The Top of the World Fire has been declared fully contained. The fire was on Forest Service land west of the Catherine Creek recreation area in the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area between Bingen and Lyle. A Scenic Area spokesperson said within the last few days, firefighters have been able to take advantage of cooler weather and light precipitation to further reinforce containment lines and have completed a containment line around 100% of the fire perimeter. Local fire resources will continue to patrol and monitor the fire area for any smoke or potential additional fire activity. The Catherine Creek trail system and trailhead are open for public use. Visitors should be aware that hazards continue to exist inside the burned area from falling rocks and fire weakened trees, and firefighters will be continuing suppression operations as needed. Extra caution should be used when visiting the area.
Category: Uncategorized
Body Recovered Near Bonneville Dam
The Skamania County Sheriff’s Office confirmed a body was recovered in the Columbia River near Bonneville Dam on Saturday morning. KGW reports Bonneville Dam employees discovered the body upriver from the dam just after 10 a.m. The body is now in the hands of the Medical Examiner’s Office and the Skamania County Sheriff’s Office is investigating. The sheriff’s office said they do not believe the person’s death is the result of foul play, but the incident is still under investigation. The person’s identity has not yet been reported. It is unknown at this time how they died.
Return Rates Above 20 Percent In Hood River & Wasco Counties
Ballot return rates in Hood River and Wasco counties were above 20 percent heading into the weekend. Hood River County ended Friday with 23.14% of ballots returned, or 3,882. Wasco County checked in at 21.45%, or 4,052. Both are well below the return rates of 2020. In Washington, the Secretary of State’s office says 16.68% of ballots have been sent to Skamania County election offices. The Klickitat County rate is much lower at 7.34%.
October 25 Prep Sports Scoreboard
Football
Hood River Valley 49, Putnam 6
Molalla 25, The Dalles 14
Columbia 49, Fort Vancouver 6
Seton Catholic 55, Stevenson 14
Sherman 72, Country Christian 30
Dufur 54, Perrydale 12
Lyle-Klickitat-Wishram 66, Pilot Rock 18
Harper Charter 53, South Wasco 20
Goldendale 48, White Swan 6
Girls Soccer
Riverdale 3, Trout Lake-Glenwood 0
Hood River County Forestry Introduces Online Trail Map
Hood River County has developed a Tree Farm Trail Map, an interactive web map of recreational trails in the County Forest allowing users to visualize and gain information about the recreational trail network. Over 230 unique recreational trails in the County Forest are used by mountain bikers, hikers, equestrians, off-highway vehicle and 4×4 riders, and adaptive bicyclists. The tool makes it easier to identify trail access points and difficulty ratings, and determine trail statuses. The new online map enables Hood River County Forestry staff to update trail information in real-time to improve safety and awareness for all trail users and help with communications for natural disasters. The Hood River County Tree Farm Trail Map is available at webmap.hoodrivercounty.gov/trail or by scanning a QR code on signs at staging areas. The map is compatible with all web-enabled devices. It was developed by Hood River County’s Geographic Information Services in collaboration with the county Forestry Department.
Man Rescued After Going Off Trail Hiking Wind Mountain
Skamania County Sheriff’s Office Search and Rescue volunteers rescued an 85-year-old Portland early Thursday morning after the man went off trail while hiking Wind Mountain. The Skamania County Sheriff’s Office says its communications center received a report of the overdue hiker late Wednesday night. A Skamania County Deputy located the missing hiker’s vehicle at the Wind Mountain trailhead. The Sheriff’s Office says at around 1:21 a.m. Thursday, search and rescue volunteers located the hiker about 75 feet off the trail in rugged terrain. Personnel from Skamania County Emergency Medical Services and volunteers from Klickitat County Sheriff’s Office Search and Rescue, Skamania County Fire District 1, and Skamania County Fire District 2 took part in a rope rescue. By about 7:15 a.m., the hiker was brought to the trailhead and transported to a hospital for treatment.
