Cottage Grove Sentinel
Recreation & Outdoors
•
SOUTH LANE COUNTY SPORTS AND RECREATION
Calendar
All sporting
activities
at Cottage
Grove, Drain,
Yoncalla and
Elkton
schools have
been
canceled
through
April 28
•
THURSDAY | APRIL 2, 2020
B1
CONTACT SPORTS REPORTER NICK SNYDER AT
942-3325 OR NSNYDER@CGSENTINEL.COM
Reminder: Recreation areas closed to travelers, locals alike
Many of the state’s top federal, state and
local recreation areas are closed to all use fol-
lowing Governor Kate Brown’s Executive Or-
der on Monday, March 23, that prohibits all
non-essential travel. State and county health
officials say that Oregon has reached a criti-
cal moment in the COVID-19 health emer-
gency, when limiting contact between people
can save lives and flatten the infection curve.
All state parks, parts of national forests
and some city recreation areas shuttered
their doors over the past week to reduce
crowds and discourage travel. The closures
also affect local use, and land management
authorities acknowledge this will be frus-
trating. With parks and other public lands
closed, safety-related services like restrooms
are closed and trash collection is suspended,
increasing the risk of injury when a person
visits in violation of the closure.
Local health care professionals are focused
on using resources to prepare for COVID-19
care and cannot afford to spend limited time
and resources on people injured during rec-
reational activities. All use, whether originat-
ing locally or not, is prohibited in a closed
park.
The closures do not yet affect the ocean
beaches, though all state and many federal
and local access points are closed. If prob-
lems arise with people traveling unnecessar-
ily or congregating there, the Oregon Parks
and Recreation Department will reconsider
its current decision for those areas to remain
open.
Some travel is necessary, and state highway
rest areas are open for travel-related needs.
Some parks also serve as rest areas. While
nearly all are available for rest area-type
functions, they are closed to recreation. Some
rest areas may have reduced service or may
be difficult to access. Parks that attract too
many people seeking recreation rather than
rest area services will be closed to all service.
A map of state highway rest areas is avail-
able at TripCheck.com.
People are encouraged to exercise as close
to home as possible, including backyards and
neighborhoods where social distancing is
easier to maintain.
ODFW R EGIONAL F ISHING
R EPORT
www.dfw.state.or.us/RR
FISHING, HUNTING AND
WILDLIFE VIEWING REMAIN
OPEN
Access may be tricky – know
before you go:
Fishing, hunting and wildlife
viewing in Oregon remain open.
However, Oregon State Parks as well
as several cities and counties have
closed parks, boat ramps and other
facilities that could hinder access to
your favorite spots. This list of clo-
sures changes quickly, so it’s a good
idea to call the land manager and
confirm access before you go.
YOU DON’T NEED TO TRAVEL
FAR
Fish, hunt and watch close to
home:
With Governor Brown asking
Oregonians to limit nonessential
travel, this is a good time to explore
your local waters and wild areas.
With hundreds of places to fish in
Oregon, there’s sure to be a place
or two near you, and great bird
watching can be as close as your
own backyard.
Check the zone reports to find a
location near you.
TROUT STOCKING SCHEDULE
OFFLINE
Limiting congestion at stocking
locations:
We have taken down the online
trout stocking schedule in order to
prevent public crowding at water-
bodies when we deliver hatchery
fish. We will continue stocking trout
but we will deliver on a slightly
different schedule and at some
different locations to avoid a rush of
anglers showing up along with the
hatchery truck.
We will continue to stock popular
lakes and ponds as long as people do
their part and continue to use social
distancing. We want to spread out
angling effort in terms of timing and
physical distance between anglers by
not sharing our stocking schedule
with the public. Thank you for
understanding and doing your part
to keep each other safe.
NOTE: Local ODFW offices do
not have access to the trout stocking
schedule either.
COLUMBIA RIVER CLOSES TO
ALL SALMON AND STEELHEAD
FISHING EFFECTIVE THURS-
DAY, MARCH 26 AT 11:59 P.M
This action is taken in response to
the state of Washington’s closure of
all recreational fishing in the state,
including the Columbia River. Ore-
gon and Washington jointly manage
fisheries in the mainstem Columbia
River bordering both states and seek
to have concurrent regulations. At
this time, other ongoing fisheries
in Oregon remain unchanged, and
fishing for species other than salm-
on and steelhead will still be allowed
in Oregon portions of the Columbia
River as described in permanent
rules.
