No, it’s not a case of “Where’s Waldo?” but return visitors to the Leaburg Fish Hatchery recently have wondered why they couldn’t seem to find the largest fish in the facility’s show ponds. That’s because, in anticipation of the dewatering of the ponds later in the season, they’ve been moved, according to Erik Withalm, manager of the Leaburg Hatchery. Five of the fish have been relocated to a pond at the McKenzie River Discovery Center - just across from the hatchery on the...

Cuts to annual federal budgets for trout, steelhead, and Chinook salmon stocking in the Upper Willamette Basin are generating protests from Northwest anglers and organizations. In December the U.S. Corps of Army Engineers (ACOE) notified the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) that it planned to stop funding producing hatchery trout, steelhead, and Chinook salmon in the Upper Willamette Basin. Numbers in the Corps’ plans include an overall 65% reduction from 277,000 lbs. of trout...

VIDA: Vida McKenzie Community Center president Walt Wilson marked the welcome return of the rebuilt building last Saturday. The structure, he noted, was constructed in the same shape and on the same footprint as the structure it replaced. But when first time vistors went inside, they too shared the “Wow!” that Walt let loose outside. What they found was an open central gathering room with exposed rafters and a fully equipped kitchen that continued to fill with well wishes throughout the...

Does your community have a “Main Street?” If you live in Walterville or Finn Rock, the answer to that question would probably be different than one that comes to mind for folks in Blue River. Is Highway 126 a roadway that unites towns that compose an overall McKenzie community? That’s a concept behind a series of meetings scheduled to kick off later this month at the Vida McKenzie Community Center (VMCC). Many McKenzie River residents have been involved in post-fire recovery efforts for over two and a half years. This week, the physical...

State and federal agencies and departments in Oregon and Washington have agreed to collaborate on addressing the escalating wildfire crisis by increasing use of prescribed fire and other forest fuel management strategies at larger geographic scales while also increasing outreach to nearby communities as these strategies are deployed. These strategies reduce forest fuels on the ground and allow for strategic burning that minimizes community and public health impacts relative to impacts from uncontrolled wildfires. Over the past decade,...

Results of a national poll to establish each state’s unofficial state mocktail says ‘Cascade Mountain Mist’ was voted in as Oregon’s. If each state were to have its signature ‘Mocktail’, inspired by local flavors, ingredients, or cultural icons, what would it be? Zinnia Health, a behavioral health treatment network, sought to find out, and tabulated replies from 3,000 respondents. The result? A coast-to-coast guide to sipping state pride without the spike. What’s in Cascade...