News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
Sorted by date Results 1 - 14 of 14
Happy spring! We hope folks enjoyed the recent Sisters Rodeo, an event the Forest Service is proud to partner with by way of a special use permit and employee participation in the wonderful Rodeo Parade. As daytime temperatures continue to increase, we will likely pause our prescribed fire program until the fall. This was a very successful spring for under-burning on the Sisters Ranger District, burning over two square miles (1,430 acres), including many long standing... Full story
People often ask me if winter is a slow season for the Forest Service. The days are often less urgent, without wildfire response, but there is always much to be done. Winter is when the bulk of our planning work typically gets accomplished: hiring employees, writing reports, preparing contracts and agreements, executing budgets, and developing and authorizing projects to implement in late season. This year has been different because the relatively mild winter has allowed some... Full story
“Another fall, another turned page…” —Wallace Stegner With frosty nights, some rain, and a wee bit of snow, we have indeed turned the page on another fire season; one marked by a paucity of dry lightning storms, quick detections, and aggressive initial attack. For the 2023 fire season, the Sisters Ranger District had 22 fires for a total of 2.8 acres burned, with only one of those fires caused by lightning. Of those human-caused fires, 13 were related to camp or bon/par... Full story
Public land management benefits from a diverse suite of opinions. Opinions are derived from values and working with those who have different value sets while trying to find common ground is one of the most rewarding parts of my job. Sometimes it’s difficult to separate fact from opinion, as public land management and the science behind it is complex. And sometimes, science is normative; that is, produced or construed by those to further a specific value-based agenda. All t... Full story
Happy New Year from all of us at the Sisters Ranger District! We saw some amazing conservation work get accomplished last year, and we look forward to continuing that spirit of service in 2023. One new project we are excited to begin is the Cougar Rock restoration project north of Sisters, near Stephens Canyon and Garrison Butte. This is an important strategic location to keep wildfire out of Sisters and private inholdings close to city limits. The project aims to reduce... Full story
It’s autumn yet summer clings on. But the shortening days allow reflection on our busiest time of year. By all accounts, 2022 was another successful season. Favorable weather was a contributing factor in a relatively mellow local fire season. Equally important was a safe, yet aggressive, initial attack that kept most wildfires less than one acre. The exception on the Sisters Ranger District was the 280-acre Fly Creek fire in early August, when over 3,000 lightning strikes pumm... Full story
Spring in Sisters means the return of the cone pickers and cone lickers. The former are semi-nomadic forest workers harvesting dry pinecones by hand for decorative markets. The latter are the local vernacular for tourists stopping in town to shop, or possibly grab an ice cream cone. Both symbolize an economy tied to recreation, tourism, and natural resources; a socioeconomic web vulnerable to unravelling by wildfire. The Forest Service has recently released its 10-year... Full story
“It is on some, but not all, of these misty autumn daybreaks that one may hear the chorus of the quail. The silence is suddenly broken by a dozen contralto voices, no longer able to restrain their praise of the day to come”. — Aldo Leopold, “A Sand County Almanac” September has ended and autumn is here. I reckon that Leopold — the esteemed ecologist, conservationist, and Forest Service employee — favored fall among all the seasons. I can relate. The elk are... Full story
As winter wanes and spring appears in the shortening shadows, it’s time for another Ranger’s Corner. While 2021 is a transition year in many ways, Sisters Ranger District employees are still hard at work stewarding and protecting your national forest. This year will bring more active management, community engagement, and a major shift in the management of three Central Oregon wilderness areas. First, we welcome two new permanent employees to the Sisters Ranger District: Joh... Full story
In a year known for its trials and tribulations, fire season 2020 was no exception. While the Sisters Ranger District escaped much of the devastation, the Warm Springs Reservation and many of Oregon’s national and state forests, cities, towns, private timber managers, and residents were not so fortunate. Just seven weeks ago a large fire raged in almost every major river drainage in western Oregon. Fueled by extremely low live-fuel moistures and a dry cold front that b... Full story
As a 20-year veteran of the U.S. Forest Service, I thought I had seen a lot in my career: fires, floods, furloughs, drug cartels, timber thefts, daring rescues and tragic fatalities. But there was no playbook preparing me for the uncertainty of the last several months. This global pandemic has challenged Forest Service employees just as it has tested all of you. At times two of our agency core values — service and safety — felt at loggerheads with each other.... Full story
It’s hard to believe it is February 2020 already! Where does the time go? Here are some recent happenings and some “new year’s resolutions” for the Sisters Ranger District. First, we are still accepting comments on a project proposal to clear 13 miles of existing powerline corridors in the Indian Ford and Camp Sherman vicinity to improve access and powerline safety, including wildfire risk reduction. Speaking of wildfire, the 2019 revision of the Greater Sisters Country... Full story
Recent seasonal transitions remind me it’s time for another Ranger’s Corner. It’s been another productive summer here, and even with shorter days and cooler temperatures on the horizon, we have a full plate of work planned for the fall. One of the tasks we accomplished this summer was much-needed major road maintenance on the 1234 road to Jack Lake trailhead, which accesses Canyon Creek Meadows, Wasco Lake, the Pacific Crest Trail, and many other popular wilderness destination... Full story
It has been awhile since the last Ranger's Corner. Too long I reckon. The 35-day partial government shutdown threw a wrench in our public outreach efforts as well as many other projects. But we hit the ground running and picked up right where we left off in late December. As winter reminds us it's not done yet, with recent record-breaking snowfalls, we are ramping up for another busy field season. Heavy snow brings both blessings and curses. While it protected the soil on our... Full story
