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Hood River News,
Wednesday, July 1, 2015
www.hoodrivernews.com
PRESERVING A SPECTACULAR VIEW
Cape Horn Waterfall Overlook set in stone
By DAN TRUJILLO
Camas-Washougal Post-Record
Hikers are in for a treat
once they approach the Cape
Horn Waterfall Overlook.
Falcons, hawks, eagles, os-
preys and seals have already
been spotted from this spec-
tacular, and now safer,
panoramic viewpoint along
the 7.7-mile trail in the
Washougal-to-Stevenson cor-
ridor of the Columbia River
Gorge.
The landscape is so tran-
scending, it might take visi-
tors a minute or two to regis-
ter the sound of water cascad-
ing down the cliffs to the left.
“This is truly an example of
what dedicated partners, in-
credible volunteers and finan-
cial supporters can accom-
plish by working together,”
said Cape Horn Conservancy
President Teresa Robbins.
“Viewpoints like this one
serve a broad spectrum of
emotions. We are interested
in stewarding a spectacular
trail, not a mediocre one. This
is an example of spectacular.”
Robbins and her husband,
Keith Brown, began laying
the groundwork for the new
overlook in January.
“We talked to the forest ser-
vice about keeping these
viewpoints intact. They were
concerned about safety is-
sues,” Brown said. “This pro-
ject is an example of multiple
partnerships stepping up to
make sure these views are
safe and protected for hikers
and families to enjoy.”
After the U.S. Forest Ser-
vice surveyed the land and de-
veloped a design, Cape Horn
Conversancy and Friends of
the Columbia Gorge members
got to work with volunteers in
March hauling 10 tons of
stone down a quarter mile
path. Michael Byrne, a mason
from Portland, rounded and
carved all of the rocks into
place.
“I wanted to honor the Co-
lumbia River Gorge, and its
spectacular beauty,” Byrne
said. “I also wanted to honor
all of the masons who have
done work throughout the
Gorge. It was done with ham-
mers and chisels, and feathers
and wedges.”
Byrne thanked Robbins
and Brown for giving him an
opportunity to display his
work in the Gorge. They are
already collaborating on an-
other overlook nearby with
the five tons of remaining
stone.
“Keith and Teresa have a
vision and a passion. This
overlook is just a small part of
that,” Byrne said. “Without
those two, and all of the vol-
unteers, it wouldn’t have hap-
pened.
“A mason’s name is never
on the work. I’m a big believer
in that,” he added. “The river
and the view speak for them-
selves. I don’t want people to
even notice the stone work.”
Avid Cape Horn Trail hik-
ers Sarah Lord and Barb
Beach are blown away by the
new waterfall overlook. Lord
was one of the many volun-
teers involved in this project.
“It makes a heart-altering
view possible for people who
wouldn’t have the courage to
access it,” Lord said. “This
place is so accessible and so
stunningly beautiful. Those
two things make this my go-to
trail. This trail keeps me
alive.”
Beach said she won’t forget
stepping out to the edge for
the first time, without fear of
falling.
“This view takes my breath
away, it absolutely takes my
breath away,” she said. “And,
it feels so secure. The whole
picture is just surreal.”
The lower section of the
Cape Horn Trail opens July
16. Robbins, Brown and volun-
teers constructed an informa-
tional kiosk and bus shelter at
the Skamania County Transit
Station. The main trail head
is located across Salmon Falls
Road from the parking lot.
Brown said Washougal
High School student Tim Sea-
man helped build the kiosk
and shelter for his senior pro-
ject.
Robbins said she hopes to
have an official dedication for
the kiosk and the waterfall
overlook in September.
No matter how many times
they walk the access route,
Photo by Dan Trujillo, Post-Record
THE CAPE HORN Waterfall Overlook provides hikers with a spec-
tacular, and now safer, view of the Columbia River Gorge. Mem-
bers of the Cape Horn Conservancy and Friends of the Columbia
Gorge worked with volunteers to haul 10 tons of rock down a
quarter mile path.