ODFW COVID-19 UPDATES
Find the latest information at
https://myodfw.com/COVID-19.
COURTESY PHOTO
Staying active while social distancing can maintain physical and emotional health.
S TAYING ACTIVE WHILE STAYING AT HOME
B Y C HANTELLE M EYER
For The Sentinel
O
regonians are being
asked to “Stay Home,
Stay Safe” right now.
While many group activities
are being postponed and can-
celed, local personal trainers
are stepping in to keep people
moving.
“Be active and take all the
precautions you can to main-
tain optimum health,” wrote
Coastal Fitness & Aquatics
owners Jim and Deena
Mitchell on www.mycoastal
fitness.com in a letter
announcing the fitness center’s
temporary closure.
American Heart Association
recommends adults get at least
150 minutes of moderate-in-
tensity aerobic activity every
week.
Coastal Fitness’ Facebook
page shows several ways that
people can try “virtual fitness.”
This includes Zumba classes
via YouTube, Pilates lessons
from the beach and potentially
an online yoga class.
In addition, kids and fami-
lies involved in gymnastics are
invited to join the “Coastal
Fitness Gymnastics” group for
stretching and strengthening
techniques.
Additional exercises and
posts from individual teachers
will also be posted throughout
the gym’s closure.
“Please keep moving!” the
Mitchells wrote on Facebook.
“Exercise is the key to reduc-
ing stress and boosting your
immune system. … Please stay
connected and tell us how we
might help you keep moving.”
Other options for people to
keep moving are short walks
around neighborhoods, choos-
ing to bike or walk when they
do go to the store and short
stints of exercising, stretching
or weight-lifting at home.
Tracy L. Merkley, local per-
sonal trainer and author, is
hosting group classes and pri-
vate training sessions via
Zoom Video
Communications, an app for
computer or mobile device
that allows for video confer-
encing. People can purchase
these trainings through www.
tracyspersonaltraining.com.
“I hope everyone is doing
OK with the crazy and tough
world situation,” Markley said
on the “Tracy Markley’s
Fitness” Facebook page. You
all are aware that most fitness
studios had to shut down for a
See ACTIVE 2B
Umpqua National Forest to close all developed recreation sites
The Pacific Northwest Re-
gion of the Forest Service has
authorized the closures of de-
veloped recreation sites across
Oregon and Washington. We
are aligning our operations with
the governor’s stay at home or-
ders in both states.
To align with Gov. Brown’s
executive order directing peo-
ple to stay home to save lives,
the Umpqua National Forest
has temporarily closed all de-
veloped recreation sites, to in-
clude campgrounds, day-use
sites, boat ramps, trailheads,
fire lookouts, and OHV areas.
The closure order is in effect
through September 30, 2020
unless rescinded earlier.
These recreation closures are
necessary to address social dis-
tancing guidelines provided by
the Centers for Disease Control,
align with Oregon State Gover-
nor Kate Brown’s Executive Or-
Athlete of
the Week
der to avoid unnecessary travel,
including travel for recreational
purposes, and reduce pressure
on emergency services in local
communities.
Campsites, fire lookouts, cab-
ins, and picnic site reservations
also are unavailable through
Recreation.gov. Existing reser-
vation holders will be notified if
there are any changes affecting
their reservation. Refunds will
be issued for canceled reserva-
Th is week’s athlete
of the week is CGHS
senior Mitchell Krokus,
the 2019 4A state triple
jump champion, who
won’t get a chance to
defend his crown due
to COVID-19-related
sports cancellations.
tions.
“The health and safety of the
public and employees is our
number one concern,” said Al-
ice Carlton, Umpqua National
Forest Supervisor. “This is fore-
most in our mind as we coor-
dinate with County and State
leadership through this crisis.”
We are continuing Timber
Sales and many other forest ac-
See FOREST 2B
In his fi rst
jump of
the 2019
4A state
triple jump
n, Krokus
leapt out to
a state-win-
ning jump
of 44-04.75
feet.
PHOTO BY ZACH SILVA