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Autumn Adventures in the Pacific Northwest
With wild hillsides ablaze in golds and reds, autumn in the Pacific Northwest is a sight to behold. This closer-to-home destination offers geologically diverse landscapes and fascinating history. Sail in the wake of Lewis and Clark or explore remote channels teeming with sea life. Visit picturesque coastal towns. Hike meadows and lush forest trails. Along the way, our culinary program brings you the bounty of the region using some of the freshest local ingredients.
JUST ANNOUNCED! In 2024, Lindblad Expeditions and Food & Wine magazine will be combining their expertise to deliver the most stimulating and satiating experience of the Pacific Northwest possible. Find out more about the new 2024 Columbia & Snake Rivers Journey itinerary presented by Food & Wine.
New
Columbia and Snake Rivers: Food, Wine and History
Duration
8 days
From
$4,243
Top Highlights
Indulge in gourmet menus guided by the rhythms of the season, featuring sustainable ingredients sourced exclusively within 250 miles of our route
Witness the region’s geological wonders—from the Columbia River Gorge to Multnomah Falls and Beacon Rock—and explore up close and at water level while hiking, kayaking, or Zodiac cruising
Taste more than 40 of the region’s best wines, sampling bottles personally selected by Food & Wine magazine’s Executive Wine Editor Ray Isle
New
Columbia and Snake Rivers: Food, Wine and History 6-Day
Duration
6 days
Apr
From
$4,243
Top Highlights
Indulge in gourmet menus guided by the rhythms of the season, featuring sustainable ingredients sourced exclusively within 250 miles of our route
Witness the region’s geological wonders—from the Columbia River Gorge to Multnomah Falls and Beacon Rock—and explore up close and at water level while hiking, kayaking, or Zodiac cruising
Taste more than 40 of the region’s best wines, sampling bottles personally selected by Food & Wine magazine’s Executive Wine Editor Ray Isle
Columbia and Snake Rivers: Food, Wine and History 8-Day
Duration
8 days
Apr
Sep
Oct
From
$5,827
Top Highlights
Indulge in gourmet menus guided by the rhythms of the season, featuring sustainable ingredients sourced exclusively within 250 miles of our route
Witness the region’s geological wonders—from the Columbia River Gorge to Multnomah Falls and Beacon Rock—and explore up close and at water level while hiking, kayaking, or Zodiac cruising
Taste more than 40 of the region’s best wines, sampling bottles personally selected by Food & Wine magazine’s Executive Wine Editor Ray Isle
Hike island forest trails in search of wildlife, kayak verdant shorelines, and bike the waterfront of a scenic city—or cruise by Zodiac and visit a mixture of quaint and world-class museums. Options abound for indulging your interests in the Pacific Northwest. Hear the legends and learn the traditions of Native Americans and First Nations through their art or moving performances. Taste the bounty of the region. Dine on salmon straight from local waters, foraged wild mushrooms picked within 50 miles, and provisions delivered directly from farmers along our route.
Relax and settle in to life aboard as you cruise the waters of the Pacific Northwest. Your expedition ship offers the absolute best way to access all the sites, culture, and history along the river—without ever having to change hotels or wheel luggage around. We add to that the luxury of comfort with a quality of shipboard life and a philosophy of wellness designed to relax and rejuvenate body, mind, and spirit as you cruise the Pacific Northwest.
Expedition Dining—Then & Now
The Pacific Northwest is known for its incredible bounty and some of the freshest ingredients around. You can look forward to meals that celebrate the region’s world-famous flavors, like a vibrantly pink coho salmon filet, bright green coils of fiddlehead ferns, and a bottle of terroir-rich pinot noir.
See, do, and learn more by going with engaging experts who have been exploring this region for decades.
Expedition Leader
Veteran expedition leaders are the orchestrators of your experience. Many have advanced degrees and have conducted research or taught for years. They have achieved expedition leader status because they possess the skills, the experience, and the depth of knowledge necessary to continually craft the best expedition possible for our guests.
Our naturalists, passionate about the geographies they explore (and return to regularly), illuminate each facet through their enthusiasm and knowledge. Our guests consistently cite the expertise and engaging company of our staff as key reasons to repeatedly travel with us.
