Historic Imnaha and an Indian in Enterprise

We had heard of the little town of Imnaha (m NA ha) and took the 30 mile drive to see it.  The scenery along the way was enough to make the trip worth while.



The road through this canyon was narrow and twisting and these terraced rock walls rose on either side.



Here and there were ranches and farms with cattle and horses grazing peacefully.



Imnaha itself was a surprise.  I knew it was going to be small but this was Small!  The road almost disappeared as it made a sharp left hand turn and then looked like it just petered out.  There is only one paved road into Imnaha.  There are two dirt roads if you want to continue.  One goes to Hat Point Lookout, where you can look down into Hell’s Canyon and see the Snake River at the bottom.  The other is a similar dirt road called Dug Bar Road which also leads to the Snake River.  The nice lady at the visitor’s center in Joseph assured us the scenery was spectacular but the road was rough and in places had a 16% grade!   We opted to stay on the paved road!  Our little Fit does not like rough surfaces.

There was a store and tavern in Imnaha where, thanks to advice from Laurie and Odel,  we skipped the deep fried chicken gizzards and just bought ice cream bars.  It was in large part due to Laurie's blogs on the whole Wallowa area back in June and July of this year that I knew we had to make this entire journey.  Thirty plus years is too long to be away from this magnificent scenery...but I digress.



The parking was steeper than it looks here.  Not only did I feel like I would roll right into the store, it also felt like the car was about to tip over onto the passenger side!  I parked down the block where it was a little more reasonable.

There was a bar/restaurant that looked like it was in the process of being painted.  However, if you looked closely, the “new” paint had as many webs and dings as the old paint so not sure how long the process had been ongoing.  How long since you have seen one of these signs?



There was also a small post office.



While we were reading the sign pictured below, an older couple drove up and walked over to the sign.  The lady said her grandfather was the first owner of the store where we had purchased our ice cream.  He also ran the post office and once a week had to make the trip to Enterprise for the mail.  It was an overnight trip on horseback in those days.

Click on the sign to enlarge and read a little about Chief Joseph and Imnaha.



The Imnaha River flows through town right next to the post office.  Other than a building that said School and Library on it, that appeared to be the only commercial buildings in Imnaha.  Like I said…Small…but an interesting tour.



Next we visited Enterprise, which is only 6 miles from Joseph.  Enterprise is somewhat larger than Joseph and even has a Safeway!!  Russ loved the look of some of the buildings in town.



The Wallowa County Courthouse is located in Enterprise and it is a beautiful and well kept building and grounds.


This is the back of the courthouse grounds.



No doubt this is a site of many summer activities in town.

As Russ was shooting the courthouse, I heard a shrill whistle.  I heard Russ say “I got you.”  Then  Russ went across the street and talked to a man.  He later told me the fella whistled and then hollered at Russ to take his picture.  It seems he had just purchased a new jacket of which he was very proud and he wanted to show it off.  He bragged that he had only spent $40 on the jacket and it was indeed a beauty.  He said his Indian name was Badger and since he referred to himself as an Indian, that is the way I refer to him in this story.  He was quite proud of his heritage and "Indian" was what he wanted to be called.



Don’t you just love that face?  Lots of character there.  We were in Enterprise a couple of times and we always saw Badger sitting in the same place across from the courthouse.  He was always with other people and they seemed to be enjoying talking and just hanging out enjoying the nice weather.

I sure wish I could find a jacket like that for $40.  And I sure wish I had more time to talk to Badger.  I bet he has some stories to tell.

Next, we leave our wonderful Wallowa Lake and journey to John Day Oregon.  Yup, heading slowly home!