FRIDAY, MAY 27, 2016 Classifieds / Outdoor Rec THE BAKER COUNTY PRESS — 7 HELP WANTED BAKER SCHOOL DISTRICT 5J is currently accepting applications for a District Print Shop Assistant. For a complete description of the position and the application process go to www.baker.k12.or.us. You may also call Norma Nemec at 541-524-2260. 6.10 LEGAL NOTICE DISTRICT MEETING NOTICE Medical Springs Rural Fire Protection District Board of Directors will hold its regular monthly board meeting at Pondosa Station, on Monday, June 13, 2016 at 7 PM to discuss fire department operations. Equal opportunity provider. PUBLIC NOTICE: WEED SPRAY GIVEAWAY! For 2016, Baker County Weed District will again be giving out herbicide on the following locations, dates, and times. This fully mixed, ready-to-go herbicide will be targeting whitetop and scotch thistle. Folks need to bring chemical-resis- tant containers, preferably gas or oil cans, and a pair of chemical-resistant gloves. Please, no food containers. There will be a five gallon limit imposed for each residence. Note!!! New location for Baker City Giveaways! Where Date Time Huntington Service Station April 22 8:00 - 11 AM Richland/Halfway - Wildflower Corner May 6 7 - 12 Noon Baker City - Old ODOT Building May 21 7 - 12 Noon 1050 S. Bridge Baker City - Old ODOT Building May 28 7 -12 Noon 1050 S. Bridge Street Hereford Hall /Unity Hall June 3 9 AM - 10:30 AM Hereford - Unity Locked and Loaded cleans up Submitted Photo. Members of the Locked and Loaded offroad group posed after their cleanup project near Sumpter. Accord- ing to member Christina Witham of Oregon Sign Company, about six Jeep group rigs, one volunteer and Matt Burkes from the Wallowa-Whitman National Forest joined in. The volunteers cleaned from Sumpter throught Sawmill Gulch and split with one group going to Huckleberry Summit and one to Whitney. In years past up to 2,000 lbs. of garbage were collected in other areas, but Sumpter this year was the cleanest by far. It’s not uncommon for the group to see a high percentage of household garbage such as bags of garbage, couches, mattresses, TVs and such as well as party sites. Of course, Keystone Light cans are always there. Barbed wire rolls, vehicle parts and even a Sno-Cat door were found this year. —ODFW WEEKLY RECREATION REPORT— NE OREGON HUNTING BAKER COUNTY Black Bear – Season closes May 31. Green up has begun to appear in the lower eleva- tion areas. The mild weather of the past couple of weeks will have bears out and ac- tive in the early part of the season. Look for bears close to timber stringers feeding on open ridges. Successful hunters need to remember to check in their bear within ten days of harvest. It cannot be frozen and propping open mouth of bear will help in aid- ing tooth collection later. Turkey – Season closes May 31. Look for spring turkeys to be moving from wintering grounds to their nesting areas. Listen for males to be calling early and late in the evenings to help locate gobblers. Over winter survival was good this past year so expect good num- bers of birds this season. Cougars can be found throughout Baker County but hunters should target areas with high concentrations of deer and elk. Setting up on a fresh kill or using distress calls can all be productive techniques. Hunters are re- quired to check in the hide of any cougar taken, with skull and proof of sex attached. Coyote numbers are good throughout the district. Try calling in early morning and late afternoon. Remember to ask for permission before hunting on private properties. GRANT COUNTY Turkey hunters are having fairly good success as they usually do in this area. Ac- cess is good as the stretch of hot weather in mid-April opened most areas up. Tur- key hunting pressure always dies down significantly after the first week. There are still a fair amount of hunters go- ing out but they scale it back and just go out for a morning here or there. Most of the turkeys leave private land this time of year and head for public forest lands. Season closes May 31. Cougar hunting remains open. Successful hunt- ers should remember that check-in of the hide with skull and proof of sex attached is mandatory; see the regula- tions for details. Coyote numbers are good in most of the district. Coy- otes may respond to distress calls. Try calling in the early morning and late evening. UNION COUNTY Cougars are common in Union County. Focus on game rich areas with