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wallowa.com
December 21, 2016
Snowshoeing up Hurricane Creek
By Tim Trainor
Wallowa County Chieftain
Snowshoeing and cross country skiing up Hurricane Creek can provide some beautiful vistas, especially after the dumps of
snow that have fallen in Wallowa County.
Staff photo by Tim Trainor
The sun can’t quite break through snow clouds above Hurricane Creek Dec. 17. The road is plowed past the year-round
residences, and allows for excellent skiing on the roadbed or snowshoeing along the creek.
Nez Perce family brings tradition,
respect to Josephy Center
By Steve Tool
Wallowa County Chieftain
The Josephy Center host-
ed Nez Perce tribe members
Allen Pinkham Jr. and his
children, Josiah and Lynne,
for a Brown Bag gathering
Dec. 13.
The Pinkham family be-
long to the Nez Perce Tribe,
are descendants of Chief
Joseph, and live in Lenore,
Idaho, on the Lapwai Reser-
vation.
About two dozen people
attended the presentation,
which centered on the Nez
Perce culture of respect for
tradition and for the earth.
Pinkham spoke of his an-
cestry and informed the audi-
ence of the traditional name
of his tribe, which is Ni-mii-
puu. It translates to Children
of the Coyote, or People Who
Walk out of the Mountains.
Nez Perce is what French
trappers named the tribe in
the early 19th century.
“We were created by Coy-
ote, and we knew the Creator,
the maker of all things, cre-
ated Coyote,” Pinkham said.
While giving a description of
a Nez Perce creation story,
he asked the audience to be
conscious of their lives and
environmental impact. As
other animals were assigned
to take care of and offer sus-
tenance to humans, humans
Steve Tool/Chieftain
Nez Perce Lynne Pinkham explains her tribe’s traditions behind basket weaving during a
Dec. 13 Brown Bag presentation at the Josephy Center in Joseph. About two dozen people
attended the event.
should take care to return the
favor.
Pinkham said that the five
Ni-mii-puu elements are air,
water, earth, spirit and light.
And without any of one of
them, life would cease to
exist, which is why we must
respect and take care of each.
“These five elements are
relative to our lives today.
Only now, we call them envi-
ronmental impacts,” he said
with a laugh. “If we don’t
correct these environmental
impacts, what will happen
to us? Be mindful of those
things that give us life and
sustain life. I hope this mes-
sage I am telling you will
carry on and be conscious of
those things that give life,”
he said.
The Pinkhams brought
in tables full of handmade
items, the making of which
they learned from their el-
ders. Each family member
presented their particular
handiwork, from rifle scab-
bards to ceremonial gloves,
shirts or dresses. Each item
had a story to go with it.
Each tale hearkened back to
a distant past and ultimately
to Coyote, the giver of tradi-
tions.
The audience watched
with rapt attention and at the
end of the presentation and
peppered the Pinkhams with
questions.
Gathering up her items,
Lynne Pinkham made several
observations about her own
tradition experiences. “The
respect I was taught, I try to
teach others. I live the culture
every day — not one day,
but every day, teaching my
kids respect for others and
the environment,” she said.
She added that she appreciat-
ed the care Wallowa County
citizens put into keeping the
valley beautiful, which she
finds gratifying on her return
visits to reconnect with her
people’s past.
“I make every effort to
come here as often as I can.
This is my homeland,” she
said.
DECEMBER 21
ODFW RECREATION REPORT
Fishing
Grande Ronde River:
Steelhead season is in full
swing on the Grande Ronde
and anglers are finally find-
ing fish consistently with the
most recent creel report indi-
cating catch rates of about 10
hours/fish caught. Similar to
other Columbia basin runs,
the Grande Ronde stock is
tracking below expectations
this year.
On the upside, a large ma-
jority of the returning fish are
two-salt meaning larger aver-
age size. Harvest is limited to
three hatchery steelhead per
day and must be recorded on
the Combined Angling Tag.
A Columbia River Basin En-
dorsement is also required.
Wallowa County ponds:
New this year, Kinney Lake
in now open to fishing year-
round and non-motorized
watercraft are now allowed.
The lake was stocked at the
end of September and should
fish well throughout the win-
ter. Salt Creek Summit still
has fish available and they
were actively rising during a
recent visit by the local biol-
ogist.
Imnaha River: Anglers
are finding steelhead in the
lower sections and some PIT-
tagged fish have been detect-
ed in the river. Similar to
other Columbia basin runs,
the Grande Ronde stock is
tracking below expectations
this year. On the upside, a
large majority of the return-
Wallowa Lake: As the
fall and winter progresses
the remaining stocked fish
will begin switching to more
natural food. Try natural
baits and natural imitations
to attract these fish. Bait
should be either hung under
a float or set just off bottom.
Kokanee size appears to be
ing fish are two-salt, mean-
ing they are larger average
size. Harvest is limited to
three hatchery steelhead per
day and must be recorded on
the Combined Angling Tag.
A Columbia River Basin En-
dorsement is also required.
improving with reports of
fish in the 8 to 9-inch range
and some fish as large as
12-inches.
Wallowa River: Trout
fishing should continue to
be good. Mountain whitefish
are also very abundant in
the Wallowa and are readily
caught on small bead-head
nymphs.
Steelhead season opened
Sept. 1. A few steelhead are
available in the fall however
the best fishing is in late win-
ter and early spring. Harvest
is limited to three hatchery
steelhead per day and must
be recorded on the Combined
Angling Tag. A Columbia
River Basin Endorsement is
also required.
Hunting
Elk: A few antlerless
elk season are running now.
Most elk have moved to win-
ter ranges,.
Antlerless Deer: A few
late antlerless white-tailed
deer seasons are open or will
open soon. White-tailed deer
numbers are high in the ag-
ricultural areas where these
hunts take place and success
should be high, as well.
Forest Grouse: Some
ruffed grouse can still be
found in brushy areas. Blue
grouse are now up high into
conifer trees to find buds to
eat for the winter and so will
be hard to find.
Cougar: Populations are
moderate throughout Wal-
lowa County. Most lions
are taken incidental to other
hunting; however, calling
with fawn bleat, or locating
a cougar kill and waiting for
a cat to return are often suc-
cessful techniques
Coyote: Good numbers
of coyotes can be found
throughout Wallowa County.
Calling coyotes with rabbit
distress type calls has been
effective for hunters. It is im-
portant to choose areas with
abundant coyote sign and lit-
tle human activity.
Wallowa County Chieftain