July 25th, 2017

We started off the day with a hike to the Basalt Formations outside of our campground. We got up a little earlier start this go round but it was still plenty hot. It was really something to see – these huge perfect column walls along the Snake River. They’re not like the usual volcanic eruptions where lava sprung from cracks in the earth’s crust and flowed as far as it could. These type of volcano formations are called a basalt flood. The big difference is that the basalt cooled from the top of the lava flow, and from the bottom up. Pretty amazing work Mother Earth!

When the weather cooled we headed back to the Washington side of the Snake River to try a little fishing. We caught a few bass – nothing to write home about though. We did leave the riverside just behind a fella who decided to try the curvy road at 80 MPH and took his truck for a head over heels down a deep embankment into the river. He was rescued by boaters and will live to tell his tale (and pay his reckless driving citation) which was a miracle!

JP did catch the eye of two 4 point bucks (though you can only see the rack on one).