Volunteers with Pacific Northwest Search and Rescue will conduct training at Multnomah Falls on Sunday. As a safety precaution, the Larch Mountain Trail, from the plaza to the top of the falls, will be closed on Sunday from 6 a.m. until midafternoon. The all-volunteer search and rescue team will practice rope and rescue skills on the steep slopes, while also removing trash from hard-to-reach areas around the falls. Forest Service officials say the work will help keep the popular recreation site clean and safe for visitors. Pacific Northwest Search and Rescue provides ground search and rescue resources to agencies across the region. Team members train regularly and remain on call around the clock.
Author: mbailey
CASA Volunteers Grow, But So Does Need
Columbia Gorge CASA, Court Appointed Special Advocates for Children, has seen its ranks of volunteer advocates grow, but the need has been increasing as well. The agency serves Wasco, Hood River, and Sherman counties, advising courts on what is in the best interest of children. Executive Director Christopher Janetzko says in the just completed fiscal year, they saw the number of children they help rise to 100 for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic. They still have about fifteen on a waiting list. Columbia Gorge CASA is in the midst of preparing for its winter volunteer trainings. Those who are interested in being a CASA volunteer can get more information at columbiagorgecasa.org.
Fly-In This Weekend
Hood River’s Western Antique Aeroplane and Automobile Museum will host its annual Fly-In this weekend at the museum and the adjacent Ken Jernstedt Airfield. WAAAM’s Stephanie Hatch says pilots from the region and beyond will be flying their aircraft in for the event. The fly-in and the museum will be open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. both Saturday and Sunday. Hatch does say that many of the planes start to fly out on Sunday. Admission is $25 for adults and $10 for kids. Get all the information at waaamuseum.org.
Huck Fest Weekend In Bingen
It’s Huckleberry Festival weekend in Bingen. Festivities begin this evening at 5 p.m. in Daubenspeck Park, and will continue all through the weekend. The festival’s Caralee Holtmann says the festival has been in existence for 64 years, and will feature music, kids activities, and of course huckleberries. There will also be the “Hucklebery Haven” with jams, jellies, barbecue sauce, shirts, sweatshirts and more. Holtmann adds they have a large selection of vendors. The Huckleberry Festival parade will go through downtown Bingen Saturday morning at 11 a.m. Daubenspeck Park is located on the north side of Highway 14.
High Lava Fire Closures Shrink
The Gifford Pinchot National Forest is shrinking the High Lava Fire closure area east of Stabler. The updated closure now focuses only on areas where crews are still conducting fire suppression, mop-up and repair work. Several trails and trailheads are now open, including Siouxon, Zigzag Lake, East Fork, Horseshoe Falls, Huffman Peak and all trails in the Trapper Creek Wilderness. The Soda Peaks Trail is also accessible from the Trapper Creek trailhead. The West Crater Trail and trailhead, along with the Soda Peaks trailhead, remain closed. The High Lava Fire is 2,899 acres in size and 63 percent contained.
September 9 Prep Sports Roundup
Cross Country
Hood River Valley nabbed three of the top five places to win the boys’ half of the Northwest Oregon Conference preview meet at Blue Lake Park in Fairview. Joshua Carley finished second, Sam Schwager fourth, and Copeland Louis fifth as the Eagles easily outdistanced Centennial. In the girls’ race, HRV’s Savina Davis won as the only runner to record a time under 20 minutes and finished nearly 2:40 ahead of the field, while Sandy finished first in the team standings.
Girls Soccer
Columbia 7, Toutle Lake 0
MCCAC Begins Capital Campaign For Permanent Hood River Shelter Site
Mid-Columbia Community Action Council is beginning a capital campaign to create a permanent shelter location in Hood River that would include locations for community partners to provide services, similar to the Gloria Center in The Dalles. MCCAC plans to operate its 12 pallet shelters in Hood River currently located at 1733 Oak on a year-round basis beginning in November. Executive Director Leslie Naramore says they just signed a new lease on that property, but they are looking for a one to two acre location for a permanent operation. The capital campaign will be in two phases: one to purchase the land, the second for construction of the facility.
Klickitat Commissioners Reiterate Reasons For No Data Center Moratorium
Klickitat County Commissioners Ron Ihrig and Lori Zoller reiterated their reasons for not wanting to establish a moratorium on data centers during Wednesday’s Commission meeting. Ihrig says companies have been considering locating data centers in Klickitat County for years, and he doesn’t expect a rush of applications. He also thinks some people believe a moratorium stops data centers, and that is not the case. But Ihrig also said they need proceed quickly towards completing an ordinance. Zoller added a moratorium would bring another layer of process and actually delay an ordinance. Commissioner Todd Andrews had broached the idea of a moratorium, and many attendees at a Commission workshop last week urged taking that step.
HR County Health Expands Home Visitation For Parents
The Hood River County Health Department has expanded home visitation services for new parents and their children. Home Visiting Nurse Kate Karlson says they have received funding through the federal Rural Health Transformation Program to open up access to their current home visiting program so there is not an insurance requirement, allowing anyone to take advantage. One program is “Babies First,” which includes home visiting for pregnant women through one year after birth, and for the children until they are five. There is also the “Cocoon” program for care coordination for families of children with special needs, and in-home lactation support is also available. The department is also offering a meet-up group for mothers at Pine Grove School two Wednesday afternoons a month from 4 p.m. to 5 p.m. beginning on September 16. It will be a drop-in event with no registration needed. For more information, call the Hood River County Health Department at 541-386-1115.
September 9 Prep Sports Scoreboard
Girls Soccer
Hood River Valley 5, Canby 0
Stevenson 1, Toutle Lake 1
Trout Lake 8, The Dalles JV II 0
Volleyball
LaSalle def. Hood River Valley 25-20, 25-16, 26-24
The Dalles def. Stayton 3-0
Columbia def. Evergreen 3-2
Stevenson def. Goldendale 3-2
Sherman def. Horizon Christian 25-5, 25-11, 25-8
Dufur def. Ione-Arlington 3-0
Spray-Mitchell-Wheeler def. South Wasco 25-15, 25-16. 25-17
Condon def. Trout Lake-Glenwood 3-0