From the Canyons: Fall Musings

I live on the breaks between the Grande Ronde and Minam-Wallowa rivers. From here, I watch the seasons roll by - September warm fall days to October's seemingly endless rain. When it's not raining, the dampness in the air settles into fog nestled along creeks and rivers.

In October our masonry stove gets dusted off, cleaned out, and fired up in the evenings to take the chill off. It's a time for laying in firewood on the front covered patio and stapling plastic on the wrap-around porch. Settling in and hunkering down before winter's cold.

Most of the migrating birds have left; no more meadowlarks or house wrens or bluebirds until next spring. Chickadees, pine siskins and nuthatches still raid the sunflower seeds, but I only need to fill the birdfeeder every week now instead of every day.

Deer are back now that hunting has diminished, and grouping together in larger herds. "Wild" turkeys have reappeared and increasingly large flocks sometimes block the road on our morning commute. I'm seeing and hearing more owls at night.

Fall is also the time for gatherings of people - cider pressings, annual meetings, and the HCPC fall Gala. The question raised by this year's speaker was what are we doing about the coming catastrophe of climate change. Good question to ask. The way I see it, everyone will have (and should have) a different answer - dependent on where and how we live, what our resources are, what resources we use. If we care for where we live, the exact places we see every day, that seems like a good place to start. Caring for our neighborhood, our watershed. Bringing resilience back to the lands we inhabit, whether pulling invasive weeds, planting native species, creating wildlife habitat, buying local foods, protecting local wild areas, or supporting those who do the same.

It seems that, as the Gala speaker pointed out, we must think globally and act politically. I believe we must also act locally. Inspired by the places we know and love, we can change where we live, and be a contributing part of a bigger watershed.

Hope to see you at the Ladd Creek restoration planting on Nov. 6th. And please don't forget to vote.

Litigation Update: Sled Springs OHV Lawsuit

Last winter HCPC filed suit to protect the Sled Springs area and the wildlife that inhabit it (particularly big game species like Rocky Mountain elk) from the damage and disturbance that will result if the proposed 38,000-acre section of the Wallowa Valley Ranger District becomes a designated OHV park. (See Blog posted on December 28, 2009).

This August, HCPC filed its opening argument (available at: http://www.hellscanyon.org/docs/index_13_1094190278.pdf).

HCPC’s argument states the Forest Service failed to conduct the proper level of environmental analysis and adequately consider the environmental consequences of transforming the area from currently one of relatively low OHV use to an advertised and promoted destination riding area for OHV enthusiasts. Because the 2005 nationwide Travel Management Rule requires all national forests to prohibit unconfined cross-country OHV use, the Sled Springs area would already have to come under this new management direction in the very near future. Yet the Forest Service failed to consider the option of simply complying with this national direction—prohibiting current OHV users from traveling off designated routes—and identifying a modest level of OHV trail riding opportunities on currently open roads/trails. Instead, the agency only considered options that call for the construction of several miles of new OHV routes and the creation of a large-scale designated OHV trail system with formal staging areas. The final decision authorizes motorized use on 144 miles of roads and trails! HCPC argues that the establishment of such a colossal OHV trail network will inevitably give rise to increased motorized use—both legal and unauthorized.

Last Friday, the Forest Service filed its response argument, once again alleging its decision properly accounted for the negative effects to elk and other wildlife. The case is set for oral argument this December in Pendleton before U.S. Magistrate Judge Patricia Sullivan.

Staff Attorney, Jennifer Schwartz

Photo credit: Gerald and Buff Corsi © California Academy of Sciences

The Bounties of Fall, Fishing and Gala

Fall has arrived with cool nights and amber-lit days. This has always been my favorite time of the year, memories of rolling in piles of leaves, searching for chanterelles, carving pumpkins and fishing for steelhead. This year I have another fun activity to add to my Fall favorites, HCPC’s Gala! Now that Summer has faded, it’s time to get out and enjoy bountiful opportunities to enjoy this time of year.

