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About The Columbia press. (Astoria, Or.) 1949-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 15, 2021)
8 The Columbia Press January 15, 2021 This weekend and beyond Lecture features personality from expedition era A state park ranger and historian will tell the story Aaron Webster of George Ramsay, a Native American who lived near the mouth of the Columbia Riv- er 200 years ago, during this month’s installment of the “In Their Footsteps” lecture series. “End of the Stone Age: George Ramsay” is the title of Aaron Webster’s talk. It is scheduled live at 1 p.m. Sun- day, Jan. 17, on YouTube (go to YouTube.com and search for Lewis and Clark nhp). The online event is spon- sored by the Lewis & Clark National Park Association. Webster, who works at Cape Disappointment State Park, has worked at the Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center for 18 years. He has a passion for using storytelling to illumi- nate the lesser-known history of our region. His presentation tells the story of Ramsay, born in the late 1700s and whose father may have been a European sailor. He had interaction with members of the Lewis and Clark Expedition and, by some accounts, lived long enough to meet the Wilkes Expedition in 1841. His story illustrates how the fur trade era was tragic when viewed from the perspective of local tribes. For more information, call 503-861-2471. State parks changes reservation window Oregon Parks and Rec- reation Department began accepting new reservations from one day to six months out on Thursday. The change is the latest step in managing future reserva- tions during the COVID-19 pandemic, parks officials said. Early last summer, the reservation booking window temporarily changed from one day to two weeks, then to 30 days, while the agency slowly re-opened camping af- ter a two-month closure. In normal times, the reser- vation window is one day to nine months. “A shorter reservation window helps us deal with the uncertainty posed by state management of the COVID-19 emergency, and the financial hit of changing, canceling and refunding res- ervations,” said Lisa Sump- tion, parks director. State parks are funded by revenue from park visitors, the Oregon Lottery, and a portion of state recreational A campsite at Memaloose State Park near Mosier, which overlooks the Columbia River. The campground opens for the season on March 1 and reserva- tions can be made now. Courtesy Oregon State Parks vehicle registrations. “Although revenue stopped during the two-month clo- sure and continues to be less than what we’ve earned in past years, we’ve adjusted our operations and now are com- fortable extending the reser- vation booking window,” she said. “All of us extend a heartfelt thank you to our visitors as we continue to evaluate our operations to better serve campers and day-use visitors as we head into the spring and summer.” In addition to the reserva- tion booking window change, all new campsite, yurt and cabin openings become avail- able at 6 a.m. each day rather than at midnight. This minor change is being made to im- prove customer service. All available sites will be marked with an “A” at 6 a.m. each day. More changes to the reser- vation window are possible as the year goes on. Oregon State Parks reser- vations are accepted online, and by phone at 800-452- 5687, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. week- days except holidays.