A Most Special Place – The River of No Return

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As I have stated in the “Let The Stories Begin” Section of this website, I am a native of the great State of Idaho. I grew up hunting, fishing, hiking, and camping throughout the entire state. My father and my mother were great outdoors people. They believed that the true history of the formation of the United States of America was very important and should be taught to their children. Together, they decided to become the teachers rather than expecting some other unrelated person to be the source of their instruction. While it is one thing to read a book or view a painting concerning a scene, event, or happening that took place in any given geographical location,…it is quite another much more powerful impact to actually walk-the-ground, see the actual site, smell the fragrances, and hear the natural sounds that played up during the occurrence of any particular historical event. That, of course, can only be accomplished by a personal physical visitation to the site being observed. No geographic location can better be used as an example than standing on the basalt and boulder lined shore of the main Salmon River as it slashes through the central section of the State of Idaho held in check by the near vertical granite and basalt walls of an over one mile deep canyon guiding the roaring waters on their westerly line of flow towards the Pacific Ocean.

The sights, sounds, and smells of this forever changing waterway are truly a gift from God. From the millennia of time beginning with the creation of this mighty River up until the present day, its physical existence changes every year. Through the cycles of the seasons of the year and the snow pack and spring run off times, new washed-out tributaries, and changed channels and water flow are annual events. The great might and power of this river are as awe inspiring today as they were when the first American white men viewed it during the late summer of 1805. These observers were some of the men from the Corps of Discovery of the Lewis and Clark Expedition.

Pull up a little closer to the campfire. Will someone please give it a stir and throw one more of those medium sized logs on it. I have a true story to share with you that you are going to enjoy. Anyone need another cup of java?

Among the many instructions President Thomas Jefferson gave to Captain Meriwether Lewis in the spring of 1804,…when the Lewis and Clark Expedition was ready to begin its epic journey westward from the nation’s capitol,…was one explicitly directing exploration of the Missouri River to its source. When the Stony (Rocky) Mountains were reached, they were to find a suitable crossing and contact the waters of the Columbia River, which Captain Gray had discovered a few years previous. It was undoubtedly in the mind of the President to establish an all-water trade route from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean, and thence across the Pacific to the rich trade centers of the Orient.

The first waters flowing westward which the expedition encountered were those of a branch of the Salmon River, presently known as the Lemhi River. This tributary flowed north and westward from it source high atop the Beaverhead Mountains which today form the boundary between Idaho and Montana. The Lemhi River joined the Main Salmon River which later became known as “The River of No Return,” just a bit downstream from what is today known as Salmon City, Idaho. This main river was named by Captain William Clark in honor of his co-explorer–Meriwether Lewis. It was initially called the “Lewis River.” Little did William Clark realize at the time of discovery of this Lewis River what the tremendous influence the Salmon River Canyon and its waters would play in the life of the United States.

It was the tributary waters of this stream (the Lemhi River) which Lewis and Clark first saw as they crossed the great Stony Mountains passing through Lemhi Pass (elevation 7,373 feet) between central Idaho, and southwestern Montana. This Rocky Mountain Range was the very backbone of the Continental Divide. It was the powerful waters of this main stream of the Salmon River after joining the Snake River and later on the Columbia River on which the explorers floated their frail canoes seven hundred miles further westward when they emerged from the mouth of the Columbia and first beheld the rolling waves of the Pacific Ocean.

The source of the mighty Salmon River is in the highest reaches of the Continental Divide between central Idaho and southwestern Montana. This river flows northerly and westerly through the center of Idaho and empties into the Snake River where Idaho, Washington, and Oregon meet. It was originally called the “River of No Return” because, at that time, it was simply impossible to go upstream the length of the river by boat. Only using the exhaustive manual efforts of pulling, poling, rowing, and portaging could a boat be propelled up the river. However the strength of the powerful current, the length of the rapid-filled water channel, and the brutal landscape with its near vertical canyon walls were so treacherous that upstream travel could at best be classified as impossible. So far as is known, the river was never navigated downstream until after 1900. It was tried many times, but those persons attempting the passage all came to grief or death. Many lives were lost.

In 1805 Captain William Clark, together with a small group of his men, hiked several miles down the Salmon River from the confluence of the North Fork of the Salmon River and finally concluded that this great river was so treacherous and posed such a great threat to the lives of his men that he classified it as completely impossible to be navigated. Clark wrote in his journal:

“I shall in justice to Captain Lewis who was the first white man ever on this fork of the Columbia River, call this Louis’s River…The westerly fork of the Columbia River [the present Salmon River] is double the size of the Easterly fork [presently the Lemhi River] and below those forks the river is…100 yards wide, it is very rapid & Sholey water clear, but little timber.”

