The Lake Lewis Chapter of the Ice Age Floods Institute will host a chapter meeting and guest lecture with Jim O’Connor, U.S. Geological Survey - Portland, Oregon on November 3rd, 2026. This presentation will round out the 2026 lecture theme as we explore flood stories along the path from ancient Lake Missoula to the Pacific Ocean. Starting with J Harlen Bretz and Ira Williams in 1915, geologists have been on the trail of the Missoula floods in the Columbia River Gorge. This work continues, addressing lingering and new questions, such as how many, how big, when, from where, and what did they do? Jim will summarize the current state of understanding, as well as other Columbia River Gorge stories being worked on by the USGS mapping group. This event will be hosted at the REACH Museum in Richland, Washington and is free to the public. No registration required. This event will also be broadcast live. To join this meeting online, please see the Zoom meeting information below. Chapter Meeting: 6:30 – 7:00 PM (PST) Guest Lecture w/ Jim O'Connor: 7:00 – 8:00 PM (PST) Zoom Meeting Details: Join Zoom Meeting https://us06web.zoom.us/j/89328567163?pwd=QgcNzwQoCUaqaHXaLM6vwiRTU3xuzk.1 Meeting ID: 893 2856 7163 Passcode: 729258 Questions may be emailed to lakelewis@iafi.org
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Steamboat Rock is an imposing 800-foot-tall, 600-acre, flat-topped columnar basalt butte that resembles an immense stranded ship, located in the desert landscape of Central Washington's Grand Coulee. It is a structural remnant of an ancient ice-age waterfall carved out by cataclysmic glacial meltwater floods over 13,000 years ago. On December 5, 2026, the Lower Grand Coulee Chapter of the Ice Age Floods Institute will host an exploratory hike that will traverse the lower reaches around its base rather than hiking to the top of the rock. One of the primary goals of the hike is to locate glacially polished striated basalt/flood features around the bottom of Steamboat Rock. Additionally, there will be opportunities to talk about the basalt and granite formations present, identify Missoula Floods landscape features, and discuss soils, prehistory and history of the area. The hike will be as much as 3.5 miles long with about 200 feet of elevation gain DATE – December 5, 2026 TIME – 10AM to 3PM WHERE – Steamboat Rock State Park, DISCOVER PASS IS REQUIRED Bring a sack lunch and snacks The park is located about 10 miles south of the city of Grand Coulee and about 18 miles north of Coulee City off SR155. Follow signs to the park for about 2.6 miles to a parking area on the far northeast end of the park. |