High Desert Speaker Series Bigger and Better in 2020
Each year, ONDA’s High Desert Speaker Series highlights the wildlife, geology, culture, history, recreation and other unique and worthy-of-protection elements of Oregon’s high desert. In 2019, we were amazed by the enthusiasm expressed for the series. Most events sold out in less than a day! We value providing informative and inspiring programming to as...
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We Challenged, You Hiked
ONDA’s Badlands Challenge prompted discovery, exploration, and a lot of math In celebration of the tenth anniversary of Oregon Badlands Wilderness designation, ONDA hosted a six-month-long exploration challenge. After ONDA volunteers helped to build trail segments that created critical connections into the larger Oregon Badlands trail system, we realized the 30,000-acre wilderness area now...
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Before and After Stewardship
The difference that ONDA volunteers can make in just a few hours or days of working together is pretty incredible. Here are a few before and after pictures to give you a taste and you’ll find even more photos in our post-trip photo albums. As we return to project locations season after season and...
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How to nominate a river for Wild and Scenic protection
Oregon can already claim to be the state with the most Wild and Scenic Rivers, and U.S. Senator Ron Wyden has a not-so-secret goal to make Oregon the state with the Most Designated Miles, too. (Right now, that honor goes to Alaska.) Earlier this fall, Sen. Wyden announced a new effort to protect more...
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Is the DOI dismantling the BLM?
Having a hard time keeping up with public lands news lately? We can’t blame you. The instability in the White House certainly makes all issues hard to track and follow, and as this Outside article summed it up: There’s a lot happening at DOI right now. In Oregon, over 13.5 million acres, mainly in...
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Facing Climate Change Head On
Earlier this summer, we sat down for a conversation with Tia Hatton, just as she was wrapping up her service as a Wildlands Intern for Oregon Natural Desert Association. Tia is one of the co-plaintiffs in Juliana v. the United States, the landmark lawsuit filed by 21 youth plaintiffs which asserts that the government’s...
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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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