Wednesday, May 18, 2016 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon
Agenda…
Hiking Whychus Canyon
Sisters City Council
City Hall
520 E. Cascade Ave.
May 19, 8 a.m.
Sisters City Council
Special Meeting:
•
Intergovernmental
agreement (IGA) with
Oregon Department of
Transportation for Highway
20/Barclay Drive right-of-
way.
By Craig F. Eisenbeis
Correspondent
The Deschutes Land
Trust (DLT) has already
accomplished
some
environmental miracles
on Whychus Creek. The
extremely successful creek
restoration at DLT’s Camp
Polk Meadow Preserve —
which we frequently see
now on television spots
— is one of them. That
highly acclaimed project has
attracted national attention
as an example of forward-
thinking and proactive land
stewardship. Yet, there is
much more to come.
Starting this summer,
DLT will begin another
massive restoration project
on another segment of
Whychus Creek at their
Whychus Canyon Preserve;
but more on that next week.
Today’s focus is on the
already existing hiking
opportunities at the Preserve,
just a few miles north of
town.
The Whychus Canyon
Preserve is a 930-acre DLT
holding that straddles four
miles of Whychus Creek.
Originally established in
2010, opened to the public in
2011, and doubled in size in
2014, the Preserve is home
to a varied and complicated
ecosystem, portions of the
historic Santiam Wagon
Road, and — of particular
importance to this column —
over seven miles of excellent
trails available for public
use.
At a time when mountain
snows are keeping us out
of the high country, this
is another of those lower-
elevation hikes to enjoy.
Spring is a perfect time to
visit the Preserve, the creek
is running strong, new
growth on the deciduous
trees is a brilliant green,
and the really hot days of
summer are yet to come.
All of the land on the
eastern edge of the preserve
borders public lands operated
by the Bureau of Land
Management (BLM). The
parking area, informational
kiosk, and the entrance to the
preserve are actually located
on BLM land, and the BLM
has worked closely with the
Land Trust to help develop
the site.
On this occasion, I
selected a five-mile loop
paralleling the creek that
requires no backtracking
except for a short 0.2-mile
segment on BLM land
from the parking lot to the
Preserve’s access gate.
The parking lot is of ample
size, even on a day when
I unwittingly encountered
two large hiking groups,
one a guided DLT tour, and
29
• Appoint Rick Allen
as a limited-duration city
manager for a set term
through November 18, or
upon termination, whichever
comes earlier.
8:15 a.m.
• Economic Development
of Central Oregon (EDCO)
update.
• Preview May 26
agendas.
Three hurt in wreck
photo by craig eisenbeis
Hiking the DLT Whychus Canyon Preserve is rewarding.
the other a Bend Parks and
Recreation outing. However,
even knowing that there
were two-dozen or more
hikers on the trails, I briefly
encountered only one other
hiker.
The access trail takes
off directly from the
parking area to an unlocked
gate, which trail users are
requested to close behind
them. Since I could see
that the Bend group had
headed north on the loop
I intended to hike, I went
south, taking an immediate
left as soon as I closed the
gate. This portion is one
of the more arid sections
of the trail system, but it
offers spectacular, sweeping
views of Central Oregon’s
mountains. The majesty and
solitude here are interrupted
only by homes on the other
side of the creek peeking
intrusively over the canyon
rim.
After 0.4 mile, the trail
comes to another gate but
makes a sharp right turn to
begin a relatively gradual
descent into the canyon.
From this point on, the
creek can be heard, and
occasionally seen, in the
canyon below. At 0.7 mile
from the U-turn at the gate,
a short connector trail drops
quickly to the canyon floor
and the creek itself.
Each of these trail
junctions and turns is well
marked. There are no trail
signs or markers at the
extreme northern end of
the Preserve; but a map
of the Preserve and trail
system and user rules can
be found beforehand and
printed at http://www.
deschuteslandtrust.org/files/
trail-maps/wc-trail-map-
with-rules. It should also be
noted that, while dogs are
permitted, they must be kept
on a leash at all times.
Once on the canyon floor,
the trail follows the creek
downstream on a very easy,
scenic and pleasant path.
In addition to enjoying the
creek itself, be sure to admire
the rocks of the canyon walls
along the way. After 0.8
mile, the trail forks; and this
is the last trail signage at the
northern end of the Preserve.
This is also the area where
the restoration project will
begin this summer.
I took the left fork to
stay along the creek, but the
trail soon begins a gradual
climb away from the water,
eventually hooking up to
an old, rough road. There
is no signage at this point,
but the intended route is to
follow the road up, rather
than down. The road is fairly
steep and soon switchbacks
toward the south. From
that point it’s another 0.4
mile to the next signage
at a popular rocky scenic
overlook.
Continuing south, I took a
right at the next marked trail
junction and, then, the next
left to ascend to a wonderful
scenic spot, with an attractive
juniper bench overlooking
the future restoration project
at the northern portion of the
Preserve and the adjacent
Rimrock Ranch. From here,
it is 1.3 miles back to the
kiosk at the starting point.
Camped in the middle
of the trail, sounding like a
score of Mexican maracas,
was a good-sized rattlesnake.
Thankfully, it sounded off
when I was still a good 20
feet away. After snapping
a couple of photos, I gave
it a wide berth. We live in
rattlesnake country, and it
is always a good idea to be
alert.
The entrance to the
preserve is located at the end
of Goodrich Road, which is
4.5 miles east of Sisters on
Highway 126, on the way
to Redmond. After turning
left (north) onto Goodrich
Road, continue 1.5 miles to
where the pavement makes
a 90-degree right turn.
Goodrich Road, however,
turns to gravel and continues
straight from this point. It
is another 1.6 miles to the
road’s end and the kiosk on
BLM land.
On May 16 at about
6:54 a.m., OSP troopers
and emergency personnel
responded to the report of a
two-vehicle head-on crash on
Highway 20 near milepost 83
east of Santiam Summit.
Preliminary investigation
revealed a 2005 Chevrolet
Colorado was traveling
eastbound on Highway 20
when it lost control while
negotiating a corner on a
wet roadway. The Chevrolet
spun out and into the path of
a westbound 2016 Kia sport
utility. The Chevrolet struck
the Kia nearly head-on and
then rolled. Three people
were hurt; two have life
threatening injuries.
The westbound lanes of
Highway 20 were closed for
about five hours.
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