Illinois Valley News, Cave Junction, Ore. Wednesday, May 18, 2016
Page A-9
Winding trails: by al hobart
Thursday, May 19, 1966
Illinois Valley News
From Davises’ on Little
Chetco to Cave Junction
For the first time in more
than six months the little cabin,
snuggled peacefully among therugged
mountains and deep canyons of
the Little Chetco country, stands
empty and alone except for the
presence of faithful little Sing, the
Davises’ Siamese cat, who remains
guarding the premises, in her daintily
cautious feline way, while watching,
wondering, and waiting for Ruth and
Perry’s return. Sing, with probably a
few curious deer and an assortment of
other shy jungle beauties, with whom
she may possibly share her large
supply of delicious kitty pellets, will
(we hope) present the only animated
life on the otherwise deserted Davises’
claim during the owners absence.
After a long session of being
comfortably isolated from outside
civilization by an exceptionally heavy
snow barrier, Perry and Ruth have
finally emerged from their wintry
cocoon and are again among their
friends in Illinois Valley, where after
securing a few loose ends, getting
a minor operation out of the way,
and enjoying a few knickknacks that
have been in short supply on Little
Chetco, they will return to their far-out
hideaway after probably a week away
from their impatiently waiting Sing,
their wee stonewalled cabin and their
little river of hidden gold.
After one more abortive attempt
(on Friday) to find my way to the
saddle landmark on the divide between
Illinois Valley and the Chetco drainage
by way of a long abandoned and
partly overgrown trail, during which I
got caught in a rainstorm and almost
drowned in the wet brush, I finally
made my way by another longer route
in to the Little Chetco last Monday.
The snow is melting fast and largely
gone on the south slopes, but in deep,
dark Babyfoot Canyon, on some of the
north slopes and along the crest of the
main divide that I followed in a long
swinging arc till I reached the saddle
beside Canyon Peak, there is still
much snow. I walked over snow on
the high Starvation Ridge for at least a
mile and a half. It was 8 to 10 ft. deep
in places.
I didn’t take my snowshoes
along and suspected I’d have to
wallow through soft snow at the higher
elevations, but luckily found the snow
firm enough to support my weight.
After wasting an hour or two fighting
dense brush and rocky bluffs on the
side of the main ridge trying to find the
old trail, I finally climbed to the rim
and made such good time on the snow,
and going down the 5-mile stretch of
snow-free road on the Chetco side,
I reached Davises’ at 2 p.m., having
left my jeep on Canyon Creek at 7
a.m. For once I surprised my friends
by arriving at a decent hour instead of
before breakfast, after a night spent on
the trail.
After a feast of delicious food
and hot drink and a long pleasant
gabfest we turned in early in
preparation for the trip out next day.
We drove nearly to the top of the
divide in the Davis jeep. We started
our hike down the Illinois side on the
old West Fork trail I’d been trying
to find, which was clearly visible at
this upper end and which Ruth and
Perry had brushed out for half a mile
last fall. We supposed we’d be able
to follow it through but finally it
disappeared completely, hopelessly
lost beneath thirty years growth of
brush and small trees. We finally gave
up and “boomed” our way down into
the canyon, two boomers and one
boomerette, fighting our way through
almost impenetrable brush, dodging
bluffs and drop-offs for what seemed
like endless miles.
At last, after several hours of
hot, weary struggle, near the bottom of
West Fork canyon we hit a game trail
that providentially led us smack into
the well-worn lower end of our lost
trail. A short distance below we came
out onto the narrow, rocky Canyon
Creek mining road. A couple of miles
down Canyon Creek we crossed a
barred private bridge and there on
the high bank stood Little Toot, our
little gold-plated savior, who proudly
bore us the remaining 7 miles to the
highway at Kerby, thence on to our
Cave Junction objective
So now at last, while Sing sings
herself to sleep on lonesome Little
Chetco, Perry is getting some long-
deferredbusiness taken care of, and
Ruth (if she is honoring the vow she
made on the long, tough trail out) is
putting away gallons and gallons of ice
cream.
In another month the snow
should be gone and the road opened.
The yearly season of free travel will
have arrived, and Perry and Ruth
will be dashing back and forth again
between Little Chetco and town – at
least once every three or four months.
SEnIor cornEr
ROGUE VALLEY
Sponsored by rogue Valley council of governments
to the community. An
orientation appointment
with the group facilita-
Lovejoy Hospice will tor is required prior to
be holding a non-therapy attending; no walk-ins.
support group for adults Appointments can be
arranged in Grants Pass
surviving the death of
as well as in Cave Junc-
a loved one. Learn to
tion. Those interested
normalize you loss and
build meaning with oth- in more information or
an appointment please
ers in a healthy group
contact Lovejoy Hospice
process. This support
at 541-474-1193. The
group is provided free
NEW Illinois
Valley Grief
Support Group
COUNCIL
OF GOVERNMENTS
Food & Friends Menu
FRIDAY – MAY 20
BEEF CABBAGE BAKE
MONDAY – MAY 23
EARLY AMERICAN
GOULASH
WEDNESDAY - MAY 25
TUNA LOAF
If you need meals
delivered please call
541-955-8839.
Sponsored by
In the next few articles, I.V.
Wellness Resources will present
information as to the importance
of eating organic, non-GMO foods
and the real dangers from pesticides
present in our foods, air, water and
soil.
“Altered Genes, Twisted
Truth: How the Venture to Ge-
netically Engineer Our Food Has
Subverted Science, Corrupted
Government, and Systematically
Deceived the Public” has it received
the following comments:
1.- “It should be required read-
ing in every university biology
first session will begin
on Thursday, May 26,
2016 and meets the last
Thursday of each month
from 12 - 1:30 p.m. at
the Illinois Valley Fam-
ily Coalition, 535 E.
River St., Cave Junction,
OR 97523.
The contact informa-
tion for Lovejoy Hos-
pice: 939 SE 8th St.,
Grants Pass, OR 97526.
You can call 541-474-
1193 or visit their web-
site at www.lovejoyhos-
pice.org.
Remember to call
the ADRC (Aging and
Disability Resource
Connection) to find
other support groups
at 1-855-673-2372 or
get connected at www.
adrcoforegon.org.
I.V. Wellness resources
course.” – Joseph Cummins, Ph.D.,
Professor Emeritus of Genetics,
Western University, London.
2.- “This book is truly outstand-
ing. It is well-reasoned and scien-
tifically solid. Through its masterful
marshaling of facts, it dispels the
cloud of disinformation that has
misled people into believing that GE
foods have been adequately tested
and don’t entail abnormal risk.”
–David Schubert, Ph.D. molecular
biologist and Head of Cellular Neu-
robiology, Salk Institute for Biologi-
cal Studies.
The famed anthropologist
Jane Goodall said that Monsanto
‘portrayed the various anti-GMO
concerns as merely the ignorant
opinions of misinformed individu-
als – and derided them as not only
unscientific, but anti-science. They
then set to work to convince the
public and government officials,
through the dissemination of FALSE
information, that there was an over-
whelming expert consensus, based
on solid evidence, that GMOs were
safe.’
In the meantime, you might en-
joy visiting your local organic farms
and markets.
Senior Bulletin
Helping free roaming
cats is a community
responsibility. Find out
how you can make a
difference in the lives
of these unfortunate
cats. Call 541-956-
7587. Sponsored by The
Josephine County Spay &
Neuter Fund.
Check the Classifieds
on A-13 for a new
caregiver ad.
FrEE for Seniors
If you are a senior and
want to place a FREE
AD for a living or health
care need call Laura at
541-592-2541 or email
laura@illinois-valley-
news.com.
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