News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
Sorted by date Results 201 - 225 of 502
In what could be the first verdict for private plaintiffs against a utility over a wildfire, a jury in Portland found PacifiCorp negligible for a series of wildfires in 2020 and awarded more than $72 million for property damage to 17 plaintiffs. The verdict, rendered June 12, included about $67.5 million in noneconomic damages against PacifiCorp, which operates Pacific Power and is part of deep-pocketed Berkshire Hathaway Energy. PacifiCorp said it would appeal. The verdict... Full story
Notwithstanding that some 1,000 quilters were in town on Independence Day, downtown was eerily quiet. The quilters were mostly ensconced in classrooms at Sisters High School for Quilter's Affair. Most everybody else in Sisters - at least those who stayed in town for the holiday - made way to Sisters Eagle Airport for the 10th Rumble on the Runway and fly-in event. Cars were parked three quarters of a mile in every direction. About half came on foot or bike, many pushing stroll... Full story
Your odds of seeing a rattlesnake inside the city limits of Sisters are too low to calculate. Nobody seems to remember seeing one in town. Just east and north of town, it's a different story - although sightings are low, bites lower, and there is no record of death by bite in Deschutes County, although some bites have resulted in emergency care. Your dog is more at risk than you, vets say, as they are naturally prone to get off trail and flush out movement. Curiosity can kill... Full story
As the Sisters Outdoor Quilt Show drew to a close Saturday, a moving ceremony took place at West Hood Avenue and South Elm Street, when three military veterans were presented with Quilts of Valor. The quilts were made by Salem Star Valor Quilters of Oregon. Quilts of Valor Foundation began in 2003 with a dream, literally a dream. Founder Catherine Roberts' son Nat was deployed in Iraq. According to Catherine, "The dream was as vivid as real life. I saw a young man sitting on... Full story
Around 6 p.m. on Friday, phone texts were interrupting dinners around Sisters with an urgent plea for 25 more volunteers to hang quilts the next morning at 7 a.m. Within 30 minutes the cadre was rounded up, all first time donors of time to the event. Armed with nothing more than a desire to serve their community they met team leaders Saturday morning at the show's storage and assembly operation on Sisters Park Drive. In military-like precision, off they went with quilts,... Full story
Central Oregon Irrigation District (COID) has turned down the water flow. Established in 1918, the District's system consists of two main canals: the Pilot Butte Canal, which runs north, through Bend, Redmond and Terrebonne; and the Central Oregon Canal, which runs east, through Bend, Alfalfa and Powell Butte. Both canals divert water from the Deschutes River providing water for about 45,000 acres within a 180,000 acre area in Central Oregon. More than 700 miles of canals... Full story
The annual Sisters Eagle Airport Rumble on the Runway will take off Tuesday, July 4, starting with a pancake and sausage breakfast starting at 7 a.m. Rotary Club of Sisters will flap the jacks as vintage, experimental, and assorted aircraft land in the background. As diners chow down in the cool of a hangar, all manner of cars and trucks will inch into their stalls. Most are for show waxed and polished to a glaring sheen. They will be as old as 80 or 90 years in some cases - c... Full story
Olaf from Norway measures a full nine feet in height. He's now residing in Sisters. The Viking, found in 1888 and born circa 1335, is now on display at Sisters' newest destination attraction - The Fantastic Museum. The museum is located at 121 E. Cascade Ave. immediately next door to the Candy Corral. That's a fitting setting for the many children who are wondering and wandering into the exhibit to the sounds of "Wow!" "Cool!" "Awesome!" Olaf is the biggest draw but basketball... Full story
As the last acts cleared the stages Sunday night, fans lingered, basking in the glow of the Big Ponderoo. The three-day event that began Friday with musicians blending with gallery-goers can best be described in one word: mellow. That was the common utterance among the hundreds of attendees. Along with "sweet," "smooth," "full," and "rich." It was fueled by music, pure and simple. That, too, was the sentiment of the laid-back audiences. Ashley Henry of Portland said: "I was... Full story
More than 50 attended the first of what organizers say will be a continuing series of events in Sisters to grow awareness of and develop strategies to tackle the increasing devastation of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. The kick-off event took place June 23 at the Sisters-Camp Sherman Fire District Community Hall with a presentation: “10 Warning Signs of Dementia” and was followed by four “Sis” talks that focused on the importance of social engagement, staying physical,... Full story
Covid’s misery went far and wide. One of many Sisters Country casualties was a local scouting group. Due to ongoing parents pleas and the determination of a core group of scouting adults, Cub Scout Pack 139 will again be active starting with the new school year. Cubs are aged 5-10, basically grades K-5, and Cub Scouts, since 2018, include girls as well as boys. “Cub Scouts is a year-round program whose mission is to develop character and ethical decision-making skills for chi... Full story
A plan intended to protect mule deer populations in Central Oregon has ended up as roadkill. At its June 26 meeting, the Deschutes County Board of Commissioners voted 2-1 to withdraw the County’s mule deer inventory update project. The project had included community conversations about the potential creation of the 2023 Mule Deer Winter Range Combining Zone. In May, the Deschutes County Planning Commission had deliberated on the zone following two public hearings in April a... Full story
