BY DAVE CONSTANTIN
stretches of the McKenzie watershed to logging.
The ancient trees here are prime fodder for tim-
ber companies. But they also act as anchors for a
delicate ecosystem that filters and purifies rain-
water and snowmelt, keeping the river clean,
clear and inviting. The hope of everyone on this
trip is that with enough experiences like this one,
these kids will want to take a stand in the coming
years to protect this important ecosystem, in-
stead of just letting it wash away.
Tree’s Company
Get ’Em While
They’re Young
Conservation for the next generation
N
o one needs to be convinced about the
benefits of introducing kids to nature.
It’s a no-brainer. Each generation is
born more reliant on technology for its enter-
tainment. So how can we keep the next crop in-
terested in the world outside cell phones, com-
puters and iPods? A world that desperately
needs their help? The answer is simple, say edu-
cators: Show them what they’re missing.
To a Rapid Recovery
“You see that,” says Donald Burton, point-
ing to the stark, clear-cut hill that looms up be-
hind us as we float down the crystal waters of
the McKenzie River. “They say that’s from kids
whose parents didn’t teach them very well.” The
five kids in the raft glance back at the giant, fea-
tureless dirt mound, silent. Burton watches their
reactions and smiles, his lesson received. The
bleak outline of the stripped hill stands in strik-
ing contrast to the lush growth lining the river-
banks. But Burton understands the river is no
classroom. For the lessons to really sink in, it’s
vital for the kids to simply have fun.
Burton is one of those everyday heroes,
planning this late summer rafting trip in his free
time. He’s teamed up with some kindred spirits
in the Lane County Boys and Girls Club, an or-
ganization dedicated to providing academic in-
centives and responsible recreation to economi-
cally disadvantaged children. Most of the adults
on the trip are Burton’s friends and neighbors,
who share his dedication to introducing kids to
nature. Mel Bankoff, a neighbor of Donald’s
and the founder of Eugene-based Emerald
Valley Organics, has brought his 10-year-old
son Marley along. “Kids are just falling through
the gaps in this country,“ says Bankoff. “This
program is win, win, win, no matter how you
look at it.”
Storm clouds loom overhead, but several
feet below us, the river bottom glides by in full
detail. The water is so clear it feels like we’re
flying over the rocks. But it seldom gets above
50 degrees. When a couple of errant splashes
with the paddles turns into an all-out water fight
between rafts, some occupants moan for a truce
through chattering teeth. But the kids are clearly
enjoying themselves, and all around us, evi-
dence of the river’s health makes itself known.
Someone points out a pair of osprey that
have migrated from Brazil to mate here, and one
of the kids spots a bald eagle. Families of mer-
ganser ducks hide in the shadows, protecting
their fuzzy fledglings from the giant, alien rafts.
When we reach the class III Martin’s Rapids
near the end, the shouts of glee from the kids
serve as a clear sign of the outing’s success.
With more than 200,000 Oregonians receiv-
ing their drinking water from the McKenzie,
these kids aren’t the only ones who need a les-
son in keeping it healthy. The Bush administra-
tion has recently taken steps to weaken the
Northwest Forest Plan, once again opening vital
When Theresa Damron talks about red tree
voles, her eyes light up and she speaks quietly,
her voice full of childish wonder. The red tree
vole is a small rodent, unique to Oregon, that
spends its entire life in the canopy of old-growth
trees, never touching the ground. I suspect
Damron would probably do the same if she
could. Instead, she’s come up with a way to in-
troduce the public, especially children, to the cu-
rious world the voles inhabit.
Damron runs The Pacific Tree Climbing
Institute with her husband, Nathaniel Sperry,
and her son Rob Miron. PTCI supplements the
couple’s other business, Sperry Tree Care.
Damron started this Eco-tourism company a
year ago as Oregon’s answer to recreational tree
climbing, an activity begun in Atlanta, Ga., 20
years ago with the goal of making forest canopy
exploration open to everyone. “I’m convinced
change doesn’t happen based on intellectual
knowledge,“ says Damron. “It happens based
on a sense of emotional emergency. Climbing
into the upper reaches of an old growth forest is
a transformational experience.”
We’re standing in the H.J. Andrews
Experimental Forest in Blue River, where a
group of school children have assembled to
climb a tree and, hopefully, walk away trans-
formed. H.J. Andrews is a “living laboratory,”
where scientists from all over the world come to
research stream and forest ecosystems in an at-
tempt to anticipate the effects of natural and
human impact.
On the Lookout Creek old-growth trail, the
kids from Fern Ridge Middle School stand in a
neat line. Damron gives them a short introduc-
tion to their surroundings, reiterating the impor-
tance of minimizing impact to the surrounding
forest. She outfits some with helmets and har-
nesses and directs them over to where Sperry,
son Rob, and arborist Jason Seppa wait at the
base of a carefully chosen, 150-ft. Douglas fir
rigged with climbing ropes. The other kids take
turns sitting crammed together in a “tree boat” (a
hammock-like canvas platform strong enough
to hold a truck), suspended just off the ground,
quietly practicing knot-tying.
Twenty feet away, their friends are learning
how to hoist themselves up the ropes toward an-
other tree boat suspended 40 feet over their
heads. One by one, they all make the ascent.
Some of the girls return to the ground exhila-
rated and giddy from their accomplishment. But
the boys, adhering to strict middle school social
codes, choose to play it cool, like they’ve done it
all before.
Climbing into the upper reaches of
an old growth forest is a
transformational experience
— Theresa Damron
Normally, PTCI shoots for the canopy, but
with a group this large, speed and equal opportu-
nity dictate a more modest height. As the kids
depart, assembly line style, the PTCI crew starts
packing up gear. “I know we have some impact
on the area,” says Damron, “but while we’re
standing here, this stuff is being clear-cut.” I
think back to the lunar surface of that hill on the
McKenzie. In my book, climbing ropes beat
chainsaws any day. But then again, I’ve felt that
way since I was a kid.
ew
For more information contact: Pacific Tree Climbing Institute
at 461-9410, www.pacifictreecliming.com or Helfrich’s
McKenzie River Rafting at 726-5039, www.raft2fish.com or
H.J. Andrews Experimental Forest at (541) 822-6300.
N ob od y ’ s B a b y • T i m e W ar p
365 E. 13th St. • 343-6842
Mon-Sat 11-6 • Sun 12-4
C O ST U ME
R E N T A L S
When Being Someone Else Matters!
OCTOBER 27, 2005 13