long ridgelines or saddles that cats typically travel. Setting up downwind of a deer or elk killed by a cougar can be productive. Nonresident hunters can include a cougar tag with others tags for only $14.50. All cougars taken must be checked in within 10 days of harvest; call for an appointment before check in. Coyote numbers are high throughout the district. Try calling in early morning and late afternoon. Remember to ask for permission before hunting on private properties. Spring Bear hunters can ex- pect better than anticipated access to mid-elevations for April, due to the warmer weather early in the month. Expect timbered north aspects to have snow above 5000 feet elevation. Bears will be out feeding in early mornings and evenings. Spot and stock techniques remain the most productive for spring hunters with a few bears being taken with fawn distress calls in late May. Season closes May 31. Turkey hunters can expect better numbers of birds than in previous years. An excel- lent hatch in 2015 put plenty of chicks on the ground for this season. Look for birds anywhere in the county with the largest numbers still found in the Wenaha and Mount Emily units. Season closes May 31. Ladd Marsh Wildlife Area The portion of Ladd Marsh East of Foot Hill road is now closed to all hunting. Glass Hill Unit is again open to wildlife recreation activities beginning April 1, 2016. This portion will be open and available to both spring bear and turkey hunting. Bears have been seen at the higher eleva- tions of the property in the past but sightings have been very sporadic. The habitat is dense making visibility very limited. Hunters should try to scout for recent activity before spending much effort in bear hunting the property. Turkeys can be found at the lower elevations but hunting pressure is high. Visitors are advised to carefully read posted signs and consult the wildlife area administrative rules. Rules that apply to all areas are at the top (at the link), and then scroll down to page 8, #635-008-120, for additional rules specific to Ladd Marsh. Dogs are not permitted within the Wildlife Area, includ- ing the Glass Hill Unit, on or off leash except during authorized game bird hunting seasons. Vehicles, camping and fires are prohibited on the wildlife area at all times. WALLOWA COUNTY BLACK BEAR: Spring bear season closes May 31. A good density of black bears exists throughout the district. Most of our snow is gone from mid and low elevation areas of the district and bears are searching for early season foods, such as green grass, ground squirrels, and roots and tubers. In spring, black bears are fair weather fellows and really only venture out of their dens on warm, sunny days. The best strategy for finding them this time of year is to sit on a spot with a good view of open canyon sides and use bin- oculars or a spotting scope to locate them. The animals feed off and on during all daylight hours and patience is the order of the day when spotting spring bears. TURKEY: Spring turkey season closes May 31. Tur- key numbers have increased this year in the district and they over-wintered very well with the warm winter that we had this year. Most of our snow is gone from mid and low elevation areas of the district. Turkeys are spread into nesting areas. The best strategy for finding them this time of year is to travel the forest roads or hike into areas where turkeys might be and call for them or just listen for their calls early in the morning. Coyote: Good numbers of coyotes can be found throughout Wallowa County. Calling coyotes with rabbit distress type calls has been effective for hunters. It is important to choose areas with abundant coyote sign and little human activity. Cougar numbers are mod- erate throughout Wallowa County. Most lions are taken incidental to other hunting; however, calling with fawn bleat, or locating a cougar kill and waiting for a cat to return are often successful techniques Ladies golf scores Following are the results for May 18. Golf Winners: 1st Flight, 1st Judy Karstens, 2nd Jen- nifer Godwin; 2nd Flight 1st Myrna Evans, 2nd LaDonna Uttenreuther; 3rd Flight 1st Roxanne McAdams; Birdies Sammye Linzel. Bridge Winners: 1st Janice Smull, 2nd Dianne Elling- son, 3rd Nancy Ferree. Free fishing days soon With the Memorial Day weekend around the corner, Na- tional Forests are gearing up for the start to the traditional Northwest summer recreation