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Wednesday, November 21, 2018 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon
STA invites Ranger: Fire not shooting-related
Sisters to
“Toast the
Trails”
By Jim Cornelius
Editor in Chief
The Sisters Trails Alliance
(STA) invites the public to
join in a “Toast the Trails”
event at Cork Cellars Wine
and Bistro on Tuesday,
November 27, from 5 to 6:30
p.m.
“This will be a fun oppor-
tunity to socialize with fel-
low trail lovers, all while
supporting the organiza-
tion that keeps your local
trails in fantastic shape,”
said STA Program Manager
Kate Donovan. “Visit with
us before heading over to
the Science Club talk at the
Belfry!”
STA is a non-profit orga-
nization whose mission is
to connect people and com-
munities to each other and
their natural surroundings.
The organization maintains
the Peterson Ridge Trail
system, produces a free trail
map, hosts an annual speaker
series, and advocates at the
local, regional and national
level for trail-users and trail-
related issues. STA relies on
memberships, donations and
Toast the Trails fundraising
events to support its work.
Tickets for the event are
$10 and include a glass of
wine and light hors d’oeuvres.
Tickets can be purchased at
www.sisterstrails.org or at
the door.
Sisters District Ranger
Ian Reid told The Nugget last
week that an approximately
half-acre fire in the vicinity
of Zimmerman Butte on the
evening of October 26 was
apparently caused by some-
one burning camp trash in a
fire.
The Nugget contacted Reid
after receiving a letter to the
editor concerning the blaze
(see The Nugget, November
14, page 2).
Letter-writer Stephen King
expressed concern that the
fire was caused by shooters
using Tannerite, a commer-
cially available compound
that makes for an exploding
or “reactive” target, initi-
ated when struck by a bullet.
Zimmerman Butte is a cinder
pit on Forest Road 500 west
of Sisters, a popular target
shooting area, recommended
for that use by the Forest
Service.
District Ranger Reid said
that the fire was not actually
in the shooting area at the cin-
der pit but in the brush nearby.
Breaking News
PHOTO BY CEILI CORNELIUS
Zimmerman Butte is a popular shooting area, recommended by the Forest
Service because its high backstop enables safe shooting practices.
The Forest Service closed
the McKenzie Gravel Pit
west of Crossroads to shoot-
ing last June due to user con-
flicts and safety concerns and
has encouraged shooters to
use four other sites in Sisters
Country that are deemed
“more suitable,” including
Zimmerman Butte.
Shooting is an allowed use
in all areas of the National
Forest, except where it is spe-
cifically prohibited.
Target shooters are urged
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He said that there was no sign
that Tannerite was involved in
the ignition of the blaze.
Reid responded to the
October 26 fire personally,
along with several trucks
from Sisters-Camp Sherman
Fire. Reid said there were
no Forest Service resources
available at the time because
the agency had stood down as
fire season was coming to an
end.
Reid said that shooting of
Tannerite targets is prohibited
in the area and that his agency
responds to reports of its use.
King acknowledged the
revised information after
being contacted by The
Nugget. He expressed ongo-
ing concern about the use of
the site.
“My point is simple, peo-
ple have the right to shoot on
forest land, but when it gets to
larger use it needs to be man-
aged,” he told The Nugget. “I
spoke with Deschutes County
and they said given usage
profile, if it was under their
jurisdiction it would require
a gun-range permit. Many
hours of noise on a daily basis
is unacceptable.”
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to observe safe shooting
practices.
The primary consideration
is to be sure of your target
— and what lies behind it. A
good backstop helps ensure
that “stray” bullets or rico-
chets don’t pose a danger to
people hiking or riding in the
forest. Most local shooters
congregate at one of Sisters
Country’s many gravel pits
where piles of dirt and cinder,
and tall slopes keep the activ-
ity confined and safe.
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