In my kayak
11/07/13 06:20
My small kayak allows me to sit easily on big water. I have been on many waters, both big and mall over the years and have learned that often I am not able to explore a very big slice of the world, but I am able to explore a small part in depth. We are camped alongside Lake Roosevelt, the reservoir formed by the Grand Coulee Dam. We are less than 50 miles from the Canada line in northeastern Washington. We decided to make a short drive yesterday and stop early for a little exploring. We hae spent some time alongside the Columbia in British Columbia and I have paddled the big water in the gorge between Oregon and Washington. It is good to get to know a bit of the character of the water in another part of its territory.
This is a region of really large boats. The houseboats that they rent at the Kettle Falls Marina must be 75 feet long. There are huge cabin cruisers in the marina as well. These are the kind of boats that are transported on semis when they have to travel over land. They are the kind of boats that spend their entire lives in the same lake because they were designed for water and not for life on a trailer.
When I sit on the water in my small boat I am dwarfed by the scale of everything. The big boats might intimidate me, but the reservoir is so big that there is no reason for me to come close to them except when they are moored at the marina. My path keeps me close to shore and I am able to explore the inlets and eddies and small ponds that are too small for the big boats to bother with. The reservoir is nearly full at present. Because of he downstream navigation, large irrigation projects and other uses for the water, it is common for the water level in the reservoir to drop by many feet during the cycles of the year. This is dry country. Without the Columbia, this is really dry country – almost desert, but the mountains that surround the river up here are covered with pine trees and their character might remind me of the hills except here next to the reservoir the roots are nourished with a constant supply of water and the trees are 150 feet tall and taller yet.
Even with the reservoir that makes the bottom of the coulee hidden, this is a deep gorge. The sun disappeared beneath the mountains suddenly last night, almost catching me by surprise. It gets dark quickly in this country. This morning’s pre-dawn glow will linger for some time before we actually see the sun, and when it does appear it will already be high in the sky.
The scale of the Columbia dams is so huge that they dwarf the tiny reservoirs that we have in the hills. The size and the cost of the engineering and construction of those dams is mind-boggling to someone like me. These projects were, in part of product of the Great Depression. Times were different then. Our country experiencing a large economic challenge with millions unemployed and the economy faltering. But there was a common belief in the power of the government to set things right. Big problems required a big response and Americans believed that drawing together and doing things together was the way out of the poverty and problems of the Great Depression.
I think that attitudes are different these days. We have economic problems, but less confidence that the government can solve them. These days we have trouble imagining that Congress could do anything. Just passing a simple piece of legislation seems impossible in these partisan-divided days. The thought that there might be massive new projects like the great construction projects of the 1930’s seems impossible.
But thoughts of politics and government do not linger in my mind as I paddle. The osprey are fishing and they are magnificent birds. With a wingspan that is nearly as long as my kayak they would make me seem small and insignificant were I to see one up close. But in this big country, they are dwarfed by the immensity of the sky and the water. They look small as they soar high above the lake. I must look different to them, however, because their eyesight is so keen that they can spot a fish from that great height. It is easy to confuse an osprey for a bald eagle. They are of a similar size and they both have white heads. The osprey, however, has much more white on its belly, so if you get a look from the right angle, it is easy to tell. The problem is that when they soar, they are merely silhouettes in the sky and it is hard to see their coloring.
It is when they fish that the observer gets to see the power of these birds. When they spot a fish, they will suddenly dive. With their wings folded back, they drop precisely and quickly and impact the water with a great splash. It happens so quickly that you don’t even realize that the bird has, at the last minute, pulled out of the dive, lowered its mighty talons and entered the water feet first. As soon as the fish is grasped the wings are working hard to take the whole operation into flight. The fish is suddenly out of its element in a huge sea of air where it cannot breath as the sharp talons pierce its sides. It is soon a meal for the great bird. The fish could have escaped by diving for deep water. The bird can only take the fish that are near the surface. But there is no way for the fish to know that the osprey is coming. It cannot see into the sky and it cannot know the speed of the great bird.
So I will paddle a bit more this morning and explore another corner of this huge lake. I don’t presume to get to know it, but I have found that it is a joy to sit comfortably on the water, even when it is much bigger than I.
When I sit on the water in my small boat I am dwarfed by the scale of everything. The big boats might intimidate me, but the reservoir is so big that there is no reason for me to come close to them except when they are moored at the marina. My path keeps me close to shore and I am able to explore the inlets and eddies and small ponds that are too small for the big boats to bother with. The reservoir is nearly full at present. Because of he downstream navigation, large irrigation projects and other uses for the water, it is common for the water level in the reservoir to drop by many feet during the cycles of the year. This is dry country. Without the Columbia, this is really dry country – almost desert, but the mountains that surround the river up here are covered with pine trees and their character might remind me of the hills except here next to the reservoir the roots are nourished with a constant supply of water and the trees are 150 feet tall and taller yet.
Even with the reservoir that makes the bottom of the coulee hidden, this is a deep gorge. The sun disappeared beneath the mountains suddenly last night, almost catching me by surprise. It gets dark quickly in this country. This morning’s pre-dawn glow will linger for some time before we actually see the sun, and when it does appear it will already be high in the sky.
The scale of the Columbia dams is so huge that they dwarf the tiny reservoirs that we have in the hills. The size and the cost of the engineering and construction of those dams is mind-boggling to someone like me. These projects were, in part of product of the Great Depression. Times were different then. Our country experiencing a large economic challenge with millions unemployed and the economy faltering. But there was a common belief in the power of the government to set things right. Big problems required a big response and Americans believed that drawing together and doing things together was the way out of the poverty and problems of the Great Depression.
But thoughts of politics and government do not linger in my mind as I paddle. The osprey are fishing and they are magnificent birds. With a wingspan that is nearly as long as my kayak they would make me seem small and insignificant were I to see one up close. But in this big country, they are dwarfed by the immensity of the sky and the water. They look small as they soar high above the lake. I must look different to them, however, because their eyesight is so keen that they can spot a fish from that great height. It is easy to confuse an osprey for a bald eagle. They are of a similar size and they both have white heads. The osprey, however, has much more white on its belly, so if you get a look from the right angle, it is easy to tell. The problem is that when they soar, they are merely silhouettes in the sky and it is hard to see their coloring.
It is when they fish that the observer gets to see the power of these birds. When they spot a fish, they will suddenly dive. With their wings folded back, they drop precisely and quickly and impact the water with a great splash. It happens so quickly that you don’t even realize that the bird has, at the last minute, pulled out of the dive, lowered its mighty talons and entered the water feet first. As soon as the fish is grasped the wings are working hard to take the whole operation into flight. The fish is suddenly out of its element in a huge sea of air where it cannot breath as the sharp talons pierce its sides. It is soon a meal for the great bird. The fish could have escaped by diving for deep water. The bird can only take the fish that are near the surface. But there is no way for the fish to know that the osprey is coming. It cannot see into the sky and it cannot know the speed of the great bird.