2B
Friday, September 13, 2019
The Observer & Baker City Herald
WINGING
Continued from Page 1B
Jordan Valley provides
an excellent opportunity for
September Canada goose
hunting. Hunters need to get
permission to hunt private
lands.
Fair waterfowl hunting is
available in the Treasure Val-
ley (agricultural areas near
the Snake River in the vicin-
ity of Ontario, Adrian and
Nyssa) most of the season,
and improves signifi cantly
during cold weather events.
Cold weather events reduce
open water, concentrating
birds and increasing the time
spent foraging. Field hunting
for both geese and ducks can
be good for hunters willing to
spend the time and effort to
secure access to private land.
All visitors including
hunters must have in their
possession a free daily permit
to access the wildlife area.
Permits are available at sev-
eral self-check-in stations at
entry points and parking lots.
The Wildlife Area is closed
10 p.m. to 4 a.m. daily. There
is no camping on the wildlife
area.
Wallowa County
Waterfowl hunting should
be similar to previous few
years. Expect good hunting
opportunities later in the fall
and early winter when mi-
grating birds arrive. The few
resident geese Canada geese
in the district have fared well,
too. Most hunting is decoy
hunting in agricultural fi elds,
and jump shooting irriga-
tion ditches so be sure to get
landowner permission before
hunting.
Planning to e-tag?
The MyODFW app
works without cell
reception, but you need
to be logged in for your
profi le to come up and
to be able to use the app
out of cell range.
Note that the origi-
nal version of the app
released in December
2018 automatically
logged users out after
six months. So, if you
haven’t used the app in
awhile you may need to
login again -- even if you
never logged out.
best opportunity for hunters
on public land, but those who
can access irrigated circles in
northern Morrow County usu-
ally get good goose hunting.
Union County
Habitat in the Columbia
Duck and goose hunting is
Basin still supports large
Umatilla and Morrow
expected to be similar to last
numbers of wintering Canada
counties
year.
geese and the number of snow
Hunting prospects depend geese wintering in this area
Ladd Marsh Wildlife Area
on weather conditions. If
has greatly increased in re-
The 2019 year was an-
the region does not experi-
cent years. Waterfowl hunters
other good production year for
ence a real winter, many of
should not forget about the
waterfowl, especially Canada
the northern migrants will
Columbia Basin Wildlife Ar-
geese. Nest success appears to
stay in Washington. The best eas (Power City, Irrigon, Coy-
be similar to past years with
hunting is usually later in the ote Springs, Willow Creek).
lots of mallard, gadwall and
season (late November) after Food crops were planted and
teal broods. Water levels in
ing. Most wetlands still have offi ce at 541-963-4954 to get a on one of the open days prior some weather pushes birds
ponds have been enhanced, all
the marsh as of the end of Au- a small amount of huntable
current update on water lev- to the hunting season to scout down northern areas. The
of which will make conditions
gust are looking very promis- water. Hunters should call the els or plan to make a trip out out potential locations.
Columbia River is usually the better for waterfowl hunting.
Prineville teen hikes Oregon section of Pacific Crest Trail
By Mark Morical
The (Bend) Bulletin
Looking back, the fi rst
week was the hardest.
Shiloh Binder, just 14, was
on his own, hiking the 460-
mile Oregon section of the
Pacifi c Crest Trail. He went
four nights without seeing
another person.
“I was missing everyone,
missing my family,” Shiloh
recalls. “That got pretty lonely
and sad, just being alone and
not having anyone to talk to.”
But Shiloh, of Prineville,
trekked on through his loneli-
ness and eventually came
across many other hikers
from across the country, as
well as from Sweden, Norway,
France, Great Britain, Aus-
tralia, Puerto Rico and South
America.
He started his solo journey
on the Oregon-California
border in the Siskiyou Moun-
tains on June 23 and fi nished
in the Columbia River town
of Cascade Locks on July 25,
averaging about 18 miles per
day.
Along the way, the fresh-
man-to-be at Crook County
High School lost 25 pounds
and had encounters with a
bobcat, a black bear and a
herd of elk. He spent time
sliding down snowy slopes,
crossed and swam in more
than 100 lakes and streams,
witnessed the devastation of
wildfi res and took in some of
the most dramatic mountain
scenery in the West.
And, according to his par-
ents, he became a man.
“We view this as a growing
period for a young man,” says
Shiloh’s mother, Laura Binder.
“A ‘coming of age’ event.”
The Pacifi c Crest Trail
is a 2,650-mile hiking and
equestrian trail running from
Mexico to Canada, following
the mountains of California,
Oregon and Washington. To
hike the entire trail is a buck-
et-list item for many hikers.
But to complete a section of it
such as the Oregon stretch is
a signifi cant accomplishment
in the hiking world, too.
