Ice Age Floods

https://www.nps.gov/iafl/index.htm https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ice_Age_Floods_National_Geologic_Trail The Ice Age Floods National Geologic Trail consists of a network of routes connecting facilities that will provide interpretation of the geological consequences of the Glacial Lake Missoula floods of the last glacial period that began about 110,000 years ago. It includes sites in Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and Montana. At the end of the last Ice Age, 18,000 to 15,000 years ago, an ice dam in northern Idaho created Glacial Lake Missoula stretching 3,000 square miles around Missoula, Montana. The dam burst and released flood waters across Washington, down the Columbia River into Oregon before reaching the Pacific Ocean. The Ice Age Floods forever changed the lives and landscape of the Pacific Northwest. To Trail Headquarters from Spokane Take I-90 West At Exit 277, merge onto US-2 toward Davenport/Fairchild AFB/Spokane Airport Just past Wilbur, turn right onto WA-21 Stay left onto Highway 174 Turn right onto WA-155 Stay on WA-155 past Grand Coulee Dam and into the town of Coulee Dam Cross the Columbia River and continue on WA-155 Turn right onto Crest Drive and follow up the hill. The HQ Office is located on the left Fort Spokane Visitor Center and Museum 4/30/2020 During COVID 19 Fort Spokane Visitor Center will remain closed until further notice. Fort Spokane Visitor Center and Museum are the former guardhouse, located in the middle of historic Fort Spokane. The visitor center and museum are open seasonally, from Memorial Day to Labor Day of each year. The visitor center and museum may be opened upon request the rest of the year. From Spokane, take I-90 West. At exit 277, merge onto US-2 toward Davenport/Fairchaild AFB/Spokane Airport. Turn right on WA-25. Follow WA-25 north approximately 23 miles. Look for signs for Fort Spokane Visitor Center and Museum. Green Monarch Ridge Green Monarch Ridge by Lake Pend Oreille ID Green Monarch Ridge by Lake Pend Oreille ID Steamboat Rock Large butte with lake in the foreground Steamboat Rock State Park, Washington Banks Lake Steamboat rock in the foreground with Banks Lake in the distance Banks Lake view from Steamboat Rock Dry Lakes Dry Lake lake bed and falls blanked with snow. Dry Lake lake bed and falls in winter Dry Falls A overhead shot of the Dry Falls area A beautiful shot from the ledge near the visitor's center in the Dry Falls area. 2016 Recipients: George and Helen Hartzog Awards for Outstanding Volunteer Service Learn the invaluable contributions of the 2016 Hartzog winners, celebrating excellence in volunteerism. Group of school kids pointing at things in a marsh area Volcanic Necks and Plugs Volcanic necks are the remnants of a volcano’s conduit and plumbing system that remain after most of the rest of the volcano has been eroded away. photo of a riverside rocky spire with mountains in the distance