Brown and Robbins approach
the Cape Hor n Waterfall
Overlook in awe.
“What feels good about this
is working on something that
you know is going to last for
generations,” Brown said.
“This is some place I want
my kids, grandkids and their
g randchildren to have
around, so they too can have
these incredible views and
landscapes to feed their
souls,” Robbins added.
Groups clash in court over Columbia River Basin salmon plan
By GOSIA WOZNIACKA
The World
PORTLAND (AP) — Fed-
eral authorities defended
their latest plan for mitigat-
ing damage to salmon and
steelhead imperiled by hy-
droelectric dams in the Co-
lumbia River Basin.
In oral arguments in U.S.
District Court on Tuesday,
the government argued its
approach is resulting in
more salmon surviving at
dams, juvenile fish migrat-
ing faster to the ocean and
record numbers of fish re-
turning to restored habitat.
But conservation and
fishing groups, Oregon and
the Nez Perce tribe, which
challenged the plan in
c o u r t , s a i d i t ’s d e e p l y
flawed. They said it won’t
lead to the recovery of wild
fish populations, because
many have not achieved the
promised benefits and are
barely hanging on. Most of
the returning fish were ar-
tificially bred in hatcheries.
Thirteen species of
salmon and steelhead are
listed as endangered or
threatened under the En-
dangered Species Act in the
Columbia River Basin.
The plan’s various itera-
tions have been litigated in
court for more than two
decades. The most recent
plan — known as the biolog-
ical opinion — was issued
in 2008 to cover a 10-year pe-
riod through 2018, and a
supplemental plan was
added in 2010. It was struck
down in court in 2011 for de-
pending too much on habi-
tat improvements whose
benefits are unknown. The
plan’s latest version was is-
sued in January 2014.
The g roups in court
clashed over which stan-
dard of recovery should be
used to measure success.
The federal government ar-
gued it can’t cause addition-
al risks or harm to the fish,
and it has met that stan-
dard.
The plan, said federal at-
torney Michael Eitel, isn’t a
plan for recovery. Rather, it
asks whether fish will be
“trending toward recovery.”
This means one year’s re-
turns must outnumber the
previous year’s, regardless
of whether that eventually
leads to recovery or when.
But the plaintiffs argued
the government has set the
bar too low. They said be-
caus e energ y-producing
dams are the main cause of
fish mor tality, the plan
must do more to protect and
recover them.
“A growing species is not
the same as a recovered
species,” said Todd True, an
attorney with Earthjustice
who represents environ-
mental groups in the court
case.
What’s missing from the
plan, said True, is a defini-
tion of what constitutes re-
covery and when approxi-
mately it will be achieved.
True criticized the uncer-
tainty of habitat restora-
tion, which is the plan’s
main tool to improve fish
survival; other plan compo-
nents include reducing the
effects of hatcheries on
w i l d f i s h a n d ke e p i n g
predators at bay, as well as
improving fish passage at
Gorge Days in North Bonneville
Gorge Day celebrations are
taking over North Bonneville
on Friday and Saturday, July
10-11. All events take place in
the North Bonneville City
Park area.
The weekend celebration,
sponsored by the City of
North Bonneville and orga-
nized by the Skamania Coun-
ty Chamber of Commerce,
kicks off Friday morning
with citywide garage sales
that continue all day Saturday.
Get your maps at Chevron gas
station or City Hall. Beacon
Rock Golf Course is offering a
Gorge Days Box Lunch Spe-
cial on Friday from 11:30 am
until 2:30 pm in case you need
sustenance to keep shopping
throughout the day.
On Friday evening, dinner
and music will be provided
at the basketball court in the
middle of City Park. Skama-
nia School PTO is cooking up
a barbecue dinner at 5 p.m.
