Best Columbia River
The Columbia River is the largest river in the Pacific Northwest, rising in British Columbia and flowing about 2,000 kilometers through Washington and along the Washington-Oregon border to the Pacific Ocean. Its basin contains numerous dams, including the Grand Coulee and Bonneville facilities, maki...
Why this score?
World-class gorge scenery, enormous hydropower legacy, salmon heritage, and regional identity; dams severely impair fisheries and natural flow.
Scoring methodology
The original theatrical one-sheet poster for the 1976 film "Taxi Driver," directed by Martin Scorsese, features a solitary, brooding image of Robert De Niro as the protagonist Travis Bickle. The design places Bickle against a rain-soaked New York City street backdrop, visually establishing the film'...
Why this score?
Brooding De Niro image is iconic and respected, though less graphically singular than the highest-ranked poster designs.
Scoring methodology
The Cape Disappointment Lighthouse stands at the Columbia River’s entrance, marking the Pacific Ocean's mouth. Constructed in 1881, it is Washington State’s oldest operating lighthouse and a vital navigational aid for mariners. Its consistent operation from 1881 to 1957 ensured safe passage through...
The Columbia River meets the Pacific Ocean at the Oregon-Washington border in a broad estuary notorious for the Columbia Bar, historically one of the most dangerous river mouths for maritime navigation.
Why this score?
Famous estuary and dangerous bar with major navigation history, but less classic delta development and heavy regulation.
Scoring methodology
Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge is a federally protected area near Ridgefield, Washington, established in 1965 to conserve Columbia River floodplain habitat. Its wetlands, grasslands, riparian woods, and seasonal lakes provide wintering and feeding grounds for waterfowl, especially the dusky Can...
Why this score?
Good Columbia River bottomland refuge with bird value and local popularity, but limited broader landmark status.
Scoring methodology
The Columbia River is the largest river in the Pacific Northwest region of North America by water volume. It flows for 1,243 miles, originating in the Rocky Mountains of British Columbia, Canada, before traveling south and west through the United States. Along its course, it forms a significant port...
The Lewis and Clark Bridge is a cantilever truss bridge crossing the Columbia River between Longview, Washington and Rainier, Oregon. Designed by engineer Joseph Strauss, it opened to traffic in 1930 and carries U.S. Route 30 Business. The main span measures approximately 1,200 feet (366 meters), an...
Why this score?
Handsome Columbia River cantilever landmark, historically important regionally, with moderate national engineering recognition.
Scoring methodology
Horsethief Lake Petroglyphs are Indigenous rock carvings preserved at Columbia Hills Historical State Park in Washington State, near the Columbia River. The park's cultural resources include the figure Tsagaglalal, commonly translated as She Who Watches, as well as other petroglyph and pictograph pa...
Why this score?
Culturally significant rescued carvings and iconic Tsagaglalal imagery nearby; relocation compromises archaeological context.
Scoring methodology
The Interstate Bridge is a pair of steel cantilever truss spans carrying Interstate 5 over the Columbia River between Portland, Oregon and Vancouver, Washington. The original span, opened in 1917, now carries southbound traffic, while a parallel northbound span opened in 1958. The bridges include ve...
Why this score?
Critical Columbia River crossing with historic value, but congestion, age, and replacement debates reduce consensus standing.
Scoring methodology
