PAGE 6 JANUARY 10, 1978
The Woods Don’t Resi¡The Winter
Snow Surveying Is For The Hardy
Always conducting a snow survey in pairs, staff
members of the Natural Resource Department make a
monthly trek to Bald Peter and Racing Creek to obtain vital
data from the snowpack. Here Tribal Wildlife Biologist
Terry Luther (left) records the depth and weight data given
him by instrument handler Earl Miller. Luther then
computed the density - indicating the amount of water in the
snow. The snow surveys are done from November through
March each winter.
Randy Rangila Phot#
Blizzards, cold winds and
heavy snows don’t stop the
hardy souls in the Natural Re
source Department from ventur
ing out into the high country
during winter months.
In fact, the deeper the snow,
the better they like it - particu
larly this winter. The snowpack
this year must be above average
to make up for last year’s lack.
This year’s snowpack “is
not up to snuff,” according to
Roscoe Smith. It is down some
what from the average, but a
vast improvement over last
year.
For example, on January 30,
1978, the snow depth at Racing
Creek was 27 inches with a
density of 31 percent, and at
Bald Peter it measured 60 inches
in depth with a density of 35
percent.
But in January of 1977, the
depth at Racing Creek was only
six inches with a density of 26
percent, and at Bald Peter there
was 9.1 inches of snow with a
density of just 18 percent.
Once a month, between No
vember and March, a pair of
snow surveyors set out on snow
mobiles to collect samples and
record the data at two different
sites here on the reservation,
Racing Creek and Bald Peter.
The four men who usually
make the trek are Gene Greene,
Roscoe Smith, Earl Miller, and
Terry Luther. Since the snow
survey takes nearly all day and
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Sandy Rangila Photo
After measuring the snow depth, Miller weighs the core sample on scales
suspended from a ski pole while Luther records the reading. Both wear snowshoes,
not only to keep from sinking into the snow, but so they won’t disturb the snow or
cause future readings there to be inaccurate.
Sandy Rangila Photo
requires travel in rough country,
the men always travel in pairs.
Snow mobiles have been known
to break down.
Precautions are
taken
against the chill factor and the
possibility of becoming stranded
is taken into consideration. Al
ways carried with the men are'
“spare tires” (snow-shoes), an
emergency kit, extra food, and a
space blanket.
In addition, Greene sends
two people every other year to
Snow Survey School where they
learn survival techniques, how
to recognize avalanche hazards,
cross-country skiing, first aid,
and how to put a snow mobile
back together.
Because of the chill factor
involved in this kind of outing,
the men know how to recognize
and avoid hypothermia, a con
dition which causes the body
temperature to drop to the point
vwhere vital organs cease to
function properly. Hypothermia
can result in death.
Snow surveys, which have
been conducted here for the past
eight years, are usually done
toward the end of the month.
And the crew tries to collect
samples on the same day as the
previous year so the compari
sons will be more meaningful on
a year-to-year basis.
For the sake of accuracy,
readings are taken in five loca
tions at each site. And the
locations have been selected for
their stability by Greene with
the assistance of the Soil Con
servation Service in Portland.
For this January’s survey,
Earl Miller and Terry Luther
made the all-day trip. To take a
measurement, Miller sank a
long aluminum tube down
through the snow until it reach-
BY SANDY RANGILA AND CYNTHIA STOWELL
for ers and Foresters Winter Poses Hazards
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Snow surveyors Earl Miller (foreground) and Terry Luther
having measured and weighed the snow at one location, strap their
red plastic snowshoes on the back of each snow mobile, pack away
theirJnstruipents, and head out for the next site.
JANUARY 10, 1978 PAGE 7
Bears an av '
hibernate duri^
mt ’
the forest is
ted.
bl*
.Pi!®8 of sL-
on trees and JT
tracks are viF.
dence for theT
saws, chugginH
whine of spinnH
again!)
K
If not forH
days of BIA fB
private tree tlB
reservation
(and the bears!
per.
Harvesting,
sonal activity M
improving the " _
round work.
must be thinn^
growth, guidel^
moval in a logg^
Set, and treesB
for cutting.
Imagine
carried out inK
snow or mud, B
ervation has
year, and the hB
At times foul 3
activity in the vK
the time man 1^
and mud hole If
course.
The BIA’s ■
bilities fall lo 5e
areas: pre-sale^,
stration, and B
ment. Walt D(js
pre-sale men,)(j
weather cruis ^
evalute and laB
sales, sit out
desks making ti^
and writing up gle
ed the ground while Luther did
the recording. Miller handled
fhe tube with gloves so his hand
warmth would not affect the
reading.
After the depth had been
measured, Miller removed the
tube with the core sample inside
and weighed it on a scale
suspended from a ski pole. The
reason for weighing the sample
is to determine the density and
water content of the snow.
When this process has been
completed five times at each
location, and the men are safely
back at Warm Springs, the data
is calledin to the SCS office in
Portland where a report is made
up monthly and sent back to
Warm Springs and all other
recording stations.
