Ask the Chatbot Games & Quizzes History & Society Science & Tech Biographies Animals & Nature Geography & Travel Arts & Culture ProCon Money Videos
Hells Canyon
Table of Contents
Introduction References & Edit History Related Topics
Images
Snake River
Read Next
The United States Supreme Court building, Washington, D.C.
14 Questions About Government in the United States Answered
Bar graph of the United States Death Toll during major events. Infogram chart.
U.S. Death Toll During Major Events
The Battle of New Orleans, by E. Percy Moran, c. 1910. Andrew Jackson, War of 1812.
26 Decade-Defining Events in U.S. History
Groups of depositors in front of the closed American Union Bank, New York City. April 26, 1932. Great Depression run on bank crowd
Causes of the Great Depression
President's bingo. Guess and select to correct president based on images.
Britannica’s U.S. Presidents Bingo
Discover
The Battle of Gettysburg, July 1-3, 1863. (Civil War, Pennsylvania)
9 Worst Generals in History
King Cobra snake in Malaysia. (reptile)
9 of the World’s Deadliest Snakes
Nativity Scene, Adoration of the Magi, Church of the Birth of the Virgin Mary, Montenegro
Why Is Christmas in December?
Monitor. Varanus salvadorii is a monitor lizard found in New Guinea can grows to 2.7 metres (9 ft.) aka Tree crocodile, Crocodile monitor, Salvadori's monitor, artellia, reptile
7 of the World’s Most Dangerous Lizards and Turtles
Srinivasa Ramanujan, Indian mathematician and autodidact.
6 Interesting Facts about Srinivasa Ramanujan
Colorful winter sunset
What's the Difference Between a Solstice and an Equinox?
World Data Locator Map: Australia
Is Australia an Island?
Snake River
Snake River The lower Snake River in Hells Canyon National Recreation Area, between Oregon and Idaho.

Hells Canyon

canyon, United States
verifiedCite
While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions.
Select Citation Style
Share
Share to social media
URL
https://mainten.top/place/Hells-Canyon
Feedback
Corrections? Updates? Omissions? Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login).
Thank you for your feedback

Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article.

External Websites
Written and fact-checked by
The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors.
The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Article History

Hells Canyon, deep gorge of the Snake River in the northwestern United States. It forms part of the boundary between Idaho and Oregon and separates the Seven Devils (Idaho) and Wallowa (Oregon) mountain ranges. The canyon has a total length of 125 miles (201 km), along 40 miles (64 km) of which it is more than 1 mile (1.6 km) deep. It reaches a maximum depth of 7,900 feet (2,400 metres), making it the deepest gorge on the North American continent. Parts of the canyon are richly coloured in shades of yellow, red, and orange, and in places the walls rise perpendicularly for several thousand feet.

After a protracted controversy between power advocates in the federal government and in the private sector over damming the Snake River (to help contain downstream floods in the Columbia River to the north and west), the Idaho Power Company completed three dams in the area—Brownlee (1959), Oxbow (1961), and Hells Canyon (1968).

Hells Canyon National Recreation Area was established in the gorge and surrounding region in 1975. Situated primarily in Wallowa-Whitman National Forest in Oregon but also in Nezperce and Payette national forests in Idaho, it has an area of some 1,020 square miles (2,640 square km). Also in 1975, some 67 miles (108 km) of the Snake below Hells Canyon Dam was designated a national wild and scenic river.

This article was most recently revised and updated by Kenneth Pletcher.