Every July 4 Sisters Eagle Airport Rumble on the Runway is also the occasion to fundraise for the aviation program at Sisters High School. Interested students can get a head start on a piloting career. For many years the school’s aviation curriculum has included the opportunity for hands-on flying in partnership with Outlaw Aviation located at Eagle Airport. The outfit is owned by Sam Monte and Walt Lasecki, both veteran military pilots. Founded in 2013, Outlaw A... Full story
Traffic was thick in Sisters last weekend. Not only were there the usual suspects – tourists eastbound and westbound, a good number stopping in our patch to slake thirsts, fuel tummies, or otherwise sample the local charm - but hundreds joined locals for a festive weekend led by a first of its kind music fest – the Big Ponderoo. At the same time well over 100 cyclists assembled in Sisters for a four-day, four-stage, 350-mile epic gravel bike ride, part of the Oregon Trail Grav... Full story
"What a brilliant idea! That's taking art in Sisters to a new level." Those were the words of Naomi Lieberman of Portland describing the marriage last Friday night of the visual and performing arts in Sisters. Lieberman was talking about the inclusion of musicians into the monthly art walks put on every fourth Friday of the month by the Sisters Arts Association, a confederation of 10 galleries and 64 artists. When asked how it all came about, Helen Schmidling, owner of... Full story
If price is any indicator then the hay grown around Sisters is tops. Every week the USDA (U.S. Department of Agriculture) puts out a market report for all commodities including hay. Last Friday's report confirmed what hay growers locally and equestrians throughout Oregon already know. Premium+ grade alfalfa was fetching $350 a ton. That compares to $220-$285 in Minnesota, $250 in Montana, and $220-$235 in neighboring Washington. Only Texas came close at $340 and that's due to... Full story
Dozens of Sisters Country folk were startled Friday when driving past Metabolic Maintenance at North Larch Street and East Barclay Drive. Fire crews from Redmond, Jefferson County, and Black Butte Ranch were assembled in the firm's parking lot. Not just any fire trucks. The big ones. The ones with aerial ladders. The ladders were extended, and towered over the structure. Firefighters were ascending the ladders, step by step, methodically and intently. No. smoke. No fire. What... Full story
Cormac McCarthy died last week. At 89. Peacefully, in his home in Santa Fe. He has been flogged and revered by critics over his long career. Many find his works to be disturbing, brutal. Indeed they are often blood-soaked and violent tellings of hard lives lived by hard men. “No Country for Old Men” is of prime example. That novel, one of 12 he authored, was somewhat poorly received, although the film version was wildly successful earning four Academy Awards including Bes... Full story
• Food flight Philadelphia Steaks & Hoagies has exited leased space at 273 E. Hood Ave. and moved catacorner to its newly constructed site giving them twice the seating capacity. There will be streetside patio dining as well as year-round inside seating. Taking their place at the original setting is Luckey's Woodsman Off-Grid Provisions, a food truck operator in Bend best known for their Camper Kits with menu items like Forager, Camp Mac, Sasquash, and Lumber Jack Bowls. Spo... Full story
Last week, George Ormsbee, Russ Bentley, Krista Garner, Mike Romine, and Colton Tennant of Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) "blew" Highway 242. Highway 242 is a state highway that runs from Belknap Springs through McKenzie Pass to Sisters. It is part of the McKenzie - Santiam Pass National Scenic Byway that was added to the National Register of Historic Places in February, 2011 and is on the bucket list of cyclists across the region, indeed the world. The highway is... Full story
Sisters Country is the scene of the first livestock loss to wolves in Deschutes County. ODFW (Oregon Department of Fish & Wildlife) has for the first time confirmed wolf depredation in the county, as a rancher in the Lower Bridge area lost a steer to the wolves known as the Metolius pair. Two steers were lost, most likely to wolves, in late March, as reported by The Nugget on April 19, but that loss was not confirmed. Aaron Bott, ODFW wolf biologist for Central Oregon,... Full story
As spring arrives, more and more of us are putting away our skis and snowshoes and storing away our snowmobiles. Out come the hiking poles, kayaks, and backpacks. It’s time to head to the streams, woods, and parks whether to search for mushrooms or wildflowers or take on rapids. And out come grumblings about having to pay for the pleasure in the form of recreation passes. The two that get the brunt of criticism are the Northwest Forest Pass and the State Park Pass. There a... Full story
The amount of funding for combating homelessness in Central Oregon has grown to nearly $35 million with the recent addition of $13.9 million provided to Deschutes, Crook, and Jefferson counties. The newest tranche of money comes from the $98 million pot enacted by Senate Bill 5019 that gives sole authority of the funds’ disbursement to Gov. Tina Kotek. It’s in response to what Kotek calls a “Homeless State of Emergency.” COIC (Central Oregon Intergovernmental Council) will ma... Full story
Headlines are full recently of the fentanyl epidemic in the U.S. that took 70,601 American lives in 2021, the last full year for which statistics are available. That number is expected to exceed 80,000 for last year. In Oregon the number in 2021 grew to 745 from 280 in 2019. At least 29 people in Deschutes, Crook, and Jefferson counties died from drug overdoses in 2021, the most recent year for which data is available, according to figures released by the Oregon Health Authori... Full story
Facing double-digit premium increases or the inability to get renewed, many property owners in Sisters Country are scrambling to lower their costs or obtain new coverage. Some report being cancelled as the risk of wildfire is causing insurance carriers to reassess their exposure. Janet Swarts in Sage Woods said, “Our former Insurance company, Travelers Insurance, cancelled our policies — home and auto — about six months ago due to fire-risk location. We had been with them... Full story
