Welcome To Cascade Locks
Cascade Locks is a historic town in the heart of the Columbia River Gorge and the Cascade Mountains in Oregon. It is one of the oldest towns on the Columbia River. The Gorge is the only National Scenic Area in the entire country, so it's a very beautiful place to live and work.
It sits on a section of the Columbia River that Lewis & Clark described as the "great rapids of the Columbia." These dangerous rapids were the reason people lived here and stopped at this point on the river. In 1880, the Corps of Engineers started work on navigation locks at the rapids so that the sternwheeler river boats could safely get past them as they traveled back and forth from the Pacific Ocean, Portland, and The Dalles.
Construction of Bonneville Dam began in 1933. The influx of workers for this project created the impetus for the community to incorporate the town of Cascade Locks in 1935. Completion of the Bonneville Dam resulted in the river water level raising 40 feet and submerging the rapids and the locks.
Today Cascade Locks is known as one of the best sailing venues in the world. Small classes of sailboats come here for the wind and the wide pool formed behind the dam. Besides sailing, there is windsurfing, hiking, biking, fishing, and many other outdoor activities. It is a quiet and scenic mountain village only thirty minutes from Portland. It has a number of motels and restaurants that cater to local residents and travelers.