"In this book Carlos Schwantes takes readers on a voyage of discovery along the "Great River of the West" - the grand Columbia River. Schwantes summarizes the history of the Columbia from its "discovery" in 1792 by the American merchant captain Robert Gray to the modern era of massive dams that create a water highway for commerce extending as far inland as Lewiston, Idaho, a city located more than seven hundred feet above sea level. Readers will enjoy pondering the different eras that defined the river during the past two centuries - from the age of "discovery" in the late 1700s to the contemporary Columbia landscapes that so we modern travelers aboard cruise boats. Accounts of Native Americans, explorers, miners, immigrants, engineers, fishers, and tourists are woven together to form a lively tapestry." "Published in conjunction with the Columbia River Maritime Museum in Astoria, Columbia River: Gateway to the West makes a significant contribution to the saga of the Pacific Northwest by viewing its main currents in terms of one of the great waterways of American history."--BOOK JACKET.