Pika Numbers On The Rise
Pika enthusiasts have reason to celebrate this season, as new survey data from Cascades Pika Watch shows numbers of the potato-sized mammals — and the volunteers trained to spot them — are on the rise in the Columbia River Gorge. Since the 2017 Eagle Creek Fire, surveys indicate the pika population in the area has been steadily increasing. Last year volunteers spotted pikas at nearly two-thirds of the sites surveyed, and this year that number was even higher. Pikas, tiny rabbit relatives known for their distinctive, squeak-toy-like calls, typically live on mountain slopes at elevations above 6,000 feet, but a unique low-elevation population is living in the Columbia Gorge. Every summer, volunteers from Cascades Pika Watch — a program of the Oregon Zoo — head into the field with binoculars to stake out pika hot spots, record their locations and listen for the pika’s telltale squeak. Then they upload their data to a website, helping biologists to better understand where pikas live and whether their range is shifting. There is growing concern among scientists about the future of pikas, as climate change has caused population declines and local extinctions in parts of the pika’s range, but the season’s results are very encouraging.
Ballots Continue To Come In, Rate Not As Quick As 2020
Both Wasco and Hood River counties are reporting receiving over 3,000 ballots apiece with a week-and-a-half left in the election process. Wasco County has had 3,035 ballots returned, a rate of 16.02%, which continues to trail the 30.52% of 2020. Hood River County ended Thursday with 3,222 ballots returned, or 19.22% Four years ago the return rate at this point was 37.17%. The Washington State Elections Division reports as of the end of Thursday 16.67% of ballots had been returned in Skamania County, and 4.94% in Klickitat County.
October 24 Prep Sports Scoreboard
Volleyball
Columbia def. Kalama 3-1
King’s Way Christian def. Stevenson 3-1
Goldendale def. LaSalle (Yakima) 3-2
Boys Soccer
The Dalles 2, Molalla 1
Hood River Valley 8, Hillsboro 0
Girls Soccer
Hillsboro 4, Hood River Valley 1
The Dalles 1, Molalla 1
King’s Way Christian 3, Stevenson 1
Goldendale 2, Warden 1
Cross Country
Columbia won the girls’ title at the Trico League Championships at Vancouver Lake Regional Park. The Bruins’ Lilah Zimmerman won the individual title, with Helen Hoskins in fourth and Kathryn O’Connor in fifth. Stevenson finished third in the team’s standings, paced by Daisy Jones in sixth. CHS finished second to LaCenter in the boys race, led by Noah Slayton’s third place finish. Colton Hollis was the top Stevenson finisher in 21st.
Goldendale had three of the top four finishers on the way to winning the girls’ title at the EWAC Championships at Apple Ridge in Yakima. Emma Meagher won the race for the Timberwolves, with teammates Jennasea Smith in third and Mia Meagher in fourth. The Goldendale boys were second to Cle Elum-Roslyn, with Malachi Lawson topping the Timberwolves by finishing sixth.
The Dalles boys were second and the girls fourth at the Valiant Invitational at Valley Catholic. Alana Casady was the top Riverhawk finisher for the girls with a sixth place finish, and Tyson Long topped The Dalles’ boys in seventh.
Three Arrested After Search Of Cascade Locks Building
Three people were arrested after a search of a Cascade Locks building on Wednesday yielded stolen property. The Hood River County Sheriff’s Office says a search at 706 Wa Na Pa Street resulted in locating property from multiple local theft reports. Arrested in conjunction with the search were 39-year-old Lester Lee Feist, on charges of first degree aggravated theft, second degree burglary, second degree theft, and outstanding warrants…36-year-old Heather Marie Morse, on five counts of being a felon in possession of a weapon and outstanding warrants…and 42-year-old Shane Vincient Holden, on five counts of felon in possession of a weapon, second degree burglary, and outstanding warrants. All three were lodged at the Northern Oregon Regional Corrections Facility. The investigation is ongoing.