October is the time to hunt for delicious edibles, including the elusive steelhead. As the rain returns to the NW the rivers begin to cool, raise, and the water levels invite the steelhead and salmon to return to their native waters. Not only does this time of year encourage the steelhead to migrate, but it also calls to my family who follows and heads to Troy on the Grande Ronde river for camping, fishing and story-time around the campfire. Troy sits at the confluence of the Wenaha and Grande Ronde rivers and offers great fishing drifts and opportunities to catch yourself a big ol’ steelhead. When I get tired of fishing and not catching, I take off on the Wenaha Trail that heads up the Wenaha River for some great scenery and wildlife spotting. Turkeys, elk, bear and now wolves can all be spotted in this area, along with numerous other species.

October also brings HCPC’s Fall Gala on Saturday, October 23, 2010, from 5:00PM-9:00PM at Lady of the Valley Catholic Church Parish Hall. As the new Development Outreach Coordinator, I am excited to throw a party that has been in the planning over the last 6 months. The Gala Committee, including Jen Schemm, Juanette Cremin and Katie Perez have outdone themselves in putting together a great event with local foods, Kupenga Marimba band, Terminal Gravity beer, wine and a silent auction filled with incredible items! This would be a great place to pick up some xmas gifts while supporting HCPC! Being new to HCPC I am looking forward to meeting more of our members, my favorite part of this job is getting to know all of you!

The guest speaker for this year’s Gala is Jim Martin a 30 year veteran of Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife and a Conservation Director for the Berkley Conservation Institute, a branch of Pure Fishing. During his career with ODFW, Jim spent six years as Chief of Fisheries and three years as Salmon Advisor to Governor John Kitzhaber. Jim led the team that developed the Oregon Plan for Salmon and Watersheds, a state conservation plan to address Endangered Species and Clean Water issues in Oregon. Now, Jim is Chairman of the Board of the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership. He is also a science advisor for the Doris Duke Foundation and the Northwest Sportfishing Industry Assn. In 2005, Jim was inducted into the National Freshwater Fishing Hall of Fame in Hayward, Wisconsin. Jim’s presentation is called “A Great Wave Rising: The Coming Crisis in Conservation in the Pacific Northwest.”

In November, I get to share the Grande Ronde river with Jim and Dave Perkins, Vice Chairman of The Orvis Company, as a thank you for speaking at our Fall Gala. It will be fun to introduce both of these river conservationists to one of the best fisheries in the Pacific NW and to the work HCPC does to preserve it. From mountaintops to river bottom, HCPC is there to guard over the Hells Canyon-Wallowa-Whitman and Blue Mountain ecosystems.

This Fall is sure to be a bounty of fun, fishing, spending time in a favorite wild place and celebrating HCPC and our members at Fall Gala!

A Treetop Perpective

By Brian Kelly, Restoration Coordinator

Last week, I got to see the world from the top of an old growth Douglas-fir. It was a spectacular view from up there, as you might expect, with vistas of forests, mountains and ocean spreading out toward the horizon. The view up close was more unique, however, because it’s a rare experience to leave the ground and ascend two hundred feet in the air right next to a four-hundred-fifty year old tree. I got a bird’s eye view of the canopy of an old growth forest.

I should explain that I did not actually climb this tree. A collection of ropes, pulleys, and devices to protect both me and the tree made the ascent possible. After strapping on a climbing harness, I was attached to the rope that lifted me airborne with the assistance of several experienced, professional arborists. These professionals are completely dedicated to a “leave no trace” approach and they take great care to protect every branch, the bark, and all living organisms associated with the tree. An arborist ascended the tree on a separate rope a few feet away from me and acted as a guide as we rose up into the canopy. The guided ascent of the tree was offered as part of a conference entitled “Life in the Trees”.

Big, old trees are awe-inspiring, impressive, living things. Beyond their power to impress us, however, they also are home to birds, mammals, amphibians, mosses, lichens, fungi and vascular plants. Researchers have discovered sizeable hemlock trees growing out of the broken tops of ancient redwoods. We are learning that there are airborne ecosystems in tree canopies. We are learning that there is a lot going on in the treetops that we do not know very much about. To me, that speaks clearly toward the need to protect the remaining giants of the forests.

