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About The Blue Mountain eagle. (John Day, Or.) 1972-current | View Entire Issue (June 23, 2021)
A16 NEWS Blue Mountain Eagle Lookout Wednesday, June 23, 2021 LOOKOUT’S HISTORY DATES TO 1915 Continued from Page A1 making it easier for fi re crews to access remote areas, most lookouts were closed, and many removed. Mount Ireland remains a valu- able cog in the fi re-detection sys- tem in part because of its elevation — if you head west from the peak you won’t hit a higher summit until you get to the Cascades. But its location is also ideal, said McCraw, the fi re management offi cer for the Wallowa-Whitman National Forest’s Whitman District. From Mount Ireland’s summit, the lookout can see swathes of the Wal- lowa-Whitman as well as parts of its neighboring national forests, the Umatilla and Malheur, McCraw said. On especially clear days the views extend east into Idaho and north into Washington. “It’s a pretty critical one,” McCraw said. Mount Ireland also overlooks the municipal watershed for Sumpter, where a wildfi re could threaten the city’s water supply, McCraw said. But of course a lookout is only as eff ective as the person who works there, scanning the hundreds of thou- early 1950s.) The U.S. Geographic Board approved the change, and at some point later the agency went with the current form, Mount Ireland, rather than the original Ireland Mountain. The people charged with managing Northeastern Oregon’s federal forests early on recognized Mount Ireland’s utility as a fi re lookout. Except the peak wasn’t called Mount Ireland then. The fi rst lookout structure, a simple cabin with a fl at roof to facilitate the lookout’s work, was built in 1916. A cupola was added to the cabin in 1928, according to contemporary newspaper reports. According to Ray Kresek’s comprehensive book, “Fire Lookouts of Oregon and Washington,” on Aug 28, 1915, just a decade after the Forest Service was created, agency employees Charles F. Groom and C.C. Davenport climbed the mountain and estab- lished a “rag” camp on the white granitic boulders that make up its summit. The original cabin was removed in 1957 and re- placed by the current lookout — a much different structure made of steel with the expansive glass windows typical of lookouts. At that time it was called Bald Mountain. On Jan. 25, 1917, the Oregon Geographic Board petitioned the federal government to rename Bald Mountain as Ireland Mountain. The honoree was not the island off the west coast of England, but a man — the late Henry Ireland, former supervisor of the Whitman National Forest, which includes his name- sake peak, who died May 31, 1916. (The Wallowa and Whitman national forests were combined in the sands of acres where a fi re could start. And for the past two years, McCraw has had to scramble to hire someone for the position, which pays about $16.90 per hour. In 2020, Mount Ireland’s longtime lookout wasn’t able to return to the lofty perch, but McCraw had a fair Unlike many lookouts, which are perched atop a tower to get above nearby trees, Mount Ireland needs no such artifi cial means. Besides being the tallest point in the vicinity, the mountain’s summit is bare stone, the only trees being whitebark pines stunt- ed by the nearly arctic climate and frequent strong winds. — Jayson Jacoby amount of time to fi nd a replacement. Typically the lookout doesn’t start work at Mount Ireland until late June or early July, when most of the snow has melted and the wildfi re risk begins to rise. This spring McCraw’s challenge was even more acute. The lookout he had enlisted for the job backed out late in May. Then someone suggested to McCraw that he explain his dilemma to associations of fi re lookout enthusi- asts, of which there are several. The Oregon Fire Lookouts posted about the situation on its Facebook page on June 4. McCraw said he has had a “very good response” from the post, and several candidates have been in touch. McCraw said on June 9 that he will be able to fi ll the vacancy in time to have Mount Ireland staff ed. The person he hires will have an interesting summer, to be sure. Mount Ireland is pretty remote even by look- out standards. You can’t drive to the peak. The roughly 3 1/2-mile hiking trail off sets its modest distance with a sig- nifi cant elevation gain of 2,300 feet — roughly equivalent to climbing the Astoria Column about 18 times. (Except without stairs.) The nearest settlement is Gran- ite, about 8 miles from the trailhead. Sumpter is about 15 miles. McCraw said the Forest Service each year hires a helicopter crew to haul in water, propane and other sup- plies to the lookout. A technician checks the radio equipment on the peak, which includes an antenna and a repeater. The Mount Ireland lookout usually works until mid to late September, depending on the weather. Snowstorms are possible in any month at that elevation, but McCraw said in some years dry weather per- sists into October