It is for precisely this reason that the Corps of Discovery was forced to change their travel plans and make their epic and heartbreaking trip overland through the Bitterroot Mountains along the further north Lolo Trail.

The Salmon River has cut a trench across Idaho which for over 200 miles. It is over one mile deep. With the exception of the Snake River Canyon (Hell’s Canyon), which is also in Idaho, it is the deepest and most awe-inspiring in the North American Continent, not even excepting the Grand Canyon of southwestern fame. The Grand Canyon is more highly colored and for a short distance has more precipitous walls, but the Salmon River has much more depth.

The Salmon River, aptly named after the huge annual wild anadromous game fish runs of Chinook, Coho, and Sockeye Salmon as well as the ocean-going Steelhead Rainbow Trout winds its wild and scenic course through central Idaho for 425 miles. This tiny rivulet, springing from the hidden subterranean eternal springs of the earth at over 9,200 feet in elevation within the upper reaches of Stanley Basin (in the heart of Idaho), drains a rugged thinly populated watershed of over 14,000 square miles. This great river drops more than 7,000 vertical feet of elevation between its headwaters, near Galena Summit above Sawtooth Valley, and its confluence with the Snake River some 40 miles south of present day Lewiston, Idaho.

Today, this mighty river is practically in the same pristine status and condition as it was some 210 years ago when the Corps of Discovery came slogging into the area having just crossed the Beaverhead Mountain Range through what is known today as the Lemhi Pass and then following the Lemhi River downstream to its confluence with the main Salmon River just below today’s Salmon City, Idaho. The Salmon River is one of the largest rivers in the continental United States without a single dam on its mainstream.

The Salmon River flows in a northerly direction from its source through Stanley Basin and past Salmon City, Idaho. At the junction of the North Fork of the Salmon River with the main Salmon River at what is now known as North Fork, the river makes a 90 degree turn to the west. It then cuts completely across the State for over 200 miles before reaching a river town known as Riggins, Idaho which is at the confluence of the Little Salmon River with the mainstream of the Salmon River. It then makes another 90 degree turn to the north and flows north-northwest therefrom into the Snake River just north of what is now called “Hells Canyon.”

The Salmon River country has been home to different types and kinds of people for many thousands of years. Much of the area was inhabited by several native Indian tribes, including the Nez Perce. This mighty river was considered sacred ground and a rich source of food for the indigenous people of the area, who relied on the abundant fish species and other wildlife for their primary sustenance.

By 1810 maps of the area were already referring to “Louis’ River” as the Salmon River. Clark had thought that the Salmon River, was the Snake River, thus he called it the “Westerly fork of the Columbia.” The Snake River retained the variant name “Lewis River” or “Lewis Fork” longer than did the Salmon River. Interestingly, many historians incline to the belief that it was the Snake River which was called Lewis River. However no real true evidence to support the theory can be (or has been) found indicating that Captain Clark ever saw the Snake River until the expedition had arrived at the spot where Lewiston, Idaho now stands.

At a few favored spots or gravel bars along the Salmon River, deep within the canyon, some mining has been done and a few hardy spirits have taken up ranches on the larger sandbars at the mouths of a few rivers and streams, but for all practical purposes there is really no room in the canyon for homesteading, stock raising, or any such similar pursuits. This described situation holds good for the entire 200 miles of canyon. There are certain single isolated points along the other 250 miles of the river canyon where the topography flattens out considerably and in such places, ranches are much in evidence.

The “River of No Return” is rightly named. It is a wild, powerful, and extremely turbulent river, and is in almost as primeval state as when the eyes of the white men first gazed upon it. Along its entire length, big game of many varieties may be had in abundance, while the side streams and tributaries are teaming with many kinds of game fish in unbelievable numbers.

The “River of No Return” today has been greatly tamed. With the coming of highways and bridges as well as the inventions called a “jet boat” and “rubber raft” travel on the river is much easier, and access to even the most remote of locations within its canyon is not very difficult.

The anadromous fish runs still return every year to spawn and perpetuate their individual species. Outdoor recreational activities such as hunting,
fishing, river rafting, hiking, horse back riding, and camping still draw many visitors year round.

No matter the time of year, the magnificence of the mighty River of No Return still attracts and will continue to attract man, simultaneously stimulating all of his senses to drink-in the might and power of God’s creative handiwork.

 

Peace and Love to All of You………….Poppa Bear

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