Every expedition aboard a ship in our National Geographic-flagged fleet offers an exclusive service—a Lindblad Expeditions-National Geographic certified photo instructor. This naturalist is specially trained to offer assistance with camera settings and the basics of composition and to help you become a better, more confident photographer.
On the Columbia River, enjoy the company and perspective of a historian who can quote extensively from the journals of Lewis and Clark. And on expeditions that sail along the coast, go with a cultural interpreter or an anthropologist who has lived among the Coast Salish peoples of the San Juan Islands.
Our wellness program embodies the belief that nature is vitalizing and that wildness, as Thoreau famously said, supplies a tonic. Wellness Specialists are fully accredited and experienced licensed massage therapists and are aboard every ship in the National Geographic-flagged fleet. They lead morning stretch class on the deck, aerobic walks ashore, kayak outings, and more.
Doesn't get better, a brilliant staff.
Stephanie O.
Making a Difference
Lindblad Expeditions supports stewardship efforts in the places we explore, and one way we do that is through the Lindblad Expeditions-National Geographic (LEX-NG) Fund. Traveler contributions to the LEX-NG Fund in the Pacific Northwest currently support the National Geographic Society’s Early Career Grants, which promote future leaders with novel and exploratory projects that span the fields of conservation, education, research, storytelling, and technology.
We spent our last day on the warm rain-shadow side of the Cascade Mountains as we continued west. Spring is in full force, or as full as it can get with nine inches of rain a year. The green grass-covered hills are already turning pink and soon to yellow as temperatures climb and the spring flora succumbs to drought. We admired the tenacity of these plants as they bravely flowered with minimal resources. From the brilliant canary-yellow of the arrowleaf balsamroot flowers to the azure blue of the native larkspur, the colors of the rainbow were represented in the delicate structures of flower petals. Spring is in the air and on the hillsides as well.
We awoke today with National Geographic Sea Bird anchored at the confluence of the Snake and Columbia Rivers near Sacajawea State Park. A few intrepid explorers set out for a daily survey of birds by way of Zodiac, and we were able to identify 15 different species of birds. Highlights for some guests were seeing a pair of wood ducks and a few big male turkeys, or toms, strutting around the park like they owned the place. After breakfast, all 58 guests disembarked, boarded our trusty motor coaches, and headed into the Walla Walla Valley where we learned about some of the human history and regional wine production. A wildlife highlight of the day was getting an up close and personal view of a Northern harrier, a small slender raptor, near Mill Creek. We’re looking forward to our journey over the next few days, continuing west and down river towards the Pacific Ocean.
It was a windy but lovely day on the Palouse River. This morning, we got a chance to take Zodiac tours up the Palouse River, through the reeds, and past the stunning columnar basalt of this incredible ecosystem. Guests saw a porcupine relaxing in a tree, heard the hypnotic singing of red-winged blackbirds, and some even saw a muskrat! How cool! Then folks transferred for a bus ride overlooking the 200-foot-tall Palouse Falls Waterfall upriver. After some afternoon kayaking and a history presentation from our Historian Doug Kenck-Crispin, we pulled anchor and made way along the Snake River to tomorrow’s destination, Walla Walla, Washington!
Happy first day on National Geographic Sea Bird , and happy Easter to those who celebrate! Our first full day on the expedition started early with a morning birding walk that saw American white pelicans and killdeer, before an all-day excursion on jet boats up the Snake River through the deep, basaltic canyons of Hells Canyon. Guests saw Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep, myriad great blue herons, a few bald eagles, and even a few introduced chukar species! After a stop for lunch, we cruised back to the ship for engaging presentations from Nez Perce Speaker JR Spencer and Winemaker Coco Urmiker before our first recap and an after-dinner smartphone presentation from Photo Instructor Alex Rubenstein.
Today was the last day of our voyage, and it was a great one. We woke up to another perfect sunny day and an early morning bird walk. We were then picked up by jet boats that took us further up the Snake River. The canyon was spectacular, and we saw many ospreys, bald eagles, great blue herons, bighorn sheep, and coyotes. Great local guides shared their knowledge of the wildlife and history of the area.
Exploring the Pacific Northwest reveals great natural beauty, and yet it features modern incredible feats of human engineering—an imposing system of locks and large-span bridges. To explore it by ship offers a chance to marvel at both.
