Meet Felice Kelly
Passionate desert advocate Since moving to Oregon in 2016, Felice Kelly discovered Oregon’s dry side and was immediately inspired, saying, “Once I made it out to the high desert, I knew that I wanted to play a part in the conservation of the landscape.” She savors the moments after crossing the Cascade Mountains from...
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Get to Know the Owyhee River
One of Oregon’s 58 officially designated Wild and Scenic Rivers. Located in southeastern Oregon and reaching across the corner of Idaho to its headwaters in northeastern Nevada, 35 percent of the Owyhee River within Oregon has been classified as “Wild and Scenic” for its recreational, wildlife, geologic and cultural values. Cutting through benches of...
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Autumn – The Best Time to Visit Oregon’s Desert?
Spring, summer and winter are all strong contenders, but there’s mounting evidence that autumn could be the very best season to visit Oregon’s high desert. Consider … Temperature – Daytime highs are in the 70s, not the dripping-brow 90s and nighttime lows are in the lovely-for- sleeping 30s, not the teens. Color – Yes,...
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An Owyhee Mis-Adventure Inspires Life-Long Mission
When a young David Rumsey’s car broke down in the far reaches of the Owyhee Canyonlands in the late 1970s, he didn’t have any of the devices we’ve come to rely on today. No GPS, no smart phone, no satellite locator beacon. Rumsey had a map, but at the time the USGS 1:250,000 scale...
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Anti-Public Lands Activist Now Running BLM
The Bureau of Land Management’s new acting director, William Perry Pendley, is a longtime proponent of selling off public lands and waters The Trump administration’s move to appoint William Perry Pendley to the top policy position at the Bureau of Land Management comes as yet another blow in its continued assault on public lands....
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Tribal Stewards Program Provides Career Mentorship
In early July, a crew of young adults – CeCe Andy (Warm Springs and Yakama), Monique Moody (Wasco and Northern Paiute) and Dakota Pablo (Pima and Navajo) led by Tiyana Casey (N’chii Wanapum) – began tackling a trail maintenance project on the Black Canyon Trail on the Ochoco National Forest. As August comes to...
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Only You Can Prevent Sagebrush Fires
You might think of forests when you think “wildfire,” but, as OPB reported in May, nearly 75 percent of all acres burned in the west over the past two decades were on rangelands — not forest. As someone who lives in or visits sagebrush country, you have an important responsibility to help prevent human-caused...
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See the World from a Butterfly’s Point of View
I wonder if butterflies might get annoyed by all the poetic language they attract. They’re “tiny rainbows,” “flying flowers,” or “ephemeral angels.” We use them as metaphors for transformation and as symbols of beauty, joy, and immortality. But what are they really? My fear is that all the chatter about beautiful butterflies reflecting the...
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Southeastern Oregon Draft Resource Management Plan Released
A Disturbing Trend Hits Oregon’s Desert Public Lands Bureau of Land Management releases Draft Resource Management Plan for Southeastern Oregon, and conservation goals are ignored On May 31, 2019, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) released a Draft Southeastern Oregon Resource Management Plan Amendment covering 4.6 million acres in the Owyhee Canyonlands. The public...
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Senator Merkley Steps Up for Sutton Mountain
Today, Sen. Jeff Merkley, announced that he will introduce the Sutton Mountain and Painted Hills Area Preservation and Economic Enhancement Act that would establish the Sutton Mountain Wilderness to protect an area in the John Day River Basin renowned for spectacular scenery and prime wildlife habitat. “With this legislation, we’ll make sure that future...
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