Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About The Blue Mountain eagle. (John Day, Or.) 1972-current | View Entire Issue (July 6, 2016)
A8 Blue Mountain Eagle Wednesday, July 6, 2016 JULY 2016 The pull of electronic games and social media is overwhelming, and at times, it seems impossible to get your family (and yourself) to look up from your phone to enjoy quality time with your loved ones. Add to that the importance of staying active, and it can seem like quite the mountain to climb. Luckily, summer offers several opportunities to have fun with your family, while also getting everyone moving and active. As an added bonus, you’ll get quality bonding time and create memories with your brothers, sisters, kids and/ or spouse—something you’ll appreciate now and in the years to come. So pry away the phones and game controllers, grab your family, and get out of your house to try these summer activities for family fun… HIKING An easy and wallet-friendly way to get out of the house and have fun with your family is to go hiking. Head to your local trails or forested park and spend the morning or afternoon hiking. Your whole family will get some much-needed cardio exercise, and at the same time, enjoy nature and its refreshing effects. Pack a simple picnic of sandwiches, fruit and water, and bring a bug, bird, plant or animal guide to identify things you come across on the hike—this is especially fun and educational for children. Local Trails For more information on trails: www.gcoregonlive.com Malheur Nation Forest (541) 575-3000 or Prairie City Ranger District (541) 820-3800 Arch Rock Trail - 0.3 miles in length. Trailhead at the junction of Forest Service Road 3650-428 Classification: Easy Joaquin Miller Trail - 0.6 miles in length. Trailhead is located on Forest Service Road 6510 Classification: Difficult Malheur Rail Trail - 12.5 miles in length. Trailhead is located on Forest Service Road 1600097 Classification: Difficult Malheur River Trail - 7.6 miles in length. Trailhead is located at the end of the 142 road Classification: Difficult North Fork Malheur Trail - 12.4 miles in length. Trailhead is located 3 miles up Forest Service Road 1675 Classification: Easy Road’s End Trail - 1.5 miles in length. Trailhead located 11 miles up Forest Service Road 1640 Classification: Easy Strawberry Wilderness Trailhead - Located 11 miles N. Prairie City on Forest Service Road 6001 Classification: Easy to Moderate SWIMMING Whether it’s a pool, pond, or beach, swimming is an ideal way to fit in fun exercise. Swimming has many benefits, from improving flexibility and increasing muscle tone to strengthening the heart and relieving stress. As a family, depending on where you’re swimming, you can play a lot of games in the water. In the pool, you can dive for items or race with laps. At a beach or somewhere that you can stand, you can play catch with a water ball, Frisbee, or football. If a beach has waves, jumping in them, trying to balance on a raft, or simply staying upright is fun and active for everyone. Of course, children should be supervised and have life jackets when appropriate. John Day Canyon City Parks and Recreation Gleason Pool 541-575-9930 The following website lists information for Gleason Pool, Football, Volleyball, Soccer, Basketball, Baseball and the Daddy Daughter Dance. jdccparksandrec@weebly.com MUSEUMS & MONUMENTS John Day Fossil Beds National Monument Dewitt Museum at Depot Park (541) 987-2333 32651 HWY 19 Kimberly, OR 97848 www.nps.gov/joda A host of activities available: the museum at Sheep Rock, trails at the Painted Hills or viewing plant fossils in the ground at the Clarno unit by Fossil. Trails available. Open daily, year round, except Federal holidays, between Thanksgiving and Presidents Day. (541) 820-3605 or (541) 820-3330 425 South Main St Prairie City, OR 97869 Built in 1920 and once the western terminal for the Sumpter Valley Railroad, houses 10 rooms of pioneer memorabilia from Grant County’s early days. Open: Mid May-Mid October Wed-Sun 10:00 to 5:00pm Admission: $3.00 / Children 9 and