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Summer Recreational Vessel Lockage Schedule Begins May 15 by Staff The Prairie Star, May 1, 2014

WALLA WALLA, Wash. -- Thursday, May 15, marks the start of the summer schedule for recreational boaters using navigation locks to travel past U.S. Army Corps of Engineers dams on the Columbia and Snake rivers, Corps navigation planners announced today.

The lockage schedule is the same for eight Corps dams in Walla Walla and Portland districts, making recreational vessel lockage schedules identical for the entire Columbia-Snake river system.

In Walla Walla District, navigation lock facilities are available at McNary Dam, near Umatilla, Ore.; Ice Harbor Dam, near Burbank, Wash.; Lower Monumental Dam, near Kahlotus, Wash.; Little Goose Dam, near Starbuck, Wash.; and Lower Granite Dam, near Pomeroy, Wash.

Portland District dams with locks include John Day Dam, near Rufus, Ore.; The Dalles Dam, near The Dalles, Ore.; and Bonneville Dam, near Cascade Locks, Ore. The summer recreational vessel lockage schedule is indicated in the above chart.

This schedule will remain in effect until Sep. 15. Recreational vessel operators have precedence over commercial vessels during the designated times. At other times, recreational vessels may be allowed to lock through with commercial craft, at the discretion of the lockmaster.

Lockage outside the scheduled times will be considered for flotillas or other organized events sponsored by yacht clubs, marinas and other groups, provided 24-hour advance arrangements are made with the appropriate location.

All vessel owners and operators lock through at their own risk, and must comply with the Corps' safe-lockage policy. Walla Walla District's recreational vessel lockage schedule, the Corps safety policy and the brochure, "How To Lock Through," are on the Internet at www.nww.usace.army.mil/Missions/Navigation.aspx.

Portland District's navigation information is also available online at www.nwp.usace.army.mil/Missions/Navigation.aspx.

The Corps' Walla Walla and Portland districts maintain about 350 miles of the federal inland navigation channel from Portland, Ore. to Lewiston, Idaho. About 10-million tons of commercial cargo is transported via the channel each year, according to navigation industry data. The Columbia-Snake inland navigation system is part of a larger waterborne commerce system that is vital to the economic health of the Pacific Northwest. This import\export gateway allows river transport 465 miles inland from the Pacific Ocean to Lewiston, Idaho.

Related Pages: Summer Lock Schedule Set to Begin by Andy Porter, Walla Walla Union-Bulletin, 5/14/8