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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (April 16, 2016)
Page 10C OUTSIDE East Oregonian Saturday, April 16, 2016 North Fork John Day provides early season exercise By TIM TRAINOR East Oregonian If your summer goal is a week- long backpack in the Eagle Caps or the Elkhorns, you may be looking for early season opportunities to stretch your legs and your mileage without having to posthole your way through high country snow. The North Fork John Day River Trail offers an alternative. :arm, scenic and mostly Àat, the 23-mile trail makes a good choice for a long spring day hike or an overnight backpack trip. The trail begins with about two miles of easy walking along an old road that skirts alongside the North Fork John Day. It then diverges at a large, open camping spot where Big Creek and its trail pours into the John Day fork. This is where the wilder- ness area begins, and only horses and hikers can continue along an old mining road route that follows the river. It becomes more narrow and more scenic as it gets more remote. The trail is classic Eastern Oregon. Hot and dusty midday. Lots of ponderosa and lodgepole pines mi[ed with Douglas ¿r and larch. :illows ¿ll the river bottoms. <ou can catch glimpses of plenty of mule deer rear ends, bounding away into the surrounding hills. The water, where relatively calm, is covered with mergansers. Canadian geese have coupled off and built their nests on river islands. <et there are some downsides to this trail that must be mentioned. The ¿rst is the near infestation of ticks. Before you head out, liberally apply bug repellent. And be sure to wear pants, a long-sleeved shirt and a hat, bring extra bug spray for future doses and check yourself and your hiking partners closely at the end of the trip. The second downside is that the angling — one of the main draws of the river during the majority of the year — ranges from poor to impossible during the spring runoff. A kayak would be more useful Staff photo by Tim Trainor Staff photo by Tim Trainor The North Fork John Day rides high against the banks during spring runoff. Hiking along it can be a fun early-season adventure. Big Creek rushes into the North Fork John Day River, about two miles from the trailhead. eTuipment than a ¿shing rod while the water is at its most turbid. A third downside is that crossing the river is not possible. A jaunt up Cougar Creek Trail, for instance, requires fording the river. That is not possible until at least mid-May. <et there are some positives too. <ou can wander off trail for some favorite Eastern Oregon spring outdoor hobbies, as both antler and mushroom hunting can be very good. About 5.2 miles in, just as the trail crosses Corral Creek, there is How to get there: For Umatilla County residents, the trail is best accessed by heading south down Highway 395 to the Grant County line. Turn east when you hit the North Fork John Day River and make your way via Forest Road 55 to Forest Road 5506. It’s easy navigating — just keep the river alongside your passenger door. Follow that road to the “Road Closed” sign just past Oriental Campground. a riverside Àat underneath towering ponderosas. Turning around here would make for a good hike of 10.4 miles — a good training day for those double-digit alpine hikes that await this summer. Those with greater ambition, or who had a more active winter, can continue for miles more. There are dispersed campsites all along the river, with very little chance you’ll have human company anywhere nearby. If you plan ahead, you can leave a shuttle vehicle at the other end of the trail at the North Fork John Day Campground, about 23 miles as the river and the trail winds. But even if it is a simple out-and-back, the North Fork John Day Trail has plenty to offer close to home. ——— Tim Trainor can be reached at ttrainor@eastoregonian.com or 541-966-0835. BLOOMIN’ BLUES DeaGQeWWOe EORRmLQg eaUO\ By BRUCE BARNES For The East Oregonian Name: Purple Dead-nettle SFLeQWL¿F Name: Lamium purpureum Last week I said the season was about two weeks earlier than last year. I’m now thinking it may be even earlier. Plant bloom-times are inÀuenced by several factors, including soil temperature, the length of daylight, soil nutrients, the amount and timing of rainfall or presence of ground water, the presence of crowding from other plants, competition for water and nutrients and by which plants, and the presence of direct sunlight or shade. And to complicate things even more, different species seem to respond to different factors and to a