Cruising on Saturday: The Snake River and Hell's Canyon area

 It's hard for me to get excited about a little boat on a little river so what I was most looking forward to today, was being guided by a local Native American man on a little boat in a little river. LOL

The day surprised me though!

At close to 6am I woke to a little thud. The only thud we had experienced in 6 days on this American Song had been positioning us in a lock or at a dock. I decided to investigate and what I found was the perfect morning and the perfect opportunity to experience and document, our last lock.

The boat was so quiet! One other passenger who was almost as deeply fascinated by these as I was, joined me at the bow, the stern, the bow again... As everyone else slept.

While everything was still neat and quiet, I took some boat pics for you.

This boat is 5 stories high.

Level One: The front of the boat is the dining room. The back features a little deck and is the part that pulls open and slides a walking ramp out, as needed. I think somewhere in between is where they stash the crew overnight. 

Level Two: All guest staterooms.

Level Three: All guest staterooms. 

Level Four: Cascade Lounge at the front, River Lounge at the back, guest rooms and the center staircase and elevator in between.

Level Five: Completely outside (partially shaded and mostly uncovered) on the top of the boat.

The front of the American Song from level 4.

The Cascade Lounge, on level 4 at the front.

The back of the boat on level 5 

Looking down on the level 4 rear deck - home to the Patio Grill . (And the freezer featuring on demand ice cream snacks!)

The River Lounge is the rear end of the boat at level 4. It's where one finds early bird coffee and pastries before the dining room is open for breakfast. I may or may not have had "first breakfast" here a couple of times.

I got wind that a couple had been spotted "camping" on the upper deck and decided to check it out. Sure enough, hidden in the fort they had created out of cushions, surrounded by used glasses and empty wine bottles... A snoring guy in a sleep mask and his bride, wrapped in bedding from their state room.  I was not sure what to make of it. Jealous? Judgmental? Amused? Confused?  All of the above, I'd say.

And just like that, the sun was up and the day was starting.  Mmmm... breakfast.

Hell's Canyon, here we come...  With Michael the guide and Brett (?) the boat pilot.

There were delightful hieroglyphics along the way, but those pics are still trapped in the "big camera" and I'll update this post when I finally get around to processing them. For now, this is the attempt at capturing the amazing basalt hills that towered the river.

Years ago, one of Michaels tribal elders lost his life while saving drowning kids in this river. He plays and sings to honor the memory in this spot.

Being that this was the last afternoon I'd be aboard the American Song, this gal took some time to herself and drank in the sunshine later that afternoon. (Secretly preparing for the cocktails, wine and surf'n'turf dinner coming my way!)

Chef Micheal went out with a bang! Hor d'oeuvres and wine were followed by steak and lobster dinner served with champagne - because that was Reggie's recommendation and who am I to disagree with the sommelier?!

Why, yes... Yes, that is glitter on my crème bruleè! 

Footnote: We disembarked the next morning and took a shuttle to Spokane. It was time to go home. 

This had been a beautiful adventure. None of which would have been possible or as fun, without Donnie by my side.... laughing, drinking, exploring, learning and making new friends together.

 

Cruising on Friday: Pendleton

 There was much to learn and a lot to like about our excursion to Pendleton. And a few things that were just "eh" as well.

On arrival, the first thing we did was get ourselves acquainted with the local underground scene. Back in the day, this area was home to a diverse array of folk. Along with the admiration for how the town thrived and dealt with challenges in creative ways, we learned it's dark history also involved human trafficking. 

Chinese laborers lured with money, one-way transportation and promises for a better life, found themselves living underground, working outrageously long days for little money and no chance to find their way home to families waiting eagerly. Living underground and working themselves to the bone meant most people lived incredibly short lives too.

We visited the underground dwellings; Complete with ventilation grates to the street above, tiny rooms, crowded situations. No square foot was left unused. 

During prohibition, this is also where elicit drinking and hilarious hiding places were to be found. The local butcher had real estate down here too. His family's side business? Hiding drunk people and their alcohol during a raid and charging them for the privilege of getting out in the morning or reselling them their own liquor the next day! (Diabolical genius!)

The laundry man/tailor had a "work from home" lifestyle too.

Imagine this: You had to bathe before visiting one of the "ladies of Pendleton" upstairs and the cost of the bath was rather dependent on the order in which you got to use the bath water. The germaphobe in me was 100% grossed out at the thought of these hard labor workers swimming in each others filth. People soup! The end.

Since the dawn of time, people have been skipping the real news in favor of the funnies!

Lunch was had a the town's famous Hamley Steak House - connected to Hamley's overpriced department store. Don't be fooled, as we were. Steak was not an option and after a so-so sandwich we continued to peruse the local stores before heading out to the cultural center with a native American guide who was fabulous.

This area was once millions of acres of hunting and fishing grounds for the tribes (Walla Walla, Umatilla, Cayuse) that occupied the land. In a treaty struck with the white settlers, the native American people found themselves settling for a fraction of the land they used to have rights to and then, as time went by, they realized non-Indians owned more of the 172,000 acre reservation than Indians did.

Thirty-two years ago the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Reservation forged a plan to buy back land over the following 50 years and since then they have managed to buy for fee, or in trust, 77,000+ acres.

You might think that all this history causes nothing but resentment and an inability to cohabitate or collaborate... until you start learning about the Pendleton Round-up. This festival/celebration/rodeo is one of the big three around the States/Canada. The town goes all out and there has ALWAYS, but always, been a strong native American presence at the Round-up. It is here that they host a grand tribal village of 300+ teepees. Visiting with friends and relatives is crucial, but there are also things like taking part in the Happy Canyon Pageant, American Indian beauty contests, the Pow Wow dance competition and an array of Native American venders set up to sell arts, crafts, food and jewelry too.

Then it was back to the American Song for an evening of cruising while drinking and dining and ... scroll down.... 

Scallops!  Please Sir, may I have some more?

The highlight for me was Matt and Hannah doing show tunes. Matt's great, don't get me wrong, but Hannah?  OMG! She has the voice of an angel and when she hit every note from Evita and Phantom's "Music of the Night" I was mesmerized. We all were.