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East Oregonian
LOSTINE
Saturday, January 21, 2017
Teaching kids snow sports takes patience
By MARK MORICAL
The (Bend) Bulletin
Courtesy photo by Leon Werdinger
The confl uence of the Lostine and Wallowa rivers in
Oregon’s Wallowa Valley.
Wallowa County ranch
to adopt new water
conservation practices
By GEORGE PLAVEN
East Oregonian
A Wallowa County
ranch fi gures to save 1
billion gallons of water
annually through a series
of conservation projects,
such as adding sprinklers
and forgoing irrigation
during peak summer
months.
The
Freshwater
Trust, an environmental
nonprofi t with offi ces in
Portland, announced it is
working with Wolfe Ranch
to upgrade irrigation infra-
structure, transfer points
of diversion and lease
water rights on the farm to
benefi t endangered salmon
in the Lostine River.
Funding comes from a
$1.4 million grant awarded
by the Oregon Water
Resources
Department.
Irrigation upgrades are
also expected to boost crop
yields by 5 to 20 percent
on the ranch.
“We’ve formed lasting
relationships with dozens
of farmers and ranchers
who understand conser-
vation isn’t just about
protecting fi sh,” said Aaron
Maxwell, fl ow restoration
project manager for The
Freshwater Trust, who
works out of Enterprise.
“It’s about the longevity of
their farms, economies and
entire communities.”
Nearly 1,100 acres of
forage and grain crops
will be converted to pivot
sprinklers as opposed
to fl ood irrigation at the
ranch — which Maxwell
compared to the difference
between letting your
hose run into the yard, or
watering just the section
that needs it most.
“In the face of present
and future water scarcity,
modernizations like this
will only become more
imperative,” he said.
Ditching fl ood irriga-
tion may also have a posi-
tive effect on water quality,
Maxwell said, reducing the
amount of standing water
in fi elds that can become
contaminated with sedi-
ment, bacteria and toxins
before draining back into
streams.
Water saved through
the irrigation upgrades will
be transferred back into
the Lostine River, which
harbors summer chinook
and steelhead populations.
Wolfe Ranch will also
voluntarily abstain from
irrigating in August and
September, when the river
reaches critically low
water levels.
The changes may allow
Wolfe Ranch, a sixth-gen-
eration family operation,
to begin growing more
high-value food crops,
which could have a ripple
effect down the entire
Wallowa County agricul-
tural industry. Local busi-
nesses are already slated
to provide approximately
$2 million in construction
materials and labor.
“Production
and
economics must always be
taken into consideration
with projects like these,”
Maxwell said. “This will
have positive implications
for the landowner and the
local economy.”
The Freshwater Trust
has been working with
farms and ranches on the
Lostine River for more
than a decade, Maxwell
said, after chinook runs
were nearly wiped out in
the 1990s. The organi-
zation was also awarded
$114,265 from the Water
Resources
Department
last year to study whether
irrigation
effi ciencies
could help protect salmon
on upper Catherine Creek
in Union County.
Woody Wolfe, owner of
Wolfe Ranch, said water
scarcity and quality issues
aren’t going to simply go
away.
“Projects like this help
further the responsible use
of our natural resources
while benefi ting the envi-
ronment,” Wolfe said.
———
Contact George Plaven
at
gplaven@eastorego-
nian.com or 541-966-
0825.
MOUNT BACHELOR
(AP) — Mason needed a
nudge, so I did what parents
often do and resorted to
bribery.
“Mason, if you come ski
Cloudchaser with me, I’ll
buy you a root beer fl oat at
Cascade Lakes after,” I told
him.
“Fine,” was the stubborn
response from my 8-year-old
son.
So we skied over to the
new Cloudchaser chairlift on
our outing to Mt. Bachelor ski
area last month. Mason was
all smiles as we explored the
new terrain, and he declared
the area his new favorite part
of the mountain.
This, after refusing all
morning to try something
new.
Confi dence is a signifi -
cant part of what helps kids
progress with activities like
skiing and snowboarding.