different extent. The more I’ve been out looking around, the more I’m seeing plants in bloom that I’m used to seeing much later. Purple Dead-nettle is an introduced annual plant from Europe and Asia, which has become established in scattered locations across North America, but is not considered invasive. I have seen it in the River Parkway in Pendleton and at a few places along the river road approaching Umatilla Forks. The names Dead-nettle and Dumb-nettle were long ago applied to this plant and others of the same genus, because they reminded people of nettles, but without the stinging hairs of real nettles. The genus name, Lamium, is the “type” genus of the mint family, the Zach Urness/Statesman-Journal via AP The North Fork of the Smith River is known for its jade-green water and red-rock canyons. Three rafters navigate through a canyon in April 2015. OWKeUZRUOGO\: UaIWLQg RQ NRUWK )RUN SmLWK By ZACH URNESS (Salem) Statesman Journal Photo by Bruce Barnes Lamium purpureum Lamiaceae. In plant families, one genus bears the same root name as the family name, and is considered to have the characteristics that set the example for the family. Unlike many members of the mint family, however, this plant has no noticeable odor. This plant is usually about 6-10 inches high. The lower stem is bare and squared, with the upper third bearing overlapping heart-shaped leaves about an inch long, and with the tips of delicate tiny pink Àowers sticking out between the leaves. The upper leaves are a somewhat dark purplish-brown color that transitions to green on the lower leaves. In Europe, before they knew better, people would treat measles with this plant. They would boil the roots of the plant in milk and have the patient drink it to “bring out” the measles. :KeUe WR ¿QG: In the past I’ve found it along the edge of the River Parkway near the Little League Park. If you head for Umatilla Forks, it is growing at the base of the rock cliffs on your left about a mile before reaching the campground. GASQUET, Calif. — If you’ve ever wanted to go whitewater rafting on Mars, head southwest to the border of Oregon and California and ask for the man they call Bearfoot Brad. The bearded resident of this tiny hamlet doesn’t hold the keys to a spaceship, but he is the gatekeeper for a section of river so bizarrely beautiful it feels as though you’re paddling down a Martian stream. The river in question is the North Fork Smith, a blade of jade-green water cutting through the remote heart of the Klamath-Sis- kiyou Mountains. Home to a virtual desert of reddish-orange canyons — not to mention insect-eating plants — the North Fork is a pocket of red planet oddness here on Earth. “The crazy thing about the North Fork is that it’s right in the middle of a rain- forest,” said Adam Spencer, co-owner of Redwood Rides, a Gasquet-based out¿tter planning to offer North Fork trips this spring and summer. “<et when you’re on the river, it feels almost like you’ve been transported to the desert.” If you’ve never heard of the North Fork Smith, you’re not alone. While famous among hard-core kayakers and rafters, it remains generally unknown to the Northwest populace. General Dentistry For You and Your Family Range and ¿eld day available for hunter education students East Oregonian A range and ¿eld day will be conducted April 24 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. in Milton-Freewater for hunter education students. Participants are required to complete a hunter education course online or by workbook method to take part. If you wish to receive the workbook method, you must stop by 920 S. Main Street, Milton-Freewater, for your course material and your workbook. Students will be required to present their certi¿cate of online training or have a completed workbook in their possession as a pre-requisite to the class. There will be a $10 fee collected from each student in the event that you have not pre-registered. <ou can pre-register at www.dfw.state.or.us/educa- tion/hunter and sign up for Hunter Education Field Day as well. Fully Digital Enya 3 Series Hearing Aid Spring $ Special 995 • Enhances Speech • Reduces Noise Call 541-276-3155 Ruud’s Hearing Aid Service Sale price valid on the Resound Enya 3 series. Limit two at the promotional price. No other offers or discounts apply. Discount does not apply to prior sales. • Digital X-rays • Laser Cavity Detection Extended hours: Mon. - Thur.: 7:00 am to 6:00 pm We take most insurances, including PPO’s Dr. Smith se habla Español 310 SE2nd St., Ste 203 Pendleton, OR 97801 541-276-4768 T. Blair Smith, DMD Edward S. Dolan, DDS
