Image above: Welcome sign at Columbia Hills Historical State Park. Courtesy Washington State Parks.
Spotlight on Lesser Known History
Columbia Hills Historical State Park, Washington
America's Best History Spotlight
On this page we're going to Spotlight the lesser known historic sites and attractions that dot the history landscape across the USA and are worth a visit if you're in their area. And while they may be lesser known, some are very unique, and will be that rare find. You'll be, at times, on the ground floor, or maybe even know something others don't. It'll be fun. Visit them.
Columbia Hills Historical State Park, Washington
Columbia Hills Historical State Park is a site whose history as a Native American town now contains the pictographs and petroglyphs left behind, but not the town. It was inundated by water when the Dalles Dam was built; stupid politicians. What it does have is the history of the Lewis and Clark Expedition spending time in the village on their way west, plus ranching culture, and now recreation opportunites in and around Horsetheif Lake and the Columbia River. The lake is noted as an impoundment of the Columbia River, of which nearly two miles form the shoreline of the park. As the site of a former Native town, there are a good amount of petroglyphs and pictographs you can see upon your visit. They were saved before the flooding. Some are the oldest in the Northwest USA. Temani Pesh-Wa cam be view self-guided; others, including the Tsagaglalal, (She Who Watches), on a ranger guided tour. Park rangers tours are limited to 25 people, so reservations are usually needed. They occur on Friday and Saturday from April to October.
Image above: Beautiful scenery of some of the buttes and hills at Columbia Hills Historical State Park. Courtesy Washington State Parks.
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Info, What's There Now, History Nearby
Columbia Hills Historical State Park, Washington
Today, the sites you will see here balance several eras. The history of the Native population can be seen through their drawings, some the most spectacular you may have ever seen. For the European settlement days, there is Dalles Mountain Ranch and the history of life in the settlement days of Washington State. Today, for many, their visit here will include recreation; horseback riding, camping, fishing, boating (small craft only), climbing, and even paragliding (Experienced and registerd gliders only). The entire park is one those state parks that can get overlooked when talking on a national scale, but it is a great blend of history and fun. Visit if you're doing a Northwest States tour.
Image above: Waterfall in Columbia Hills Historical State Park, 2008, Ian Poellet. Courtesy Wikipedia Commons C.C 4.0. Below: Old wagon at the Dalles Mountain Ranch section of the park. Courtesy Washington State Parks.
Where Is It
Columbia Hills Historical State Park is located at 85 Highway 14, Dallesport, WA 98617. Dallasport is in Klickitat County in the bottom center west part of the state. The town is very small, with a population of 1,328, eighty-nine miles from Portland, Oregon. Drive takes just under two hours. The information center is located at 8514 Lewis and Clark Highway, Lyle WA 98635.
What is There Now
Columbia Hills Historical State Park, Washington
Three thousand three hundred and thirty-eight acres to explore the buttes and water of the area. Horsethief Lake section is a National Historic Site. Dalles Mountain Ranch includes a pioneer era farmstead. This particular state park was actually a combination of those two sites into one in 2003. Horsethief Lake itself is a man-made lake, ninety acres, from the construction of the Dalles Dam with a berm separating it from the Columbia River by railroad tracks. 12.5 miles of hiking trails. Climbing opportunities. Camping sites. Fourteen picnic tables.
When Open and How Much
Park day use area at Horsethief Lake is open April to October. Daily pass $10. Other fees apply for boating, etc. The Horsethief Lake area includes boat launches, parking, camping, and a paystation. There are three entry points to the park off Lewis and Clark Highway; Horsethief Lake, Horsethief Butte, Crawford Oaks Trailhead, and the Dalles Mountain Ranch off another road, although you can hike there from Crawford Oaks. Trails are open year round. Campsites are closed in winter from November 1 to the beginning of April.
Fees and hours are subject to change.
Website
Columbia Hills Historical State Park
History Nearby
The history nearby has much to do with the Columbia River, the Lewis and Clark Trail, and the subsequent sites around Portland, Oregon.
Photos, History, and More Spotlights
Hiking and Recreation
Hiking - Hiking trailheads are located at Crawford Oaks, Horsethief Butte, and the Dalles Mountain Ranch. The Horsethief Butte Trail includes interpretive signs and sites which tell of the Ice Age floods from ten thousand years ago. It also has views of the Columbia River and is a short hike for those who prefer and are able. Crawford Oaks has great views of both the Columbia River and Mount Hood along its wildflower strewn trails in season. It has a bathroom and picnic table. Crawford Oaks and the Dalles Mountain Ranch Trail include a total of seven miles to hike.
Camping - Both Recreational Vehicles and tent camping is allowed at Columbia Hills, but there are not many sites. They are located at Horsethief Lake, and include four standard and four walk-in sites, eight partial hookup locations, and two primitive sites for hikers or bikers. There are also yurts and tipis. Prices range from $30 to $50. First come first serve as of writing, but their policies have changed in the past, so call to make certain. Some sites are near active train tracks.
Boating and Fishing - Boat ramps are located at Horsethief Lake (2) and on the Columbia River (1). Season begins April 1. Paddle board and kayak rentals are available at Horsethief Lake, except for windy days, which is common. Small motorized boats are allowed at no more than five miles per hour. Fish in the area include salmon, bass, and rainbow trout.
Photo above: Wildflowers along a trail at Columbia Hills Historical State Park. Courtesy Washington State Parks.
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Other History
The Lewis and Clark Expedition, including Sacagawea and her family, stopped at the Indian village that used to be on site. There is a description of twenty wooden houses in their journal of the Skillute town.
"We had a fine morning and proceeded on early, found the water very rapid below the falls; and having gone four miles below the narrows, came to other narrows still more confined and the rocks higher. At the head of the narrows we halted about two o'clock at a great Indian village, and remained there all night," Lewis and Clark Expedition member 1805.
How did the Horsethief Lake name come about? Apparently the Army Corps of Engineers liked old westerns and their depiction of horse thiefs. Some say the area was replete with horses when the tribes lived in the village.
Image above: Painting of the Lewis and Clark Expedition on the Lower Columbia River, 1905, Charles Marion Russell. Courtesy Wikipedia Commons.
Dalles Mountain Ranch
The ranch was built one mile north of the Skillute village in 1869, and therefore not ruined by the construction of the Dalles Dam in 1957. This construction also caused the moving of most of the petroglyphs and drawings that were in the park, and would have been under water. Dalles Mountain Ranch was a large working farm, a cattle and/or sheep ranch (those did not usually go well together in the west, so believe what you wish), the first in the county, that rose into the hills to an altitude of three thousand feet. There was also another homestead in the area, built in 1878, by the Crawford family. The Dalles Ranch area, which is nine thousand acres large and still contains many of the original farm buildings, was given to the Washington State Park system in 2003.
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