Ice Age Institute plans busy September, October

RTIZVILLE – The Palouse Falls Chapter of the Ice Age Floods Institute is planning a number of events in the next two months.

Lectures on “The Five Great Lakes of the Missoula Floods” kick off tonight, Wednesday, Sept. 6, at 7 p.m. in the Ritzville Public Works Building.

The presentation looks at Glacial Lake Missoula and Glacial Lake Columbia, organizers said. Although both formed for the same reason, their history is very different.

When the waters in Glacial Lake Missoula were released, they entered the Columbia River drainage system, organizers said. On the way to the Pacific Ocean, the floodwater was restricted at three different locations forming three temporary lakes.

The presentation will give an overview of all of these five great lakes.

The same program will be offered at 3 p.m. Sept. 13 in the Whitman County Library, 102 S. Main St., Colfax; and at 6:030 p.m. in the Mid-Columbia Library, 118 N. Columbia St., Connell.

Then on Saturday, Sept. 23, the institute will host its second member appreciation picnic at Lyons Ferry State Park.

The event, a free day in the park, includes hot dogs and drinks. Picnic-goers are asked to bring a dish to share, such as salads, melons, chips or desserts.

Following lunch, members will have a choice – a short hike to an outcropping of scoria (volcanic rock) or a car caravan to see road cuts in the Tucannon Valley.

The event is open to the public.

On Saturday, Oct. 7, the institute is offering a Lake Lewis bus tour.

The bus tour will be the first since 2019, organizers said.

The tour will take event goers to explore the Lower Columbia Basin, Devil’s Canyon, the Lewis Lake Isles, White Bluffs and more.

The tour will also include information on McBones mammoth dig, officials said.