sandhill Crane photography shoot, we were looking for a rest area. The closest one was at Scootney Park. As we drove down to the lake, the sun had just gone down below the western hills. The red, orange, and pink colors covered the sky and reflected over the lake. The rest stop had to be delayed for a while while we captured the beautiful sunset. We sure got lucky!
Corfu Landslide – Saddle Mountains, Central Washington
This image was taken from Lower Crab Creek Road. It is a small section of the Corfu Landslide. Lower Crab creek is in the foreground. This part of the landslide was probably post Missoula Floods. It looked like the rocks at the base were not eroded, hence it probably occurred following the last floods. The land slide extends upward to the Saddle Mountains crest. A couple of weeks prior to taking this image, I was at the crest of the Mountain looking down. Refer to my post of 27 March.
Drumheller Channels – Othello, WA
The first thing I thought of when I looked up and saw this section of columnar basalt was that it was missing a tooth. Columnar basalt is very susceptible to water erosion because of its many fissures. The raging water of the Missoula Floods easily plucked the columns from their path.
Large Pothole – Drumheller Channels
Water did this! During the Missoula Floods water rushed through Drumheller Channels at about 55 miles per hour. The water level was about 200 feet above the mesa on the upper right corner of the photo. Through the Drumheller Channels the water followed multiple channels. Turbulent circular, tornado like, flows cut potholes throughout the area. This one is unique due to the outcropping in the “eye” of the swirl.
A short walk on the Upper Goose Lake trail will bring you to this amazing phenomenon. The uniqueness of this area continues to amaze me.
Drumheller Channels Overlook
It is hard to comprehend how enormous the Missoula Ice Age Floods were. The edge of the bluff in the top left hand corner is approximately 200 feet high. The water level during the Missoula Floods was about 200 feet above the top of the mesa. The distance across the Drumheller Channels was 8-11 miles wide. The water is estimated to have moved through here at 50+ miles/hour. The landscape left behind is amazing. My mind wanders about contemplating what it must have been like.
This image was taken at the overlook off the main road running through the reserve.
Rattlesnake Ridge and Pasco Basin from Saddle Mountain, Washington
This image was taken from the top of Saddle Mountain looking southwest toward Rattlesnake Ridge. During the Missoula Floods, the water level of Lake Lewis between these two ridges was about 600 feet above the current basin floor.
As I was photographing on top of the mountain, I felt a cold wind pick up. The skies turned dark and I could see the rain coming toward me. I decided it was a good time to pack up my gear and head down the steep gravel/dirt road before it turned to mud. It was the end of a good day and a great trip driving around the Pasco basin exploring for traces of the Ice Age floods.
Sentinel Gap, Washington
This image was taken north of Sentinel Gap, looking south. The Columbia River is barely visible in the center of the photo. During the Ice Age Missoula Floods, Crab Creek thundered through here joining the Columbia River. This was the western path for the waters rushing through Drumheller Channels as it was diverted by the Saddle Mountains. The small rocks in the foreground are likely to have been carried by the rush of water as it carved out the scablands through the Drumheller Channels.
Sentinel Gap, Washington
This image was taken looking north through Sentinel Gap. This gap cuts through the Saddle Mountains which separate the Pasco and Othello basins in Eastern Washington. The Columbia River runs through this gap on its way to the Oregon/Washington border. At the time of the Missoula Floods, the water level going through the gap reached the top of the left ridge, flowing into Lake Lewis which covered the Pasco basin.
The erratics in the foreground most likely are from the gap, carved away by the raging wall of water that flowed through it.
Granite Erratic in Pasco Basin, Washington
The Central Washington Basin is covered with layers of basalt, totaling as much as 2 miles thick, created by huge lava flows 8-15 million years ago. The nearest source of granite rock is several hundred miles away. This photo was taken near the Hanford site north of Richland. The granite rock was about 1/4 mile from the road. My lens combination was 560mm. For reference, the actual height of the rock (above ground) is about 12 feet. It is a big granite rock. How did it get here???
The current theory is that it was brought here as part of the ice dam that broke loose during one of the Missoula floods around 15,000 years ago. As the ice melted, embedded rocks were released. The Pasco basin and its surround hills have many such erratics.
Pasco Basin and Columbia River, Washington
This image was taken from the top of Saddle Mountain looking south toward the Pasco Basin. (Yesterday’s post was from the same location looking north toward the Othello Basin.)
Can you believe that this was once a 800 foot deep lake? During the Missoula floods, water entered the Pasco Basin northeast from the Palouse, north from the Drumheller/Othello Channels and northwest from the Columbia River through Sentinel Gap. Wallula Gap blocked the water from flowing freely through the Columbia Gorge to the Pacific Ocean. The result was the temporary Ice Age Lake Lewis. Today, the Columbia River meanders through the basin. The Hanford Nuclear Research facility is located south and east of the river. Rattlesnake Ridge is visible in the background.