Tours & Other Special Educational Programs
Mount Hood's Infamous Oregon
Trail
Barlow Trail & Big Laurel Hill
Mt. Hood's Old-Growth Wilderness Odyssey
Tours of the Infamous Portland
Underground (the Shanghai Tunnels)
When contacting us please
remember
Due to our workload, if you get our voicemail, to insure a quick response,
be sure to leave both a daytime and evening number with the hours you can be
reached.
Mount Hood's Infamous Oregon Trail
Tour Mount Hood's Infamous Oregon Trail With Your Family or Group This Autumn Through the
years, it has become tradition for many organizations to visit the Oregon Trail
on Mount Hood with the Cascade Geographic Society, and this would be an ideal
adventure for you. Bring history alive by taking advantage of this opportunity
where you can follow in the wake of the "Prairie Schooners". The sites that
will be visited during this day-long excursion include emigrant graves and
campsites, wagon ruts and swales, primary and secondary routes, tollgates,
stream "fords", and much more, including the infamous Big Laurel Hill where
pioneers were forced to lower their covered wagons down over its
dangerously-steep cliffs. This special interpretative tour will be enhanced with
multi-cultural stories of the past about the Indians, the emigrant travelers,
and the African-American pioneers who came West. More
information on these tours.
This is a very popular tour so
sign-up early and reserve a day by calling (503) 622-4798.
Barlow
Trail & Big Laurel Hill
156th Anniversary of the
Barlow Trail The Autumn of 2001 marks the 156th Anniversary of the first toll
road over the Cascade Mountain Range. Known as the Barlow Trail, this was the
final overland link of the Oregon Trail that allowed emigrant travelers a
cheaper but far more dangerous alternative to rafting their covered wagons down
the Columbia River. In 1845, the wagon parties of Samuel Kimbrough Barlow, Joel
Palmer, and William Rector joined together and attempted to make the first
crossing of the 11,235-foot Mt. Hood by widening an Ancient Indian trail. From
mid-September through December, they battled their way through the thick timber
of the Mountain's southern flank, and failed. They had to cache their
"Prairie Schooners" and most of their possessions in a crudely-made log cabin, and hiked
out. They didn't reach Oregon City until Christmas Day. The following year,
after Barlow received a charter from the Provisional Government of Oregon, plus
$4,500, he started charging a toll for the privilege of traveling over this
rough wilderness path. Travelers taking this route was required, amongst other
things, to lower their wagons down the steep cliffs of Big Laurel Hill with
ropes.
Today, with the expertise of an interpreter with the Cascade Geographic
Society, experience this unique and colorful history by visiting emigrant
campsites, graves, tollgates, wagon ruts and swales, and even the infamous Big
Laurel Hill, the worst section of the 2,000-plus mile Oregon Trail. More
information on Big Laurel Hill Tour and Barlow
Trail Tour.
Give the Cascade Geographic Society a call at (503) 622-4798 for further
information and details. We'll work with you to develop just the right tour for
you. Coming...Living History on the Oregon Trail at our "Oregon Country
Settlement ". Call (503) 622-4798 for Information!
Mt. Hood's Old-Growth Wilderness Odyssey
Visit Mount Hood's Oregon Trail in Autumn, Winter, or
Spring! Participate With Your
Class in "Mt. Hood's Old-Growth Wilderness Odyssey" Experience. Participants will learn about
both the Rivers and the Forests in this inter-disciplinary approach. Spend the
day in a 33-acre Old-Growth Forest, complete with a Lake, a River, Wetlands, and
lots of Wildlife and Salmon. This unique outdoor classroom will allow you to
study environmental science, fisheries, social studies, language arts, art, and
more. We'll design a program to fit your needs. Call (503) 622-4798 for
specific details. More information on
these tours.
Want To Tour Portland's Infamous Underground (the Infamous Shanghai Tunnels)? Beneath the
streets of Downtown Portland's waterfront lie the remains of an infamous
history that represents the remnants of an untold history of human rights
violations at their worst. Unsuspecting victims who had little or no ties to
their families, and who frequented the saloons and other places of lesser
reputations, would find themselves dropped through trapdoors into basements
where they were held hostage for a period of time until they were finally taken
through tunnels to the wharfs and sold to sea captains ready to leave port. It
was a time when the Rose City was "wide open" and police and political
corruption were common but rarely discussed openly. Roughly from 1850 to 1941,
shanghaiers who sold men for "blood money", had little or no interference from
the outside. Commonly referred to as "Wharf Rats" or "Land
Sharks", these
merciless shanghaiers controlled the city's harbors to the point that Portland
became known as the "Worst Port in the World" for this skullduggery.
Today,
you can visit the infamous "Portland
Underground" with the Cascade Geographic
Society. This unique adventure into the historical world of shanghaiing, is
quickly becoming known as one of the best tours around. For additional
information, please give the Cascade Geographic Society a call (503) 622-4798. More
information on the Shanghai Tunnels.