Snow surveys provide vital
information showing how much
water can be expected from the
snowpack in the spring and
summer. The purpose is to be
able to determine how much
water there will be for irrigation
purposes and whether flooding is
likely to occur.
The information is utilized
to regulate the water flow at
dams, as well. Depending upon
the projected snowmelt, the
water flow can be decreased or
increased to meet the needs of
power production.
Snow depth data is also of
value to the home builder in
helping determine the pitch of a
roof.
Perhaps because of last
year’s drought, people are be
coming more aware of the
importance of conducting snow
surveys and more and more
interested in the conclusions
which can be drawn from the
data hidden under each winter’s
snowfall.
cutting of the sale. Deepers said
his department has appraised
$12 million worth of timber so
far this winter while staying
nice and dry.
■ Following the guidelines
produced by pre-sale, Bob Bol-
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ton’s timber
sales administra-
tion crews roam the forest
armed with spray paint guns,
marking the trees to be cut by
loggers the next season.
Necks craning, the foresters
train their eyes on foliage, bark
and treeshape to determine the
vitality of the trees in a laid-out
sale. They look for misshapen
boles (trunks), the condition of
tree tops and other outward
signs of disease.
■Blue stripes at eye level and
at the base are painted on the
trunks of those trees that pose a
hsoard or no longer contribute
to the stand. Age is less a factor
than health, said crew member
Les McConnell. Unhealthy trees
will give in to loggers’ saws
when the good weather arrives.
Good silvicultural practices
may not be in the best interest
of poggers, noted McConnell.
Maintaining the delicate bal
ance of the forest and ensuring
itslfuture health may mean
marking trees that are not ideal
for lumber.
A forester trekking through
the woods in winter sees more
than the average person. Bark
rubbed raw by elk’s new horns,
a tall tree “overtopping” a
nearby tree, a trunk healing an
old fire scar, and he can en
vision the forest in thirty years
when entry might again be
made for logging.
In April or May a logging
crew will receive a map and a
list of guidelines and will set off
into the woods in pursuit of blue-
striped trees.
Bill Donaghue’s crews con
cern themselves with timber
»
Mature Douglas Firs, that this winter dwarf forester Les McConnell, will next summer be loaded
onto the bed of a log truck. Blue stripes of paint mark their demise.
CDS Photo
stand improvement. In good
weather that may mean plant
ing or r ehabilitation. In winter it
means the lay-out and super
vision of thinning areas.
This winter eight thinning
outfits, all owned by tribal
members, are braving the snow
and mud to weed out the small
er trees and give the bigger
timber a chance to develop into
Sala swath through a forest thicket, the young firs
falling I* st«ks to make room for other older trees.
Thinnini Amos Switzler’s work year-round but find that
the snov winter slow them down at times.
< CDS Photo
strong healthy stands.
Staying within the ribboned
boundaries, the rugged-looking
thinners sweep through the pre
viously quiet thickets with their
chain saws and mow down any
thing less than 5” in diameter
(hopefully excluding their part
ners’ ankles). A standard 18 feet
must be left between standing
trees but this may vary with
conditions and elevation.
Thinning is a year-round job
but is necessarily slower in
winter. Thinning supervisor Jim
Cranford said that all the crews
were shut down for four or five
days during the first snowstorm
in November. Thinners have
been “snowed out” of the Jef
ferson Creek area since then
and the Camas Prairie area
since December.
When the snow piles up
higher than 12”, chain saw
operators can’t reach their foot-
high mark. Saws stall when
snow gets into the gasoline or
chain. Unsure footing can add
an extra element of danger to
handling a hungry chain saw.
Wind blows the snow or blows
down trees, making the woods
unsafe. A sudden storm could
strand a thinning crew.
Victor Smith has laid off his
crew temporarily due to mud
and snow. It’s not worth the
hassles of getting stuck and
digging out, he said. “You can
only break even,” observed
Smith, “and you can do that by
parking your equipment and
staying home.”
Transportation is also a big
headache for the BIA crews,
according to McConnell.
“Everybody gets stuck at one
time or another,” he remarked.
Pickups are abandoned
where the road is still good and
tracksters are unloaded. Look
ing like little tanks, the amphi
bious vehicles roll across the
surface of the snow, negotiating
the steepest of slopes.
When on foot the foresters
may don snowshoes or if it is too
crusty they may have to simply
wallow in the deep snow “dig
ging post-holes” as they go.
Marking must be curtailed
when the snow falls heavily or a
thick fog settles because the
foliage can’t be examined for
vitality.
Advised forester Arnie
Browning, “Then you’d better
have some office work to do.”
“Everybody gets stuck at one time or another.” A way of life for BIA forestry crews in the winter
woods is digging out pickups, as Arnie Browning, Bill Williams and Jim Strong demonstrate here,
loading and unloading tracksters, and strapping on snowshoes. The transporting of men and equipment
in the winter can take a sizable chunk out of a workday.
CDS Photo