Travel and Adventure: Un-Cruise Adventures takes passengers on voyage through history
By Robert Selwitz
Creators Syndicate
If sailing through U.S. history sounds appealing, check out the latest offering from Un-Cruise Adventures — weeklong voyages along the Columbia and Snake rivers. Un-Cruise, which is best known for trips to Alaska, Hawaii and Mexico's Sea of Cortez, has inaugurated voyages based in Portland, Ore., that blend river sailings with stops for hiking, city exploring and museum-going. They are designed for travelers who want to explore and become engrossed in the lore and history of the U.S. Northwest.
Plying waters that mostly divide Oregon and Washington states, the 192-foot, 88-passenger SS Legacy — built in 1988 and heavily renovated in 2013 — is the vessel that makes these ventures into the past possible. A modernized rendition of a 19th-century riverboat steamer, Legacy offers excellent accommodations and food as well as continual immersion in the 19th and early 20th centuries.
Invaluable to this mission are the crew members, who are often dressed in period costumes that bring to life some of the region's most vibrant characters. These include those involved with the Lewis and Clark expedition, the Oregon Trail, and conflicts between Native Americans and early pioneers. Another theme is the struggle that pitted merchants who wanted to tame and circumvent treacherous river rapids against those who wanted to leave the trade-defying challenges as they were.
Most important, these re-creations are designed for adults with a strong sense of history. Not only do re-enactors stroll decks and lounges during the daytime, but they also do evening presentations augmented by period photography and maps.
Meanwhile, everything aboard the Legacy is comfortable. Cabins in which two people can easily maneuver feature a pair of single beds, a desk and a functional bathroom with a retractable laundry line. Each room has a video screen that plays DVDs from the ship's extensive and free DVD rental library. It is not possible to access cable or broadcast TV onboard, however.
Dress is decidedly neat casual, with no formal nights on the docket. Clothes should reflect the informal mood aboard and the strolling and light hiking on shore. You'll also want to bring along your iPad, tablet or cell phone since they will be your only easy access to news and communication from the outside world.
Food is served at a single open seating and is of a quality that is enhanced by chefs needing to serve dozens — rather than hundreds or thousands — of guests. Among the more impressive offerings on a recent cruise was a beautifully prepared rack of lamb.
Wine and other drinks throughout the day from the lounge bar as well as at meals are included in basic fares. This supports the prime shipboard diversion: conversation among old and new acquaintances. The top deck has comfortable chairs for sitting or lounging, two hot tubs and a spa, sauna and yoga classes.
Shore-side stops included impressive bits of nature, quirky and historic cities, and a rich trove of regional museums whose excellent quality is disproportionate to their fame.
Early on during the cruise my wife and I took, a visit to Multnomah Falls typified the Legacy's destinations. While thundering waters dropping 611 feet can be seen from shoreline, a bridge that's much closer is accessible via an easy 10-minute uphill walk.
Even more impressive was navigating part of the Snake River that courses through Hell's Canyon and borders eastern Washington, eastern Oregon and western Idaho. Via clear-roofed jet boats passengers navigated mildly choppy waters and viewed big-horned sheep, mule deer and bald eagles. High on the surrounding cliffs, 7,000-year-old American Indian petroglyphs could also be seen.
We also stopped at history-rich Walla Walla, Wash., and Astoria, Ore. Walla Walla boasts a handsomely restored downtown, Dunham Cellars (where Legacy passengers enjoyed tastings in the winery's renovated World War II-era airplane-hangar home and — most intriguing — Fort Walla Walla. This is a once-vital defense post at which 17 original 19th-century structures still stand, with most open for visiting.
Astoria — named for fur trader and financial powerhouse John Jacob Astor — also had plenty to offer. Quite close to the mouth of the Columbia River and virtually at the doorstep of the Pacific Ocean, it's a trendy retreat offering fine dining, impressive Victorian architecture, a lively art and gallery scene, and the impressive Columbia River Maritime Museum, just steps from where the Legacy docks.
A particularly interesting exhibit is "Crossing the Bar," which explores the perils ships face while navigating the point where the Columbia River and Pacific Ocean meet. Each deposits silt and soil that create particularly lethal sand bars. These, along with waves that can be 40 feet high, make this one of the world's most dangerous crossings.
Other specialized museums also proved to be big hits among Legacy passengers. These included the sizable Columbia Gorge Interpretive Center in Stevenson, Wash., whose exhibits offer an in-depth look at the Cascade Chinook Native Americans and Harvesting Resources, which examines the gorge's timber and fishing industries. Here you can see an actual waterfall, huge farming apparatus, a locomotive and plenty of 19th-century photography detailing the earliest days of European exploration in the region.
Equally fascinating was the Maryhill Museum of Art in Goldendale, Wash. A true mansion, it was originally built to be the home of railroad magnate Samuel Hill (1857-1931). Now it displays Indian beadwork and basketry, art-nouveau glass, an impressive collection of Russian icons and copies of Auguste Rodin's statues that include "The Burghers of Calais," "The Thinker" and "The Gates of Hell."
Outdoors, on a hill overlooking the Columbia River, there's a reproduction of England's Stonehenge that is dedicated to local area soldiers who died during World War I. Hill's grave also is nearby.
The spacious and user-friendly Columbia Gorge Discovery Center focuses on the volcanic upheavals and raging floods that formed the Columbia River as well as the area's more than 10,000 years of cultural history. Other exhibits focus on early homesteading, mock-ups of historic buildings and Pacific Northwest Indian baskets. There are also raptor shows and several resident bald eagles. Surrounding the museum is an extensive nature walk through trees, vegetation, grasses, wildflowers and other area plants.
Not every Legacy voyage makes the same stops. For instance, during the October 2013 U.S. government shutdown it was not possible to visit such federally controlled sites such as the Bonneville Dam and Fort Clatsop, winter headquarters of Lewis and Clark. Nevertheless, Legacy passengers on this voyage agreed that the substitute diversions Un-Cruise provided were far from disappointing.
Before and/or after your cruise, definitely spend time in the Legacy's home port. One of America's most user-friendly cities, Portland offers fabulous food, an extraordinary park system, magnificent greenery (particularly the Japanese Garden), great spectator sports that include the NBA Trail Blazers and Major League Soccer Timberwolves, fascinating museums, and plenty of neat neighborhoods to wend through and explore.
WHEN YOU GO
Un-Cruise Adventures: www.un-cruise.com
Travel Portland: www.travelportland.com
The excellent, elegant, 101-year-old "grande dame" Benson Hotel features a city-center location: www.bensonhotel.com
One of Portland's best, the Heathman Hotel boasts a great location and extremely helpful concierge services: www.portland.heathmanhotel.com
The Marriott Hotel is a modern, comfortable property where SS Legacy passengers check in for their voyage: www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/pdxor-portland-marriott-downtown-waterfront