i l l e r a I e c Ginkgo Petrified Forest 7 Ripple marks 9 Lo be et g u P Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center ol C R be S ! ! ! O c e a n Beacon Rock State Park ! Columbia Hills Historical State Park Maryhill State Park ia b um l Co er Riv ! a k e Map Symbols Ice Age Floods National Geologic Trail, secondary route Area affected by ice-age floods Select ice-age floods site with associated geoheritage values recreation ecology science & research Wal l a Wal l a M O N TA N A geologic features economy culture The Floods Po rtlan d During the last ice age, between 12 and 17,000 years ago, glaciers covered much of northern Washington, Idaho, and Montana. The ice was miles thick in places. Portions of the glaciers repeatedly blocked large river drainages, forming ice dams. Lakes formed behind the ice dams, growing to small inland seas rivaling the size of the Great Lakes. The largest of these glacial lakes was Glacial Lake Missoula in what is now Montana. The lake was approximately 2,500 feet deep in places and extended over 3,000 square miles. It held as much water as about half of Lake Michigan. When the ice dam burst, all of the water suddenly drained in a matter of days, surging over Idaho, eastern Washington, and Oregon. The vast amount of water moving over a very short period of time carved the deeply scoured terrain that forms much of the dramatic landscape we see today. O R E G O N In the aftermath of the initial flood, the process of river blockage, ice-dam lake formation, and catastrophic release occurred repeatedly. Evidence suggests that there could have been as many as 100 separate floods at intervals of about every 50 years. The features it created are colossal. The water plucked giant columns out of the basalt, created smoothed mesas and giant potholes, and formed ripple marks between 15 and 30 feet tall. Collectively, this landscape is called the Channeled Scablands. The floods left behind many other distinctive features, such as, buttes, coulees, and flood bars. Palouse River Canyon 1 Eugene Ecology The ice-age floods left behind prime landscapes for recreation. State Parks, wildlife refuges, and other protected land ensures continued availability for public use and wildlife habitat. Visitors can take in the stunning views while hiking, camping, hunting, fishing, rock climbing, boating, bird watching, or wildlife viewing. The shrub steppe ecology found in eastern Washington supports many types of species only found in this type of environment. Flood-scoured basalt formations provide unique habitat for wildlife. The Hanford Reach region on the Columbia River provides habitat for a number of different species including migratory birds, native mammals, and spawning salmon. Current research on these landscapes is now being conducted by NASA. The channeled scablands closely resemble the surface of Mars, and offer a much closer locality for hands-on study. By studying the catastrophic effects of the water on the basalt landscape of Earth, scientists can correlate these to similar features on Mars. Places to go: Potholes State Park Places to go: Turnbull National Wildlife Refuge Places to go: The REACH-Hanford Reach Interpretive Center Bridgeport State Park Culture Economy The unique landscape left by the floods has been used by Native Americans for centuries. Historic campsites, petroglyphs, stone and bone tools, and other relics found along the paths of the floods, help us to better understand these ancestral peoples whose descendants still populate the region. The economy of the channeled scablands and the Pacific Northwest is supported by features created by the floods. The voluminous Columbia River discharges an average of 264,900 cubic feet per second. Industry in the dryland regions of eastern Washington depends on this lifeline for transportation, energy, agriculture, earth materials, and irrigation. The terrain left by the floods also influences how present-day Washingtonians use this region. Cultural exhibits at many of the selected sites have more information on the lives and livelihoods of those who call this territory their home. Places to go: Grand Coulee Dam Maryhill State Park Places to go: Columbia Hills Historical State Park Lewis & Clark Interpretive Center Fort Spokane Visitor Center Ginkgo Petrified Forest State Park Yakima Sportsman State Park Palouse Falls State Park Vineyards in eastern Washington 23 Native Americans fishing at Celilo Falls (now inundated by Lake Celilo) 21 Petroglyphs at Ginkgo Petrified Forest State Park 20 Data Sources: Ice Age Floods National Geologic Trail routes adapted from Ice Age Floods National Geologic Trail Long-Range Interpretive Plan Master Trail Map. Glacial ice and ice-age flood affected areas modified from Silkwood, J.T. (1998), Glacial Lake Missoula and the channeled scabland : a digital portrait of landforms of the last ice age, Washington, Oregon, northern Idaho, and western Montana,











Stev H. Ominski ©2002 Ice Age Floods at Dry Falls Lower Grand Coulee Bruce Bjornstad AA GUIDE GUIDE TO TO THE THE INCREDIBLE INCREDIBLE ICE ICE AGE AGE FLOODS FLOODS IN IN THE THE GRAND GRAND COULEE COULEE AREA AREA Northrup Lake Soap Lake/Ephrata, Washington FOLLOWING THE PATHWAY Our Lower Grand Coulee chapter of the Ice Age Floods Institute focuses on the beautiful Coulee Corridor National Scenic Byway. We serve Grant County and beyond, where we have 300 days of sunshine,140 lakes and only around eight inches of rainfall per year. During the last glacial cycle of the ice-age some 80,000 to 14,000 years ago, continental glaciers and repeated massive floods carved many of the unique distinguishing features of the Northwest’s interior landscape. We investigate the geological mystery of the Missoula Floods as it applies to this area, particularly Dry Falls, the centerpiece of this Disneyland for geologists. We are seeking answers to a geological mystery of what happened and how it happened thousands of years ago. We do this to unravel the mystery that was initially unlocked only 100 years ago from the breathtaking geological hints that were left behind. Nobody really knows what happened, but we are still making new discoveries each year and investigating the mystery to this day. We are local people meeting monthly in Soap Lake, WA, to plan hikes, gather geological samples, assist at Dry Falls Visitor Center, participate in local festivals, and distribute information such as in your hand now. You are invited to come help solve the mystery, and while here you can enjoy our playground, including: the Ephrata Fan, the Great Blade, Steamboat Rock, Ancient Lakes, Drumheller Channels, Sun Lakes, Lenore Caves, the Potholes Area, Soap Lake, and more. To learn more, to attend a presentation, or to help with our mystery, please visit us at https://IAFI.org/lower-grand-coulee/. Our Cataclysmic Floodscape This is your local guide to dramatic evidence of those cataclysmic forces, from spectacular canyons and cliffs to waterfalls and vast, flood-eroded scablands, that can be witnessed with a short road trip. It is our hope that you will use this guide to explore these fascinating geological features in our region and will want to learn more about the dramatic ice-age story of glaciers and floods. OF THE GREAT FLOODS Key resources for understanding the geology of the Mid-Columbia region: On the Trail of the Ice Age Floods Bjornstad, B. N., Vols. 1 & 2 DETAILED MAP INSIDE Highlighting Day Trips to prominent ice-age flood features in the Grand Coulee area A regional guide to geological evidence of the GREAT ICE AGE FLOODS that sculpted the Grand Coulee landscape Keokee Co. Publishing, Inc., Sandpoint, ID Learn MORE at IAFI.org or facebook.com/IceAgeFloods/ Dry Falls at Sunrise - Photo by David McWalter