I loved climbing trees when I was a child. Thinking about it now, I remember pulling myself up through the branches and challenging myself to make it higher up in the canopy. I remember the rustling of leaves, the smell of the bark on my palms, shafts of light through the branches and the thrill of seeing the ground from new heights. Most of all, I think that I just loved being up there in a special, secret world near the top of a tree. I’m here to report that it’s still a wonderful place to be.

Joseph Canyon Roadless Area Hike

HCPC led a hike into an incredible potential Wilderness Area, the 40,000 acre Joseph Canyon Inventoried Roadless Area, on September 5^th, 2010. We started at the historic Chico Trail, hiked down to Davis Creek, and then climbed up to Starvation Ridge where we enjoyed incredible views of the Wallowas and Seven Devils Mountains, and the Findley Buttes. We explored along Starvation Ridge and found a wildfire burn area from 2010 (pictured below). From our final vantage point, we could see Joseph Canyon in the distance.

Viewing wildlife, exploring wildlands with beautiful scenery, hiking, and experiences in undeveloped lands are huge attractions for people across Oregon and the entire Pacific Northwest, helping to sustain rural economies and natural ecosystems.

The Joseph Canyon Roadless Area is well known, largely because of its proximity to State Highway 3 and popular Joseph Canyon viewpoint that overlooks the 2,000-foot depths of Joseph Canyon. The Joseph Canyon Roadless Area is a key part of a unique and critical wildlife connective corridor providing high quality habitat between the remote Hells Canyon National Recreation Area and the Wenaha-Tucannon Wilderness.

View from Starvation Ridge looking to the other side of Swamp Creek....and the Seven Devils in the background. Note the scale by the size of the Ponderosa Pine that is alone in the grasslands (center of image).

The Joseph Canyon Roadless Area contains numerous streams that are used by anadromous fish and provides spawning habitat for salmon and steelhead. The area includes Swamp Creek where it is designated as a Wild and Scenic River and the ODFW’s Oregon Conservation Strategy has identified it as a Priority Conservation Opportunity Area. The area is renowned for wildlife and includes Ponderosa Pine Woodlands and old growth forests now rare on the Wallowa-Whitman National Forest. The Joseph Canyon Roadless Area has significant historical value that embraces all of the major peoples that have shaped the region; the Nez Perce Indians; pioneers and settlers, the Forest Service, and backcountry hunters and hikers. The trails have been used since time immemorial and are currently frequented by backcountry hunters and horse-back riders and hikers. One of the historic names of the Canyon was Condor Canyon, for the Condor that used to fly above Joseph Canyon.

View from Starvation Ridge to Joseph Canyon and the wild country beyond.

From The Canyons - Neighbors

I live on the breaks between the Grande Ronde and Minam-Wallowa rivers. That is, I live there most nights and week-ends, and a little in the morning (before 7 am). I value the scraps of time that I am there.

Yesterday morning I heard elk bugling before getting in my car to drive into work. Correction, I heard the bugling of elk and the buzzing of a small private plane, the chattering of pygmy nuthatches and the rattling of a pick-up truck on the road, the clear heart-stabbing song of a meadowlark and a chainsaw starting up.

Life where I live is on the continuum of the wild and the human, as it is everywhere now. I’m beginning to understand that wildness extends into our cities, and we extend our influence into the wildest areas. I'm beginning to understand that every action of mine impacts the wild somehow, and the wild affects every part of my life. Often these are unintended consequences – most of which are unknown by me.

The windows of our house at night, bright with light in a dark world, concentrate the moths in our vicinity. The bats follow the moths, zipping around our porch. The pots of kitchen herbs and greens I keep watered on my back deck are assertively inhabited by the little frogs known as spring peepers – the only place I see them any more. Mule deer graze close by, knowing we do not have dogs or hunting rifles, knowing the coyotes keep a distance from our house.

