SheSue Experience

We are on a jetboat cruising along pretty fast. The boat slows down, and then abruptly stops just before a Okay, yeah, they said we’d get wet. I had come prepared with my Alaska coat. Named by my daughter, it was a hand-me-down coat, much too big and made of heavy rubber type fabric. It keeps you very dry. But if you’re sitting on a vinyl seat, the water rolls down the sides of the coat and onto the vinyl seat where it rolls down to your pants. Top dry, pants soaked. wall of water comes over the front of the boat.

Out of downtown Portland, Oregon, the Willamette Jetboat cruises on the Willamette River. You learn a lot about the Willamette valley through sometimes sarcastic narration. He liked to point out things like when we were underneath a metal grate bridge, we were “Seeing something few people saw.” He pauses for dramatic effect as we all look up. “The underside of cars.” He says and sure enough, you can see right through the metal grate and see the bottoms of all the vehicles.

This part of the Willamette River hosts 3 islands, all inaccessible by car, so a variety of wildlife lives there. Along the way we got to see a bald eagle, a blue heron, a hawk and lots of seagulls. The destination is Willamette Falls in Oregon City, Oregon. A horseshoe shaped falls, 40 feet high and 1500 feet wide, it is the largest falls in the Pacific Northwest. Unfortunately, there is major construction going on near the falls, so were unable to get anywhere near.

Interspersed through the tour, you get wet many times over, both through these sudden stops and e-brake type turns where he puts on the brakes while whipping the boat around in a circle. These e-brake type turns were sort of like being on a carnival ride.  The water comes over the side, but you don’t get nearly as wet. There were also some times of just cruising at high speed when you had a chance to dry out.

I took my son with me on this trip. He knows a good portion of the river due to his summer job, but still had fun. To find out more, go to www.willamettejet.com.

Inside Willamette Locks.

Portland, Oregon in the background. My son in green.