Wednesday, November 30, 2016 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon
STA volunteers rehabilitate trails
It was a chilly morn-
ing on the Saturday before
Thanksgiving, but that did
not deter 27 enthusiastic
Sisters Trails Alliance (STA)
volunteers who gathered at
the Whychus Creek Overlook
trailhead.
Donning hard hats and
work gloves, they teamed up
to help restore native veg-
etation in disturbed areas
around the barrier-free over-
look loop, repair trail tread
issues on the southern leg of
the Whychus Creek Trail and
Whychus Draw Connector
trail, and repair erosion and
obliterate several “user trails”
that had developed at key
points along Whychus Creek.
Volunteers spread and
raked-in approximately
$1,000 worth of native grass
and flower seeds (funded
from a grant to STA from the
National Forest Foundation),
as part of an effort to reha-
bilitate the overlook area fol-
lowing years of abuse, fire
and neglect. The group also
repaired some one-and-one-
half miles of trail.
STA’s fully equipped tool
trailer was parked on site to
facilitate the distribution of
PHOTO PROVIDED
Sisters Trails Alliance volunteers worked along Whychus Creek.
hard hats, rakes, hoes, shov-
els, Pulaskis, McLeods — all
the tools necessary to main-
tain trails.
Seeding crews were led by
Maret Pajutee, retired U.S.
Forest Service ecologist, mas-
termind behind the overlook
project, now an STA member
and a new Trail Steward for
the Whychus Creek trail sys-
tem (a job she shares with six
other STA volunteers). The
erosion and user trails oblit-
eration team was led by noted
“trails guru” John Schubert,
also retired USFS. John was
responsible for the design and
layout of both the Whychus
Creek Trail and the Whychus
Overlook Loop. STA trails
coordinator and board mem-
ber, Gary Guttormsen, led the
tread repair crews.
At the end, Pajutee pro-
vided everyone with delicious
cookies and hot cider at the
overlook wall, under bright
sun with stunning views over
the Whychus watershed.
“STA would like to thank
each and every volunteer who
made this work party a suc-
cess,” said STA President
Chuck Humphreys. “We
celebrate your spirit and
devotion to our community
trails.”
7
Live music on tap
in Sisters this week
Sisters’ lively music scene
continues to serve up picking
and singing through the win-
ter months.
The Moon Mountain
Ramblers play The Belfry
on Saturday, December 3,
from 8 to 11 p.m. in support
of their latest CD, “A Little
After Midnight.”
Journalist Sara Freedman
wrote, “Ever since the begin-
ning, locals have responded
to the hot club swing, the
hard-driving bluegrass, the
old country-western twang,
and the classic rock of the
Ramblers ... One thing hasn’t
changed over the years —
music is not a side-gig to a
Moon Mountain Rambler.
It’s a way of life.”
The Belfry is located at
302 E. Main Ave.
Also on December 3, at 7
p.m., Mike Biggers and Jim
Cornelius will play at Cork
Cellars, bringing to bear their
Americana mix of original
songs and influences such as
Guy Clark, Steve Earle, and
Tom Russell.
Cork Cellars is located at
391 W. Cascade Ave.
Americana artists Caitlin
Anne Webster and Blind J
Wakins will play The Open
Door in Sisters on Monday,
December 5, as part of their
Pacific Northwest tour.
There’s a casual honesty
to Caitlin Anne Webster that
wavers somewhere between
romantic and brutal, deliver-
ing truths of longing, love,
sex and the hardships of
modern living.
The soulful Los Angeles
singer-songwriter brings
an easy swagger to her per-
sonal blend of blues and
Americana — as documented
on her debut EP, 2015’s
“Black Moon.”
Wakins describes him-
self as “a songwriter, avid
smoker, and professional loi-
terer.” He has appropriated
folk-country and ragtime
traditions to “create some-
thing resembling a unique
sound.”
The show runs from 6
to 8 p.m. There is no cover
charge. The Open Door is
located at 303 W. Hood Ave.