But I wondered as a parent
how I could keep my son
improving his skills on the
hill after his fi ve lessons last
season.
When he was really
young, maybe 4, I took him
to the Carrousel chairlift, a
small lift for beginners near
the Sunrise Lodge at Bach-
elor. But he refused to let go
of me as I held him between
my legs while turning down
the hill, and thus it seemed he
did not learn much.
I knew he needed to learn
from somebody else.
So last year, when Mason
was 7, my wife and I regis-
tered him for Bachelor’s “Ski
or Ride in 5” program for
beginner skiers and snow-
boarders.
His progression amazed
me. By the spring, he was
skiing off the Summit chair-
lift with me.
“We hear a lot that, ‘My
kids won’t listen to me but
they’ll listen to somebody
else,”’ says Jason Montoya,
director of activities at
Mt. Bachelor. “That gives
them the chance to learn
from somebody that has the
knowledge and skills to allow
them to learn that foundation
from the bottom up.”
Instructors also try to
promote independence, so
parents hanging on to their
kids as they slide down the
mountain might not really
be in the child’s best interest,
Montoya says. Instructors
want to ensure that skiers
and boarders have the skills
necessary to ride new terrain
independently.
“Just having them build
that foundation and working
toward that next step,” the
director says.
“It’s a balance, but we
won’t take them to the next
chair (in skill level) until
they’re able to do it inde-
pendently.”
Montoya explains that
instructors evaluate young-
sters’ skiing by how they are
Ryan Brennecke/The Bulletin via AP
In this Jan. 15 photo Marisa Paine skis with her daughter Carys Paine, 5, near the
base of Sunshine Accelerator ski lift at Mount Bachelor in Bend.
Ryan Brennecke/The Bulletin via AP
In this Jan. 15 photo Stephen Dimitrov takes a mo-
ment to give his son Harrison Dimitrov, 4, some posi-
tive reinforcement after falling while learning to ski at
Mount Bachelor in Ben.
skiing and not by the terrain
they have skied or the chair-
lifts they have ridden.
So me bragging about
my son’s skiing in the areas
of Cloudchaser and Summit
does not mean much if he is
not skiing technically sound.
And this season it has been a
challenge to get him out of
his wedge — “make a pizza”
is what we call it — and
straighten out his skis as he
turns down the slopes.
Montoya notes that this
a common problem with
young skiers after their fi rst
season of lessons.
“That’s one of the bigger
challenges that we encounter,
because that’s where they’re
comfortable and what they
know,” he says. “Work on
it on terrain they they’re
comfortable with. There’s a
variety of different drills we
use.”
Traversing along the
runs — moving straight
across the runs back and
forth — on easier terrain can
help, according to Montoya.
Also, a practice called
“thumper” — thumping the
uphill ski while skiing across
the run — will force skiers to
balance on their downhill ski
and thus straighten out their
skis.
I plan to employ these
drills next time on the
mountain with Mason, with
a minimal amount of bribery.
Montoya says that skiing
and snowboarding students,
like most any students, will
learn in different ways. Some
just need to be told what to
do. Others need to see how
to do it.
“We try to tell them, show
them, and have them practice
it,” Montoya says. “Having
them watch you might be
more effective than telling
them.”
He adds that it is prob-
ably time for more lessons
when they want to feel
more comfortable on more
advanced terrain or learn a
new skill — for example,
learning how to ski powder
off of a groomed run.
“But getting out there and
just skiing is just as important
as instruction,” Montoya
insists.
Another question I posed
to Montoya is how to know
when your child is ready
to ride the mountain with
friends without parental
supervision.
This is obviously a
personal choice for every
parent, and I start to sweat
when I think about it.
Along with possessing
the skiing or snowboarding
skills necessary to venture
off without an adult come
other issues, including lift
riding and safety awareness.
Will your child know what to
do if someone gets injured or
they get separated from their
friends?
“Educate them and know
they’re independent in
navigating the mountain,”
Montoya suggests. “Tell
them to ski on the runs, stay
with friends, and make sure
they stop regularly to ensure
their friend is still with them.