under free Grant County Genealogical Society (541) 575-2757 or (541) 932-4718 281 W. Main John Day, OR 97845 The Grant County Genealogical Society has a research center in the old parsonage building behind the Historic Advent Church on West Main Street. Information is available at the Research Center including cemetery books, obituaries, marriages, births, old atlases and local family histories. Open: 1:00pm to 4:00pm Thursday-Friday and 10:00am to 4:00pm Saturdays and by appointment Grant County Historical Museum Admission: Free Kam Wah Chung Heritage Site & Museum Oregon Parks & Recreation (541) 575-2800 125 NW Canton John Day, OR 97845 www.oregonstateparks.org/park_8.php Once it was a general store, a doctor’s office, a post office, a library and a center of Chinese social and religious life, now it is a State Heritage site and museum–one of the most unusual you will find anywhere. Open: May 1-October 31 7 days a week from 9:00am-5:00pm Tours start at the top of each hour. Admission: Free, Children must be accompanied by an adult. (541) 575-0362 101 S Canyon Blvd Canyon City, OR 97820 The museum exhibits include a focus on the lives of the pioneers who first came to the area, the Joaquin Miller Cabin and the jail from the town of Greenhorn. Open: May 1- September 30 Monday-Saturday 9:00am to 4:30pm Admission: Adults $4.00 / Children 7-17 years $2.00 Seniors $3.50 / Children 6 and under free FISHING Magone Lake Grant County Ranch & Rodeo Museum Lakes/Ponds (541) 820-3624 or (541) 575-0747 241 E Main St John Day, OR 97820 This museum captures the legacy of American cowboys, past and present. The entire museum collection of photos, tools and literature chronicles cowboy lifestyle in the best and the worst of times. Open: May 1-September 30 Thursday-Saturdays 10 am to 4 pm Admission: Adults $3.00 / Children under 7 free Bull Prairie Reservoir 26 miles N of John Day on Forest road 3620 Camping Fee $13 Long Creek Historical Society (541) 421-3621 Long Creek, OR 97856 The Long Creek Historical Society is a nonprofit corporation, striving to relocate the fort built by settlers during the Bannock Indian War of 1878, and build a permanent interpretive center. 10 miles N of Spray on Highway 204 Cavender Reservoir Elk Creek 25 miles SE of Prairie City on forest Road 16. No Fee Frazier 20 miles SW of Dayville on Forest Road 5800-500. Fee $10 Lone Pine 1.5 miles NE of Kimberly on co. road 402. Fee $8 Magone Lake 26 miles N of John Day on forest Road 3620. Fee $13 Middle Fork Nine miles NW of Austin Junction on Co. Road 20. Fee $8 Murray 21 miles E of Seneca on Forest Road 924. Fee $8 North Fork Malheur 29 miles SE of Prairie City on forest road 1675. No Fee East of Prairie City 1 Olive Lake Holliday Park Pond 26 miles SE of Dale on Forest Road 10 ⁄ 2 mile W of Monument ⁄ 2 mile W of Mt. Vernon 1 Long Creek Pond Four miles W of Long Creek CAMPING Big Bend 3 miles NE of Kimberly on Hwy 19. Fee $5 Big Creek 21 miles E of Seneca on forest road 815. Fee $8 Billy Fields 20 miles SW of John Day on forest Road 21. No Fee Canyon Meadows 20 miles SE of John Day on forest Road 1520. Fee $8 Crescent 17 miles SE of Prairie City on Co. Road 62. Deerhorn Four miles NW of Austin Junction on Co. Road 20. Fee $8 Dixie Eight miles NE of Prairie City on U.S. Hwy 26. Fee $8 McHaley Pond Prairie City Trout Farm Pond 14 miles SE of Prairie City on County Road 62 CCS Changing Lives NO COST SCREENING High Quality Services Include: Mental Health Alcohol and Drug Developmental Disability 528 E. Main • John Day • 541-575-1466 Oregon Mine 26 miles SW of John Day on forest Road 2170. No Fee Parish Cabin 11 miles E of Seneca on Forest Road 1520. Fee $8 Slide Creek Nine miles S of Prairie city on Forest Road 6001. No Fee Starr 16 miles S of John Day on Hwy 395. Fee $6 Strawberry 11 miles S of Prairie City on Forest Road 6001. Fee $8 Trout Farm 15 miles SE of Prairie City on Co. Road 6001. Fee $8 Wickiup 18 miles S.E. of John Day on Forest road 15. Fee $8 Local Information was taken from the Grant County Healthy Living Resource Guide - PRINTED JANUARY 2014 03908