Petroglyph Day Trip from Joseph

 Snake river petroglyph site near Joseph Oregon

 

 

 

 

 

It's a nice day trip from the Mountain View Motel & RV Park near Joseph in the northeastern corner of Oregon,  to see petroglyphs along the Snake River at the Buffalo Eddy historical site.

The artwork at Buffalo Eddy is attributed to the the Nimí'pu (Nez Perce), who created the art between 300 and 4,500 years ago, according to the National Park Service. The symbols are preserved on both the Washington and Idaho sides of the river, but the glyphs on the Idaho side can only be viewed from the water, which makes for a popular tour boat stop. Buffalo Eddy takes its name from some of the pictures on the Idaho side, which depict bison and hunters on horseback.

HOW TO GET TO BUFFALO EDDY FROM THE MT VIEW MOTEL

To get there from the motel, turn left (north) on the Snake River Scenic Byway (Hwy 82) to Enterprise, then turn right at the Chevron station onto Oregon Route 3 toward Flora and Lewiston, Idaho. Fill up on gas in Enterprise because the next fuel is 79 miles north in Asotin, Washington, and these directions take a road that cuts off before then.

Two miles north of Enterprise, you may see buffalo grazing at Stangel Bison Ranch. Grass fed bison meat from the ranch is locally available at The Dollar Stretcher Grocery Store at Enterprise and at several local restaurants.

JOSEPH CANYON VIEWPOINT

At 21.6 miles you will enter the Wallowa-Whitman National Forest with many roads and trails to explore sometime. 

The pullout at Joseph Canyon Viewpoint, 30 miles north of Enterprise, features a beautiful vista of Joseph Canyon, where, tradition says, Chief Joseph was born in a cave about 2,000 feet below.  Joseph's band sometimes wintered at the base of the canyon along Joseph Creek.

There are interpretive signs and vault toilets at the pullout

RATTLESNAKE GRADE

After about seven more miles, the road starts to wind down the switchbacks of Rattlesnake Grade. It's a striking landscape with the Grand Ronde River at the bottom. You'll cross into Washington on this stretch and the road turns into Hwy 129. Bogan's Oasis on the river is the only place on this trip to eat or get an order to go. If Bogan's is closed, there is another public restroom down the driveway on the right, next to the river where rafters put in. Then the highway continues snaking back up to the top of the plateau.

Just after leaving the trees past the Fields Spring State Park entrance, look for Montgomery Rd. on the right (58 miles past Enterprise). Follow this road east for 19 miles down to the Snake River. It turns from asphalt to dirt and changes to Sherry Grade Rd., then Crouse Creek Rd., before meeting the Snake River Rd.

BUFFALO EDDY PETROGLYPH SITE

Turn right on Snake River Rd. and drive 4.5 miles to the Buffalo Eddy Petroglyph pullout. There is an interpretive sign and a short trail along the river's edge. It leads to a tumble of rocks with many ancient symbols scratched into them. How many can you find?

 

BONUS

You can tell people you've been to the deepest canyon in North America! Carved by the Snake River, it marks the border between Oregon and Idaho. The river lies more than a mile below the rim in Oregon and 8,000 feet below the highest peak of Idaho's Seven Devils Mountains. The best way to explore it is with a Hells Canyon Adventures guided tour.

 

 

 

Film: Massacre at Hell's Canyon

The Chinese Must Go

The film “Massacre At Hells Canyon”, will be shown Tuesday, Sept. 26 at 7 p.m at The Josephy Center in Joseph, Oregon. Suggested donation is $5.

The documentary recounts the brutal murder of Chinese miners along the Snake River, about 40 miles east of Joseph, OR, as the crow flies.

In 1886, more than thirty Chinese gold miners, operating under the auspices of the Sam Yup Company of San Francisco, acquired grub stakes at Lewiston, Idaho, and headed up the Snake River. They hauled their supplies upstream for 65 miles along rough and rocky banks, maneuvering their boats through some of the most rugged and isolated terrain in the West. They struggled past the mouth of the Imnaha River and set up camp at Dry Creek near a traditional Nez Perce Indian crossing. There they proceeded to extract fine gold "flour" from debris left behind by less patient miners. Historical rumors estimate the Chinese miners had accumulated around $5,000 of gold dust when they were all shot and mutilated by a gang of ruffians holed up nearby. 

Antagonism toward the Chinese was high on the frontier at the time, as it was for any people with strange traditions, darker skin, or Mongolian features, especially if they seemed threatening due to factors such as controlling valuable resources, and working harder, smarter, or cheaper than everyone else. 

The massacre was briefly tried in a local court at Enterprise, where a Wallowa County jury found the perpetrators not guilty. After that it seemed best not to dwell on the gory matter and it never made the history books. The details are still sketchy, although some of the trial records that had disappeared surfaced in 1995, buried under other papers in an old safe being donated to the local museum.

Former Wallowa County Commissioner Ben Boswell, whose family settled in the area in 1872, has been quoted as saying that: "Somebody intentionally tried to keep this story from happening. Somebody intentionally caused people to forget."

Efforts of several researchers over the past few decades have stimulated interest in preserving the story of the victims and memorializing their plight.

(Read https://www.osbar.org/publications/bulletin/07nov/legalheritage.html for a recounting of the story and the social climate of the day.)

What was obvious at the time, was that by July of 1887, the mutilated bodies of Chinese miners were washing up along the Snake River about 65 miles downstream in Idaho Territory, so at least the appearance of an investigation was required.

One of the suspects, Frank E. Vaughan, turned state's evidence and his testimony led to the arrest of three suspects, including15-year old Robert McMillan. They were all acquitted. Three others fled and were never tried. A relative of Vaughn later opined that "he was guilty as sin." 

Three years after the trial, young McMillan, who had downplayed the events in court, was dying of diphtheria in Walla Walla, Washington, with a guilty conscience. He made a deathbed confession that he witnessed 13 of the Chinese gunned down at Deep Creek the first day. He was not present the second day, but had heard the boasting about how 21 more were killed.

The incident was officially acknowledged in 2005 and the site of the crime was named Chinese Massacre Cove. In 2012 a small monument was delivered there by helicopter and a ceremony ensued. Located within the Hells Canyon National Recreation Area, the best way to see the memorial is to travel up the river by boat from Lewiston.

Find The Josephy Center at 403 Main St. in Joseph, OR, 541-432-0505.