FRIDAY, DECEMBER 2, 2016
THE BAKER COUNTY PRESS — 7
Outdoor Rec / Local
My Thanksgiving encounter
with the now-dead skunk
near mine
one night,
when I halted
him in his
tracks. This
was accom-
plished with
my standard
boom stick,
a Mossberg
500 Defend-
er 12 gauge.
Over the
course of
about a
THE OUTDOOR COLUMN
week, I no-
ticed that my
By Todd Arriola
cats’ large wa-
This Thanksgiving I
ter bowl had
enjoyed some great food
been mysteriously drained
and company again, with
more than usual each
numerous family mem-
night, and the area around
bers, and while none of the it was completely wet, as
meat, as far as I know, was if something had upset the
acquired the traditional
bowl every time.
way (shooting and cook-
The several bowls I
ing a wild turkey or deer,
use to feed the cats with
for example), I did manage seemed to be more out of
to dispatch an uninvited
order than usual, and there
guess—a skunk.
were odd, oil-like spots on
First off, I need to
nearby wood.
explain that the skunk
As I returned home
was neither seated at the
from work one evening,
table, nor was he even in
I noticed a very familiar
the house, when his time
black-and-white colored
on this Earth had ended
animal on the porch, acting
abruptly.
as if he owned the place,
And secondly, I don’t
scaring my cats into a near
live within City limits.
state of heart attack.
The skunk wasn’t even
He was eating the food,
near the same house as
and drinking the water, and
where we had eaten fi rst,
he didn’t appear to fear any
my brother’s, but rather,
of them (the largest and
oldes cat, Harry, Jr., was
coincidentally more likely
to cuddle, than to attack).
With the skunk between
me and the door, I had zero
chance of getting to my
fi rearm, and accomplishing
anything.
So, I watched for him
each day, and I noticed him
outside, fi ddling with the
food, the water, and the
cats once again, while I
was inside, with access to
my shotgun.
I quickly grabbed it,
fl ung open the exterior
door, chambered a shell,
and killed him instantly.
My copy of Merriam-
Webster’s Dictionary And
Thesaurus defi nes a skunk
as “any of various black-
and-white New World
mammals related to the
weasels that can forcibly
eject an ill-smelling fl uid
when startled.”
Yes, I would have to
agree with the ill-smelling
fl uid part (the mysterious,
oil-like spots), because
that was the fi rst time I
ever remember being able
to smell one, and though
my sense of smell leaves
something to be desired, I
picked up his scent without
any issues whatsoever.
He had sprayed some
fl uid at the time of death,
and luckily, I only smelled
it elsewhere, rather than
on me.
My cats seem to have
thanked me the only way
they know how—by not
running away, and by cud-
dling and purring, which is
plenty of gratitude.
They appear to be more
relaxed now, and they only
have to worry about the
100 other animals running
around, which could be
threatening in some way or
another to them.
Some of the cats have
disappeared mysteriously,
and my possible suspect
list includes dogs, coy-
otes, other cats, and even
humans (two were run over
by vehicles not long ago—
cats, not humans).
Whatever the case,
dispatching the skunk was
nothing personal, and I
don’t hate skunks, al-
though he might have had
a different interpretation
of those thoughts, shortly
before I pulled the trigger
of my shotgun.
He won’t be bothering
us anymore, but he must
have spoken with his fam-
ily or buddies about the
easily accessible food and
water, because I see we
have yet another uninivited
gues—of the ill-smelling,
black-and-white variety.
Help needed to locate Nathan
Crouch, suspected elk poacher
On November 16, 2016,
Oregon State Police asked
for the public's help to
locate individuals involved
in the incident involving
the unlawful killing and
waste of two bull elk in
Union County.
As a result of the over-
whelming support from
the community, Nathan
Crouch, age 26, Dylan
Crouch, age 22, and
Brianna Black, age 18, all
from Elgin, were identifi ed
as suspects in the incident.
