A Sunday Drive In Oregon - part 3 - Bonneville Fish Hatchery

One Sunday last April I woke up and looked out the window. The sky was clear. I opened the window and it was actually warm outside. It was a beautiful day!

So, I decided to take a Sunday drive. That's one of the things I like about living where I do. I can take a Sunday drive and see so much!

After stops at Mount Hood and the Hood River Valley, the fish hatchery at the Bonneville Dam was my third stop on a beautiful drive.

The Bonneville Fish Hatchery is a functioning hatchery, raising millions of trout and salmon every year. But, the grounds are more like a park.

At the entrance is a fountain with a bronze sculpture of jumping fish.



Beyond the fountain is a map of the grounds telling where all the different areas of the hatchery are.




There are lots of rearing tanks with thousands and thousands of fingerlings. But, these tanks aren't as interesting as the other parts of the hatchery. Unless, that is, you're a hungry duck trying to figure out how to get past the netting!




I walked around the main rearing ponds and went over toward the egg incubation building. All of the buildings on the grounds are beautiful. All painted white. Cedar shakes. Copper flashing.




Beyond that are the rainbow trout ponds. They are all shaded by towering firs. They are ringed with moss-covered stonework. And they have trout food so the kids (of all ages) can feed the fish.






These ponds are cool. But, the best part was still ahead. I followed a fern-lined path through the trees. I turned a corner and saw another of the beautiful white buildings. But, it was sinking!



I walked around to the other side...




and peeked inside.




It's the new Sturgeon Viewing Center! This was s-o-o-o-o cool! The kids loved it!




The grownups like it, too!



The sturgeon have some trout to keep them company. These prehistoric giants can grow to 20 or 30 feet in length and weigh more than a ton! The ones here are just babies, 5 to 10 feet in length.


On the way out I stopped at the gift shop and picked up a book about the Columbia River Gorge and some huckleberry jam.



The Sunday drive isn't over yet. it's only noon! Next stop is Cascade Locks for lunch.