Climate differences for the Columbia River

A sunny day in Washington About 770 miles of the Columbia River trace channels through this state.  When the river finally reaches southeastern WA, it heads almost straight west to the Pacific.. Most people are familiar with part of the westerly-bound river as the Columbia Gorge, considered one of the most scenic places in the West. The narrow gorge between high mountain peaks acts as a venturi, too, with high winds screaming through that delight boarders who gather around the Hood River section and elsewhere.

In covered wagon days pioneers did not appreciate that aspect of the gorge, nor the colder weather and snow of the easterly approach to the gorge. Makeshift rafts and boats did not ride the Columbia rapids well. If the travelers were forced to walk along a meager shore trail, their stories are of freezing and deep snow, great hardship. The contrast always (or almost always) between east and west of the mountains is far warmer temperatures and rare and brief snowfalls on the westerly side of the mountains.

One past winter I experienced this first-hand while bound for a book signing of another book in Portland, Oregon. I drove along in about 50-degree temperatures through a winter rain south of Seattle WA. When I was about 15-20 miles from Portland, I began to hear accounts on the radio that cars and trucks were sliding sidewise on the east-west freeways on icy surfaces -- even big trucks. You can imagine I slowed down as I approached the Columbia River bridges to downtown Portland. A cold wind blew westward through the gorge, plunging temperatures in the city. I managed to slide into the first motel I found. Later I took a cab to my destination bookstore; no way was I driving on the "skating rink" Portland had become. Fortunately, this wind/cold/ice situation is rare in the gorge and city. I am not accustomed to driving on ice very often in the western part of the state. The river itself rarely has icy edges, but in decades long past, it was known to have ice across its span, although briefly and rare. My book, The Columbia River, tells tales of barges caught in such situations.