Bonneville Hot Springs Re-
sort & Spa will open their
beer and wine garden as
well. Stringed Migration, a
four-piece Celtic and inter-
national roots band, will pro-
vide music at 5 p.m. Then,
magician Jeff McMahon will
take over at 6 p.m. At 8 p.m. is
an Open Mic night.
Saturday highlights include
is the Gorge Days Car Show
from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. — with
300 to 400 hot rods, classic cars
and vehicles of every vintage
expected — and a concert by
Hit Machine at 4 p.m.
Also happening Saturday
are a fundraising pancake
breakfast, Volkswalk, quilt
display at Bonneville Event
Center, bake sale, food ven-
dors, a beer and wine garden
plus a variety of arts and
crafts and infor mational
booths. North Bonneville
HOOD RIVER NEWS (ISSN 07465823) is
published twice weekly, every Wednesday
and Saturday. Subscription rates: $42 per
year prepaid ($36 for senior citizens, 65 and
over) in Hood River County and western
Wasco County, Oregon; and Klickitat and
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Hood River, Oregon. POSTMASTER: Send
address changes to HOOD RIVER NEWS,
P.O. Box 390, Hood River, OR 97031-0103.
Community Library pre-
sents family entertainment
with Habiba Addo, West
African music and dance. Re-
turning to the park is the
Kids Zone with an inflatable
obstacle course and slide.
New is 2015 is a free Saturday
shuttle service, providing
transportation around town
to the garage sales and other
activities. Park for the shut-
tle near the tennis courts.
For more information and
the full schedule of activi-
ties, visit www.gorgedays.net
or call 800-989-9178.
the dams.
Plaintif fs said habitat
can’t compensate for harm
done in the “migratory corri-
dor” where dams harm fish.
Even where habitat has been
restored, many fish popula-
tions don’t replace them-
selves, said Stephanie Par-
ent, the lawyer representing
Oregon.
Plaintiffs also said the
government has not ana-
lyzed the effects of climate
change and isn’t taking any
a c t i o n s t o m i t i g at e fo r
them. As a result, said
Earthjustice attorney Steve
Mashuda, it’s hard to know
how much climate change’s
ef fect could “erode or
negate the predicted bene-
fits” of government’s ac-
tions to help salmon.
Eitel, the gover nment
lawyer, said the magnitude
and timing of climate
change are poorly under-
stood and its effects on
species vary, so additional
actions were not planned to
offset its effect.
Critics also said the cur-
rent plan rolls back some of
Eat &
watch the
the spill ordered by U.S. Dis-
trict Judge James Redden
10 years ago. In 2011, Red-
den, who has since retired
and stepped off the case,
asked the government to
consider whether removal
of the four lower Snake
River dams might be neces-
sary — an action environ-
mentalists have long called
for, in addition to increased
spill.
T h e g ove r n m e n t s ay s
breaching dams isn’t need-
ed. Lorri Bodi, the Bon-
neville Power Administra-
tion’s vice president of fish
and wildlife, said it has not
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ignored the hydro system’s
effects — it has invested
over $1 billion in improve-
ments such as weirs and
other types of fish passage,
improving survival.
Judge Michael Simon,
who took over the case from
Redden, did not indicate
when he would rule.
No matter what Simon de-
cides, the current manage-
ment plan will be in place
just for another three years.
Soon, the government will
need to start discussing an-
other biological opinion
that would be put in place
in 2018.
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an artisan bakery in hood river, or
Under New Management
Meet the new manager: Allison Moore
Baker: Shea Wooten Pastry Chef: Victor Heredia
New summer hours as of July 1st
7:30 AM - 5 PM Wednesday, Friday through Sunday
Thursday closed at 3:30 PM for Farmers Market
– come visit us at the Hood River Middle School 4-7 PM
Closed: Monday - Tuesday
Check out our menu! Great sandwiches, soups, salads & desserts!
New Espresso! Catering available for parties & business meetings!
Come check out all of our breads, rolls, baguettes,
and specialties always baked fresh!
102 5th Street • Hood River • 541.436.2866
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