A visit to the Columbia Gorge Discovery Center/Wasco County Historical Museum at The Dalles, Oregon provided us with additional information about the history of the area. We also had the treat of a twisting ride on part of the historic scenic highway up to the overlook on Rowena Crest. We were traversing a transition zone between the sagebrush and the forest, through the Cascade Mountains.
During the afternoon we descended through our final lock and entered the Columbia River Gorge. The monolithic Beacon Rock, a Washington State Park and volcanic remnant, stood like a sentinel below the dam. We passed by a series of high waterfalls on the Oregon shore and culminated our gorge passage at the rock formations known as Cape Horn and Rooster Rock. This was highlighted by a colorful sunset, which threw rosy light on Mount Hood behind us.