We are neighbors – us and the coyotes and deer and rambling bear and occasional cougar and on and on. From not-so-wild turkeys to very wild grouse, owls to house mice, we live in each other’s vicinity, some closer than others, some (like the house mice) too close for my comfort. They are part of my world, and for better or worse, I am part of theirs.

I mark my calendar as much by the birds I hear in the morning and the schedule of wildflowers blossoming, what stars are visible in the night sky, and the shape of the moon as by dates and months.

Now I have decided to move to town, aware that I will still be part of this continuum, aware that all my actions still will impact the wild around me, aware that I will still be struggling to learn how to be a better neighbor.

Warning to my human neighbors – I intend to plant native shrubs and wildflowers along my fence lines, tolerate any deer that wander by, put up bat boxes and bird boxes, and in every way I can imagine encourage the wild to continue co-habiting with me on this glorious, beautiful earth.

- Danae Yurgel, HCPC Office Administrator

Paradise Revisited on the Lower Salmon River

There is nothing like a multi-day river trip with family and friends to rejuvenate the soul! This year my family and I chose to revisit the Lower Salmon River for a 5-day raft trip, an area I once used to be a raft guide on and now have returned as an HCPC staff member and fan. As a raft guide I always appreciated the beautiful scenery and inviting water, but I never took the time to really think about how the river and its ecosystems were doing. On the surface, it appears to be unaffected by the multiple uses, but once you scratch the surface to learn about the health of the ecosystems you will find it is a fragile place that needs your help for continued protection.

Prior to this float, I had just learned of HCPC’s recent victory in their efforts to protect Bighorn Sheep in Idaho! The Payette National Forest released their decision to close almost 44,000 acres of domestic sheep grazing allotments over the next 3 years. We successfully closed a substantial portion of the Payette NF to domestic sheep grazing with our past litigation. Now, after full implementation of the Payette’s current decision, only 31,592 acres out of the entire 2.3 million-acre forest will be open to domestic sheep grazing equaling just 1.4% of the entire forest. Knowing that the Bighorn Sheep numbers were low, I was excited to see how many we could spot throughout the trip and had the whole float party on active alert to capture any photos or information on them.

On our third day we had yet to see a Bighorn Sheep. Bighorn have a long way to go before they can be considered recovered in Hells Canyon the Salmon River Canyon. At one point there were about 10,000 in the area, and now they’re at about 10-15% of that population level. But with each successive victory, we remove more of the threats to their survival. Those of you in the canyons this summer, remember that for every Bighorn you see there should be roughly 10 of them.

Why do domestic sheep disrupt the success of Bighorn? Domestic sheep carry a mortal disease that spreads to the Bighorn herds and causes large mortality rates. In 1996 HCPC was integral in stopping domestic sheep grazing on the Oregon side of Hells Canyon, but if you have ever witnessed a whole herd of Bighorn swimming across the Snake River, you would have to wonder how protected the Bighorn were from the disease crossing the river. Now, with the Payette’s decision the entire area will become a safe haven against lethal diseases for the Bighorn Sheep.

On our last day of floating through 70 miles of beautiful, clear water, four stunning canyons, all the fun rapids and endless sandy beaches we had yet to see a single Bighorn Sheep. As the Salmon River merged with the Snake River, we could see both the Idaho and Oregon sides of Hells Canyon. After a few miles we looked up on the Oregon side of the Snake River and had our first glimpse of a Bighorn Sheep herd! The herd consisted of about 14 Ewes and several lambs, all grazing on a steep canyon wall. We floated another mile and came upon another herd, this time with four rams, all perched precariously on the cliff walls above our heads. As we floated by they seemed as curious about us as we were about them, watching us from high above. What a regal sight to see, and a wonderful ending to another amazing trip down the Lower Salmon River. I look forward to returning in a few years to see more Bighorn roaming the cliff sides of the Salmon and Snake River systems, and take pride in the fact that I get to work with the organization that helped that happen!

Renee Tkach, Development Outreach Coordinator