We left the Sea Lion at the confluence of the Snake and Clearwater Rivers, and continued up the Snake by jet boat. Violet-green and cliff swallows raced alongside as they skimmed the water's surface, catching insects on the fly. It seemed unbelievable that they could keep up at 35 miles per hour. Then a trio of male common mergansers flew by, and passed us with ease. Who knew they could be so speedy?
The canyon walls steepened and stepped closer to the river as we passed Lime Point, the "official" downstream end of Hell's Canyon. Rocky Mountain bighorn ewes clung to the cliff walls and a single young ram stood at attention just at the river's edge. Finally, nearly 200 miles upstream from the Columbia River, we reached the Nez Perce Crossing. In the late spring of 1877, under threat of forcible removal by the U.S. Army, Chief Joseph led his band from the Wallowa Valley of eastern Oregon across the Snake River and into Idaho.
Late in the afternoon, we visited the Nez Perce Historic Center at Lapwai, Idaho, and saw beautiful examples of their handicrafts and ceremonial garb.
