Chief Joseph Days event guide INSIDE TODAY!
Enterprise, Oregon
Wallowa.com
Issue No. 15
July 27, 2016
$1
Explosive device removed from lake
Search and Rescue divers discovered device weeks ago
By Scot Heisel
Wallowa County Chieftain
Federal, state and coun-
ty law enforcement offi cials
converged at Wallowa Lake
on Friday afternoon to re-
trieve and disable a small de-
vice that was discovered un-
der water near a public beach.
Wallowa County Sheriff
Steve Rogers said a group of
off-duty Search and Rescue
members was diving near the
area at the north end of the
lake “about two weeks ago”
ODFW
verifi es
wolf
attack
Scot Heisel/Chieftain
Local, state and federal
law enforcement
officials gathered to
remove an explosive
device from the water
near the public beach
area at the north end
of Wallowa Lake on
Friday.
and found the device during a
recreational dive.
The divers identifi ed their
discovery as a possible ex-
plosive device and reported it
to the Sheriff’s Offi ce, which
See DEVICE, Page A6
FEEL THE
Beeler Ridge
area calf
survives; new
pack may be
responsible
By Steve Tool
Wallowa County Chieftain
Oregon Department of
Fish and Wildlife offi cials on
Friday confi rmed a wolf at-
tack on a calf on public land
in the Beeler Ridge area east
of Joseph. Although the calf
suffered numerous bites and
lacerations, it survived the
attack. This attack followed
closely upon the heels of a
confi rmed wolf kill in the
Kuhn Ridge area on June 26.
According to ODFW, a
rancher was gathering cows in
the Beeler Ridge area on the
morning of Friday, July 15 and
noticed the calf with severe in-
juries to its back legs. He took
the calf to a holding facility,
and ODFW offi cials examined
the calf later in the day.
The inside and outside of
the calf’s upper legs sustained
numerous bites, as did the
shoulder and left fl ank. Tissue
damage included swelling and
infection. The ODFW cited
the wounds as clear evidence
of a predator attack.
The area of the bite wounds
and tissue damage matched
common attack points for
wolves. Bite scrapes on the
hide measured up to a quar-
ter-inch wide and 4 inches
long, while paired scrapes
measured about 2 inches. The
ODFW report stated that the
calf had sustained its injuries
fi ve to seven days earlier.
Wolf tracks were report-
ed in the area during the past
month about a mile from the
calf’s pasture. The exact loca-
tion of the calf at the time of
attack is unknown.
See WOLF, Page A6
2016 CHIEF JOSEPH DAYS KICKS OFF WITH BUCKING HORSE STAMPEDE
Page 10 Kolbaba returns for rodeo
Ellen Morris Bishop/For The Chieftain
The 2016 Chief Joseph Days kicked off Tuesday afternoon and will continue through the weekend. The annual event includes PRCA rodeo
competition Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights. For more on Chief Joseph Days, see the CJD Guide inside today’s Chieftain.
GRAND MARSHAL CHAR WILLIAMS
HAS DEEP TIES TO COUNTY, CJD
By Ellen Morris Bishop
For The Chieftain
he is a roper, a teacher and a
community treasure. But to
Char Williams, the 2016 Grand
Marshal of Chief Joseph Days,
her role is all about community.
“Chief
Joseph Days is the
tie that binds this
community togeth-
er,” Williams said.
CHIEF JOSEPH
“So many people
DAYS IS THE TIE
here work togeth-
er to make this
THAT BINDS THIS
rodeo — the whole
COMMUNITY
festival — happen.
Being the grand
TOGETHER.
marshal has really
opened my eyes to
that.”
In fact, Williams has long been one of
the strongest threads in that tie. A teacher
of grades K-8 at the Imnaha School for 11
years, and grades 5-6 in Joseph for another
four, Char also worked with 4H programs
and families. Her late husband Dan served
as ticket chairman for 17 years. Her son
Scott succeeded him in that role. All of
Williams’ children participated in the
S
“
Ellen Morris Bishop/For The Chieftain
2016 Chief Joseph Days Parade grand marshal Char Williams with her Paint Mare and
3-month-old foal, Paintnot Patterson.
parades and in the general operation and
cleanup of the Chief Joseph Days events.
This year, her granddaughter CJ will be a
horse-back version of “The Wizard of Oz”
in the Kiddie Parade on Friday morning.
“I tried to explain that ‘The Wizard of
Oz’ did not ride a horse,” Williams said.
“But CJ would have none of it.”
See CHAR, Page A7