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Taken from the opposite bank of the Columbia River (locally Lake Entiat, the impoundment behind Rocky Reach Dam) this sweeping panorama shows the Ribbon Cliff in its entirety. The point from which this photo was taken is marked on the Ribbon Cliff map at the top of the Ribbon Cliff page. Annotations label the main features discussed here and in the captions of the other photos. Note the electrical transmission towers above Earthquake Point. The landslide scar still quite visible after 120 years. Note also the large talus aprons (colluvial fans) at the base of the cliff, complete with highway cuts visible at their toes. The discernable line at the base of the cliff marks the highway and railroad.
Ribbon Cliff is the southern end of Ribbon Mesa, one of the ridges that compose the Entiat Mountains. The mesa continues off the right edge of the picture. Ribbon Cliff has a local relief of over 1400 feet, and that rise occurs in less that 1600 feet back from the river. This is an average slope of more than 40 degrees. Locally the slope is much greater, especially at the rocky heads of the cliff.
This is a morning picture. By noon the cliff is in deep shadow since it faces northeast. One of the best viewing locations is from Daroga Park on this bank of the river. The east end of the transmission lines passes through the park and the close ups of Earthquake Point and Ribbon Cliff are taken from there.
Photograph copyright © 1992-98 by Peter K. Matthews. All Rights Reserved.