Dylan Crouch and
Briana Black were charged
with three misdemeanor
charges of aiding in a game
violation.
At this time, Nathan
Crouch has not been locat-
ed and is believed to have
fl ed the state. He is facing
misdemeanor charges
which include two counts
of unlawful taking of a bull
elk, casting a light within
500 feet of a vehicle, hunt-
ing with the aid of a motor
vehicle, hunting prohib-
ited hours, two counts for
waste of a game animal,
hunting on the enclosed
lands of another and hunt-
ing prohibited area-public
roadway.
During the course of the
investigation, information
was obtained that Nathan
Crouch had also unlawful-
Photo Courtesy of OSP.r
One of the two elk left to waste.
the unlawful possession
ly taken a large bull elk in
of the antlers. This will be
Union County a few years
an additional charge for
prior to this incident.
Nathan Crouch.
The antlers from the bull
Oregon State Police is
elk were located and seized
extending a special thanks
by Troopers.
to the public for their as-
Due to the statute of
limitations, Nathan Crouch sistance in this case and is
further seeking the public's
can only be charged with
assistance regarding the
whereabouts of Nathan
Crouch.
Anyone with information
regarding the case is asked
to contact OSP Senior
Trooper Marcus McDowell
through the TIP hotline at
1-800-452-7888 or Email
at marcus.mcdowell@
state.or.us). Information
may be kept anonymous.
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2016 Turkey
Trot results
announced
Photo Courtesy of Basecamp Baker
The Logger Joggers won for best costumes.
SUBMITTED BY BRIAN VEGTER
The 9th Annual Baker City Turkey Trot presented by
the Northeast Oregon Compassion Center had an incred-
ible turnout with 560 people registered from around the
county and as far away as London and again Venezu-
ela. There were 17 teams this year and over six hun-
dred pounds of food were donated to the food bank of
NEOCC. Organizers, Corrine and Brian Vegter estimate
over $6,500 was brought in this year from entry fees,
donations and sponsorships.
A new course record was set in the women’s fi eld by 21
year old, Rachel Roelle of Anchorage, Alaska in a time of
21:27 beating her previous record 21:44 by 17 seconds;
second Anika Anderson 22:40; third Whitney Anderson
23:19.
On the men’s side, Baker City local Nic Maszk, won
for his fourth Turkey Trot in 17:52; second Jacob Dewalt
17:58; third Joshua Carpenter 20:1.
The team category saw Run Like the Turkey’s Over-
done take fi rst, The Giblets second and The Gravy Train
team was third.
Best costumes went to the Logger Joggers.
Fastest runners with dogs were Michelle Boudreau in
24:54 and in Tom Price, Jr. 24:55.
The fastest runner with a stroller was Logan Mitchell in
26:15.
Organizers would like to thank the community, vol-
unteers, participants and our sponsors for the continued
support and to remind people that NEOCC accepts food
donations all year long at 1250 Hughes Lane in Baker
City.
Great photos are available on the Base Camp Baker
Facebook page. https://www.facebook.com/basecamp-
baker.
Salmon, trout
committee to
meet in Salem
The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife’s Salmon
and Trout Enhancement Program (STEP) Advisory
Committee will meet in Salem on Thursday, Dec. 8 and
Friday, Dec. 9. The meeting is open to the public.
The meeting will occur at the ODFW Headquarters at
4034 Fairview Industrial Dr. SE in Salem. The agenda is
available at http://www.dfw.state.or.us/fi sh/STEP. From 9
a.m. until 5 p.m. on Thursday the Board will be included
in an informational discussion of volunteer and education
programs. On Friday the Board will meet from 8 a.m. to
5 p.m., the agenda includes updates from ODFW man-
agement, STEP program planning, review of mini-grant
applications, and review of propagation proposals. The
Oregon Legislature created Salmon and Trout Enhance-
ment Program in 1981 to provide a way for volunteers to
participate in the restoration of native stocks of salmon,
steelhead and trout.