Those who may think Lau-
ra and Isaac Binder are crazy
for allowing their 14-year-old
son to hike alone across the
crest of Oregon should under-
stand how the couple raised
their fi ve children.
to, or we could fi nd him if we them together.
needed to. … We had some
Shiloh packed water bottles
expectations that he would
but also used a fi lter that
contact us every morning and allowed him to drink from
night with a text message.”
creeks and streams. Through
Shiloh’s parents dropped
areas scorched by wildfi re,
him off several miles away
this was a challenge.
from where the PCT crosses
“They’re hot, and they kind
the Oregon-California border, of mess with your head,”
and he hiked in to the trail
Shiloh says of those sections
from there.
of the trail. “You’re not used to
The south end of the PCT
hiking through that. You have
in Oregon starts near the
to cross fallen trees. It chang-
Siskiyou Mountains summit es the water table so much
(4,310 feet) and runs north
when a fi re comes through. A
through the Cascade Range
creek that was maybe there
at a fairly constant elevation. before the fi re can be totally
Other volcanoes the trail
diverted somewhere else.
passes close by include Mount But the guidebooks still say
Thielsen, Mount McLough-
there’s a creek or a spring
lin, Mount Mazama (Crater
there.”
Lake), Diamond Peak, the
As he approached the north
Three Sisters, Mount Wash-
end of the Oregon section
ington, Three Fingered Jack, of the PCT, Shiloh says, he
Mount Jefferson and Mount
started to burn through his
Hood. The trail drops into the last energy reserves and was
Columbia River Gorge, where intensely hungry.
the Oregon section ends at
“Toward the end, I was
Cascade Locks.
just eating as many calories
Shiloh says his favorite
a day as I could,” he says. “It
section was the Three Sisters was easy to fi xate on foods. I
Wilderness in Central Or-
dreamed about ice cream. I’ve
Submitted photo egon. His parents met him at
been nonstop eating since I
Prineville’s Shiloh Binder hikes on the Pacifi c Crest Trail near Mount Hood.
McKenzie Pass for a resupply, got back.”
and he stayed a night in Sis-
While Shiloh says the hike
avid
whitewater
rafter
and
practice
those
skills.”
ters
with
them,
about
halfway
was
diffi cult at fi rst, physi-
“Toward the end, I was
was guiding his family down
Shiloh says he met quite a through his trek.
cally and mentally, the adven-
just eating as many
stretches of the John Day
few people who insisted that a
“There was enough snow
ture became easier and more
calories a day as I could. River in Northeast Oregon, 14-year-old could not hike the when I was there to make it enjoyable as he transformed
according to his mother. Since Oregon PCT alone.
challenging and fun at the
into hiking shape.
It was easy to fi xate on
he was 10, she says, Shiloh
“And mostly, that just made same time,” Shiloh says of the
“I was sore and cramping
foods. I dreamed about ice has hiked and climbed by
me want to do it more,” he
Three Sisters Wilderness. “By after the fi rst couple days,” he
cream.”
himself all over the buttes,
says.
then, I was in good shape, and says. “But towards the end,
ridges
and
forests
around
Shiloh
worked
for
a
family
I did some fun side hikes.”
after a 16-mile day I almost
— Shiloh Binder, 14, who
Prineville
and
the
Ochoco
in
Prineville
doing
irriga-
One
evening
at
dusk,
wanted to keep pushing.”
hiked the 460-mile section of
tion and farm work to earn
Shiloh recalls, he lay down
For now, Shiloh has set his
the Pacifi c Crest Trail through Mountains. He also enjoys
Oregon by himself
camping, swimming, biking,
enough money for his hike
to rest and awoke to a black
well-worn trail runners aside.
kayaking and triathlons, and across the state. He needed
bear smelling and pawing
But he has another adventure
Isaac Binder, a social
he has been trained in wilder- to buy ultralight supplies, as at his pack outside his tent.
in mind: Next year, he says, he
worker, says he spent many
ness survival and outdoor
well as trail food, a new camp He says he managed to scare plans to solo hike the Wash-
seasons as a wilderness guide ethics.
stove and a Garmin inReach the bear off by waving his
ington stretch of the PCT —
in Alaska and throughout the
Laura Binder, who owns
global satellite communicator. trekking poles and smacking all 500 miles.
United States.
a home day care business,
The inReach allowed
“I feel like we have been
says she struggled with the
Shiloh’s friends and family
preparing our children to do
concerns and fears of others
to track him along his route,
these big adventures and
when they found out about
updating his position every
complete these challenges
her son’s plans to hike across 10 minutes. He could also ex-
their whole life,” he says. “I
Oregon.
change texts with his parents,
I’m putting together
have always encouraged them
“I feel uncomfortable when and the inReach included
to stretch themselves. We
people are questioning my
an SOS button, which when
a Dormant Season
understand that some people parenting, so I kept it very
pressed would send his GPS
Pruning List
feel scared in the wilderness
quiet in the beginning,” she
coordinates to emergency
or without people around
says. “I only told a select
responders and to his parents.
them, but we have trained our few and solicited advice
He never needed to press the
children to feel at home by
from those that I trusted. It
button.
Certified Tree Care
themselves in nature.”
comes down to preparing and
“That was critical,” Laura
3ODQWLQJ‡3UXQLQJ‡5HPRYDO
Shiloh, the second-oldest
teaching our children skills
Binder says of the Garmin
0&XUWLVV31$
of the Binder siblings, was
that they need to be able to
device. “That was the decid-
541-786-8463 CCB# 200613
adventurous from a young
succeed, and then getting out ing factor. Knowing he could
michaeltcurtiss@yahoo.com
age. By 11, he had become an of the way and letting them
call somebody if he needed
La Grande’s
Certified Arborist
M ICHAEL