so the lookout stays on duty through deer season. Act Continued from Page A1 EOMG fi le photo U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden ers Act to go after public lands grazing. “That’s a great concern ... because it’s such a vital part of a small agricultural community,” he said. Stern said the bill, on page 16, reads: “Nothing in this Act or an amendment made by this Act aff ects any valid existing right.” He said, farther down the page, on line seven, it goes on to say “nothing abrogates any existing right, privilege or con- tract aff ecting federal land held by any private party without the consent of that party.” Another concern many had during the meeting is that the new bill will impact exist- ing Wild and Scenic Rivers or change their management. In an email to the soil and water district that was shared with the Eagle, Wyden’s fi eld representative Kathleen Cathey wrote that administration of Oregon Wild and Scenic Riv- ers applies only to rivers and streams designated as Wild and Scenic under this act. Many in the soil and water district meeting had concerns that others nominated these rivers, and locals didn’t have a voice. Cathey said that was her fault in the email. “I’m sorry for not reach- ing out proactively,” she said. “The door is open now.” Stern said many river seg- ments were nominated and supported by ranchers. Amy Stiner, South Fork John Day Watershed Coun- cil coordinator, noted that the current designations require more permitting to remove juniper from private lands. Additionally, Stiner said, the current legislation has been used as an “excuse” to inhibit necessary restoration along the South Fork of the John Day River. “We are concerned that adding designations of this sort to streams, rivers or land in general will add restric- tions for managing enti- ties,” she said, “private lands included.” This, she said, could hinder the multiple-use goal of the public lands. An additional question the group had was the reason for increasing the stream buf- fer from a quarter-mile to a The most valuable and respected source of local news, advertising and information for our communities. S246280-1 Under the bill’s provisions, Stern said, the federal land manager would be mandated to enter into agreements with state and local governments to help fi ght fi res and establish a forest restoration grant pro- gram should fi re burn within a Wild and Scenic River corridor. Keerins asked who would be involved in creating the plan. “Will this be a collaborative eff ort between agricultural pro- ducers and the public land man- agers?” she asked. “Will this be a blanket management plan fur- ther restricting our rural way of life?” Stern said that local commu- nities and those interested in the process are vital in developing a river management plan. They help with data collec- tion, establish baseline condi- tions and identify issues and opportunities that need to be addressed in the planning pro- cess, Stern said. He said that local commu- nities monitor and implement aspects of the plan. Stern said sections 10(e) and 11(b)(1) of the Wild and Sce- nic Rivers Act encourages the participation of federal, state or local governments, landowners, private organizations and citi- zens in planning, protecting and administering rivers. Kyle Sullivan, director of the Grant Soil and Water Con- servation District, said environ- mental groups have used the current Wild and Scenic Riv- half-mile. According to Cathey, this will allow for more fuel reduction and prescribed fi re to reduce wildfi re risk and improve habitat. The group also asked if there were measures to restrict litigation. According to Cathey’s email, “Senator Wyden has never been open to barring the courthouse door. This plan allows local stakeholders to help write the river management plans and establish the outstanding remarkable values.” Sullivan said the district is still in the “conversation stage” and does not have an offi cial opinion on the pro- posed legislation. “I think we’re still trying to fi gure out what everyone’s trying to do and what fl exibil- ity is there,” he said. Others, such as Grant County producer Rick Hens- ley, are worried about the unintended consequences of the bill. Cathey said in the email that his con- cerns are “absolutely understood.” Stiner said she is “looking forward to learning more.” “This bill begins the dis- cussion,” Stern said. “Our offi ce is still inviting com- ments and modifi cations to the legislation and the seg- ments proposed by Orego- nians throughout the state.” The Senate Commit- tee on Energy and Natural Resources is scheduled to hold a hearing on the bill Wednesday, June 23. Sullivan said the soil and water district will discuss the bill at its meeting July 1. Cathey said comments would be accepted until sometime in July. Debbie Ausmus 245 South Canyon Blvd. John Day, OR 97845 OPEN WED. & THUR. 9 am - 5 pm 137 E. 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