A river rafting trip to Hells Canyon, the deepest canyon in all of North America, brought this writer and his stepfather closer together.

Adventure and history buffs alike can explore every nook and cranny, both in and atop the deepest gorge in America: Hells Canyon of the Snake River.

In the 1960s and ‘70s, the Hells Canyon Dam complex was built to soak up the immense hydropower potential that flowed with the river.