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About Applegater. (Jacksonville, OR) 2008-current | View Entire Issue (May 1, 2013)
8 Spring 2013 Applegater TRENDS AND OBSERVATIONS White-water Beaver by Rauno peRTTu I thought I could get away with one more story from my days as a younger geologist. As I mentioned in my last column, exploration geology can be risky and exciting. I’ve had several close calls over the years. The one I’m about to describe gave me a lifetime appreciation for old, experienced pilots. I like white water. Over the years, I’ve run numerous rapids. For years, I ran rivers in my inflatable kayak and raft, and also ran rapids on other peoples’ rafts. I’ve also run rapids as a passenger in jet boats. While trying to see underwater geology, I even snorkeled a river through white water, which was an exciting experience. However, I’ve only run a rapid once in a floatplane. It happened in Alaska, and was done because there was no other option. I can’t recommend it as a thrill ride. One of my first projects as a geologist was working on the site evaluation for a planned pulp and paper complex on Berners Bay in southeast Alaska, about 30 air miles north of Juneau. The complex was never built, and I had something to do with that. I’ll explain later. Personally, I believe the scenically spectacular area is much better left as wilderness. The project workers lived in trailers that had been brought to the beach site by barge. We slept in bunk beds. I shared a narrow segment of a trailer with a dozer operator, who was always drunk in a “dry” camp, but that’s another story. The camp also had a kitchen trailer and bathroom trailer. Our only means of transportation to and from the camp was by floatplane. The development plans for the pulp complex included building a dam across a small glacial melt river. The proposed dam would need a large volume of gravel in its construction and I was assigned the task of reviewing possible gravel sources in a larger stream to the north. The plan was to barge the gravel to the proposed dam site. I used a Beaver floatplane for my can be three feet and more into the water. gravel search. The Beaver is a sturdy and He quickly reacted and pushed the plane reliable single-engine aircraft. My pilot to level again so the pontoons would skim was a grizzled 63-year-old with many years along the water surface. He skillfully of bush piloting experience. I like older, water-skied the plane up the rapids, veteran pilots. They don’t try to impress avoiding the bigger rocks. As we swerved or take foolish chances. There are enough and bounced to the next calm stretch, he dangers in bush piloting without the maintained most of the plane’s momentum additional risks created by the daredevil and, as soon as we hit the calm water, he stunts of some younger pilots showing off. again gunned the plane. I was the only passenger, and sat in the We lifted off before the next rapid. copilot’s seat. While we flew north along I breathed a sigh of relief, but as I looked the coastline, I asked over at him I noticed if he had ever crashed the pilot was frantically a plane. He answered, scanning left and right. “Three times.” I asked what was wrong. As we gained “ Wa s a n y o n e He replied, “I have speed roaring killed?” to turn the plane around “A c o u p l e o f before we run out of up the stretch passengers. Once I was room.” of calm water, lying on a glacier for We were flying up three days before they a narrow canyon toward he exclaimed, found me.” a mountain wall. The “We’re not going As we talked, we canyon was too narrow came to a river that to turn, and the sides to make it.” was fed by a glacier of the canyon were too that reached sea level high for the plane to from the nearby rugged clear. As we neared mountains. The river the mountain wall, was lined with promising the canyon walls were gravel bars, so we turned to fly up the river. getting higher faster than the plane could Between white-water rapids, the pilot saw a climb. I stared at the rapidly approaching stretch of calm water that looked deep and rock face of the mountain. long enough for us to land. He carefully Abruptly, a side drainage appeared landed the plane in the calm water and on the left, and the pilot quickly banked guided the plane to rest against a large the plane hard in the wider space. We gravel bar. After I evaluated the gravel and completed the turn, cleared the canyon determined it was suitable, we re-boarded walls, and headed back toward the inlet. the plane to head back to camp. He floated As I again sank back into my seat, the plane on idle to the lower end of the the pilot said, “We have to go to Juneau. calm stretch, then gunned the engine. I don’t know what condition the pontoons As we gained speed roaring up the are in, but we may have holed or damaged stretch of calm water, he exclaimed, “We’re them on the rocks we hit, which means we not going to make it.” could sink or flip when we land.” When a floatplane is angled nose-up We made small talk while flying down for takeoff, the back ends of its pontoons to Juneau. I knew both of us were thinking how unpleasant a swim in the Alaskan ocean Rauno Perttu water would be. H o w e v e r, w e landed uneventfully at Juneau, taxied to the dock and got out to inspect the damage. The floats were badly banged up, but still watertight. A couple hours later, we were flying back to our camp in a different plane. It had been an interesting day of geology. As I mentioned earlier, I actually had a role in killing the Berners Bay project. When I arrived on-site, the project had been ongoing for at least a year. Before arriving, I had studied the project topography map and commented, “There must be an active fault that cuts through the dam site.” I explained that the morphology strongly suggested a strand of the Denali-Fairweather fault system passed through the site. This fault system is similar to California’s San Andreas Fault system. The project managers said they had drilled several holes at the dam site and found no faults. The system’s north- trending fault strands are vertical, so I asked if any of the holes had been angled. When I learned the holes had all been drilled vertically, I suggested drilling an angled hole to pass through where I projected the proposed fault. The hole was drilled and passed through four active fault strands, eliminating the dam site. The project subsequently died. However, I lived to be frightened and thrilled other days, despite two more close calls on the same project. I also reinforced my prejudice that old, experienced pilots are the ones to use when flying in extreme conditions. Rauno Perttu 541-899-8036 jrperttu@charter.net Applegate Grange update by janIS moHR-TIpTon The Applegate Valley Community Grange (AVCG) has been moving steadily along since our last update. After our successful brunch in November, the holidays came along and most of the membership took time to celebrate, rest and enjoy friends and family. We showed The Grinch movie in December just before Christmas. Despite the small turnout, it was a fun event, and we hope to have more film screenings in the future with a wider attendance. Most importantly, we are launching a new website (applegategrange.org). You can go to the website to keep updated on what’s happening at the Grange, learn about upcoming events, find information on how you can get involved. It is a work in progress and we’re slowly adding content as we go, but it is a starting point for more information. We will begin renting the building for events and classes in the future, so go to the website for more information on fees and how to rent the building. The membership of the Grange met in early February for a retreat in which we came together as a group to define our short-term and long- term goals for the Grange. This was an important event for the Grange—a chance to retreat and take a look at our priorities. It was an important team- building exercise and we feel energized Members of Applegate Valley Community Grange at February retreat. Photo by Claude Aron. and excited moving forward in 2013. Expect some interesting events, talks and other community celebrations from the Grange this year. To get involved, check the website: www.applegategrange.org. Janis Mohr-Tipton 541-846-7501 janismohrtipton48@frontier.com