season. A wide range of activities awaits in Oregon and Washington’s 16 national forests, Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area, and Crooked River National Grassland: Camping, hiking, bik- ing, horseback riding, fishing, boating, hunting, mush- rooming, bird watching, and simply driving for pleasure to name a few. Summer is a great time in the Northwest to get outdoors and explore the forest you haven’t quite made it to yet. On the Wallowa-Whitman National Forest www. fs.usda.gov/wallowa-whitman, there are campgrounds, trailheads, boat launches, and many other undeveloped attractions awaiting you. Unlike some public lands, you can camp nearly anywhere in your national forests – please just leave your site cleaner than you found it. A lot of snow remains at higher elevations on the Wallowa-Whitman, such as in the Eagle Cap Wilder- ness and on some of the upper mountain roads; however, this is a great time of year to visit Hells Canyon and the lower elevation trails around Baker City, Enterprise, and La Grande. Due to snow levels and the start date of our summer work crews, some campground and trailhead maintenance may be not be completed. When work crews begin, their first tasks will be to address safety concerns, including hazard trees, rocks on roads and water testing. So before traveling, please check with the local Ranger District to obtain current information. You may also find current condition information on the Forest web site at this location: www.fs.usda.gov/goto/ConditionReports. Many campgrounds on the WWNF require reservations – www.recreation.gov – and some trails require a pass to help us keep them maintained – Passes and Permits in Your Northwest Forests. However, all 2.3 million acres of the Wallowa-Whitman National Forest belong to you and beckon for you to come visit. Good news: There are two Free Fishing Days coming up on the Wallowa-Whitman. The first is Saturday, June 4, from 9 am to noon, at the Highway 203 Pond outside of Baker City. The second Free Fishing Day will be at Anthony Lake on July 9, from 9 am to 1 pm. There will be free loaner fishing rods, prizes and instruction at both events. Hope to see you there! For other Oregon and Washington Forest’s recreational opportunities and restriction information, check out what’s available at: Your Northwest National Forests. Wallowa-Whitman Ranger District’s Contact Informa- tion: · La Grande Ranger District: 541-963-7186 · Wallowa Mountains Office (Eagle Cap, Hells Canyon NRA, and Wallowa Valley): 541-426-5546 or 541-426- 4978 · Hells Canyon NRA Clarkston Office: 509-758-0616 · Hells Canyon NRA Riggins Office: 208-628-3916 · Hells Canyon NRA Creek Visitor Center and Boat Launch: 541-785-3395 · Whitman Ranger District: 541-523-6391 More free fishing Free Fishing Weekend in Oregon is June 4-5, and many events are planned around the state to help families make the most of this opportunity. During Free Fishing Weekend, fishing licenses, tags and endorsements are not required anywhere in Oregon. The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife will make sure there are plenty of fish to catch. During the week leading up to Free Fishing Weekend ODFW will release more than 185,000 trout at 80 locations around the state. Many additional locations were stocked in the preceding weeks, and some of those fish should be available as well. As in years past, ODFW is teaming up with the Oregon State Parks Department to inspire people to explore Oregon’s parks and outdoors by waiving fees and offering such activities as fishing events, nature walks, and spe- cialized outdoor-related workshops. Several state parks will be hosting ODFW Free Fishing Weekend fishing events and waiving park admission and camping fees on “State Parks Day” Saturday, June 4. The following scheduled Free Fishing Weekend events will take place on Saturday, June 4. At most of these events, fishing gear, bait and instruction will be provided at no charge to participants. Some events will have ad- ditional activities for kids. Northeast Oregon Locations, times and contact information are as follows: 203 Pond/Baker City, 9 a.m. noon, Shannon Archuleta, 541-523-1385 Cutsforth Pond/Heppner, 8:30 a.m. – 11 a.m., Bill Duke, 541-276-2344 Marr Pond/Wallowa, 10 a.m. – 2 p.m., Ron Harrod, 541-426-4467 Twin Pond/Ukiah, 7 a.m. – noon, Bill Duke, 541-276- 2344 McHaley Pond/Prairie City, 9 a.m. – noon, Emily Da- vis, 541-777-2831