A trip to the fish ladder at the Bonneville Dam is always worth the time. If you aren’t familiar with the idea of a fish ladder, it’s the way fish pass through dams to continue their journey up river.
The Bonneville Dam is the last dam on the Columbia River before the ocean and is an Army Corp’s of Engineers site. They have people who are fish counters that count how many fish and of what type are passing through each day. They also have large windows that are open to the public for viewing along with information about what fish are being seen, when to see different kinds of fish, historical and current counts. There is a small museum about the area when you walk into the visitor's center and some floors below a movie you can watch about lamprey and their importance to local tribes. The fish windows are what drives myself and my family to visit and I would recommend anyone go if they have the chance.
My dad for scale, ha!
After the fish window, I recommend driving to the fish hatchery and watching the enormous sturgeon swimming around. They are like living fossils and are native to our river!
This was my parents’ second trip to the dam and on their request. So I’d say they recommend you go too!