But even at 13 years old, it
really bugs me when my son
doesn’t answer his phone.”
I don’t have to worry
about that just yet.
This season my 6-year-old
daughter is in the Ski or Ride
in 5 program. Before I know
it, she and her brother will be
off skiing without me.
I might as well enjoy
this time while it lasts. But
I also want to make sure I
am teaching them the right
skills and giving them the
best advice for a lifetime of
skiing.
Reporting deadlines approach
for 2016 hunt results
East Oregonian
Hunters who purchased
a 2016 big game or turkey
tag need to report their hunt
results to the Oregon Depart-
ment of Fish & Wildlife by
deadline, which is Jan. 31 for
most tags.
There is a $25 fi ne for
hunters who fail to report
2016 deer or elk tags on time,
which will be assessed when
they purchase their 2018
hunting license.
Reporting deadlines are
Jan. 31 for all 2016 hunts that
ended by Dec. 31, 2016. The
deadline is April 15 for all
2016 hunts that end between
Jan. 1 through March 31,
2017.
As of Jan. 10, ODFW
reports 53 percent of elk tags
and 51 percent of deer tags
have been reported for hunts
with the Jan. 31 deadline.
The department will be
sending reminder postcards
to hunters who haven’t
reported results yet later this
month.
Hunters can report their
results online at either www.
odfw.com or reportmyhunt.
com, or by calling 1-866-
947-6339.
They will need to have
their hunter identifi cation
number; two-digit wildlife
management unit number;
total number of days hunted;
number of days in the unit
hunted most; and number
of days in the unit where
they harvested an animal, if
successful.
“The information hunters
provide is needed to evaluate
the hunting season and
tag numbers,” said Tom
Thornton, ODFW game
program manager. “We really
appreciate hunters taking a
few minutes of their time to
complete the report.”
As a bonus incentive,
hunters that do report on time
are entered into a drawing to
win a special big game tag.
ODFW selects three names
each year, and winners can
choose between a deer, elk or
pronghorn tag.
Penalty fees are used to
increase Oregon State Police
patrol and enforcement of
winter range closures in
Oregon, which helps deer,
elk and other wildlife survive
the winter by limiting distur-
bances from people.
Email your trophy photo to
ttrainor@eastoregonian.com
SKI REPORT
Spout Springs
Tollgate, Ore.
CLOSED FOR SEASON
Anthony Lakes
North Powder, Ore.
New snow: 5” since
Monday
Base depth: 56”
Conditions: Eastern
Oregon Backcountry
Festival, free music
Saturday.
Ski Bluewood
Photo courtesy Mike Morehead
Bull watch
Mike Morehead of Pilot Rock took these photos Jan. 15 of elk near his home on
McKay Creek.
Ski Fergi
BRIEFLY
Sprague River
closes Jan. 23
KLAMATH FALLS, –
The Sprague River near
Klamath Falls will close to
all fi shing beginning Jan. 23
through April 21.
The Oregon Department
of Fish and Wildlife
announced the emergency
regulation Thursday in
order to protect spawning
redband trout from the stress
and mortality associated
with fi shing pressure and
handling.
Deadline to apply
for spring bear
hunt is Feb. 10
Hunters looking forward
to spring bear season have
until Feb. 10 to apply.
Applications can be
found online at www.
Dayton, Wash.
New snow: 3”
Base depth: 58”
Conditions: Some
fresh snow, machine
groomed but soft
off piste
or.outdoorcentral.us/or/
license. Draw results will be
announced by Feb. 20.
Otherwise, hunters can
purchase a fi rst-come,
fi rst-serve spring bear tag
for southwest Oregon. As
of Thursday, about 1,300
of those tags were still
available.
More information about
conditions for the season
will be available closer to
the opener in April.
Joseph, Ore.
New snow: Unknown
Base depth: 35”
Conditions: Open this
weekend, cold and
good coverage.
Mt. Hood Meadows
Government Camp, Ore.
New snow: 2”
Base depth: 81”
Conditions Groom is
packed powder. Off pis-
te it’s a layer of fresh
over hardpack.