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The INDEPENDENT, August 2, 2000
Th,
INDEPENDENT
Serving the upper Nehalem River valley. Published twice
monthly, on the first and third Wednesdays of each
month, by Public Opinion Laboratory Ltd., 725 Bridge
Street, Vernonia, OR 97064, as a free newspaper. Edi
tors and Publishers, Dirk & Noni Andersen. Phone/Fax:
(503) 429-9410, e-mail: noni@vernonia.com
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Opinion
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Jamboree is fun with
a little common sense
Jamboree is always fun, but it can easily be ruined
when folks forget that the purpose is to enjoy the
events and the other people. The first Jamboree, 44
years ago, was a reunion for all the people who left
Vernonia when their jobs disappeared with the closure
of the big saw mill. It was meant to be a happy event
with lots of reminiscing and a big get-together.
Times have changed sufficiently so that a lot of peo
ple now “get together” on the telephone or via e-mail.
But that really changes the -dynamics of group interac
tion and, it seems, that we sometimes forget how to
act with consideration for strangers. Of course,
strangers are only people we haven’t gotten to know
yet, but we have to remember that fact.
Enjoy Jamboree. If there are events you haven’t yet
taken time to see, try them this year. Visit the horse
show, or the fishing derby, or the Alternative Stage, or
the worship service or the fast draw competition, or
whatever you may not be really familiar with. Have
breakfast at the Senior Center and talk with whoever
happens to sitting near you. It won’t hurt you; you may
learn something and, who knows, you may enjoy it.
Citizens needed for city
council and school board
City elections are coming up in November and it
would be great to have several people on the ballot for
the three positions in Vernonia and four positions in
Banks. Having choices is an important element in hav
ing good government on any level.
Because of a school board member moving out of
town, a vacancy also exists on the Vernonia School
Board. That position will be filled by appointment —
but only if there is someone to appoint.
Forms for the council positions can be picked up at
your City Hall. For the school board vacancy, stop by
the 47J district office to pick up an application.
The pay on these jobs is nonexistent but, if you
spend much time wondering why things run the way
they do, you’ll really have the opportunity to learn.
Conversely, if you think things aren’t being run right
and you feel that you have valuable insight or experi
ence to bring to local government, it’s a waste of time
to simply point your finger at “them.” If you think
there’s a problem, get involved and become part of the
solution.
Please don't drink
and drive. Neither
ja ils nor hospitals
are enjoyable.
W T Î]
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V a t]
Iks Says. . .
By Dale Webb, member
Izaak Walton League, Nehalem
Valley Chapter
The wind was blowing in our
faces as Troy Horton and I
paddled through the increasing
waves on the final leg of our
100-mile kayak trip down the
Nehalem River. Troy and I initi
ated our journey down the Ne
halem in April and, since then,
have systematically been pad
dling ten mile segments, begin
ning where the last segment
ended. With water starting to
run low, we finally completed
our last two descents. Starting
at the mouth of the Salmonber-
ry river, we paddled about a
quarter of a mile, then pulled
out to look at the Salmonberry
Drop, or “Suicide Rapids" as
the locals call it. I had scouted
this falls about a month earlier
and thought it was runable, but
Troy and I took one look at it
with this lower water flow and
said “No way!” Large boulders
formed a severe pinning haz
ard, so we made the first
portage of our trip. A few rapids
downstream, we had to make
another portage around a boul
der fence guarding the en
trance to a good set of rapids. I
managed my first small seal
launch (launching yourself
from dry land into the water)
so I could ride the best part of
these rapids. The water in this
stretch of the river is a lot
steeper and confined in rocky
slots. I definitely had butterflies
in my stomach on several oc
casions on this trip. Rapids
were numerous as we contin
ued downstream through gi
gantic boulders and small
drops. We both managed to
stay upright on this leg, but the
water was some of the tough
est we had experienced so far.
I was glad that I had purchased
a shorter white water boat,
which was far more maneuver-
able than my sea kayak. We
pulled out at the state camp
ground at Nehalem Falls. This
is a very nice campground with
tent sites and parking for RVs.
Nehalem Falls can be run, but
a paddler should have good
boating skills and experience
before tackling it.
Our last leg of the 100 mile
journey started just down
stream of Nehalem Falls and
the concrete bridge over the
Nehalem River. This section of
river had a few good rapids,
but nothing like the twenty
miles upstream. Soon the river
became flatter and I was glad I
had brought my sea kayak for
this part of the trip. Troy and I
enjoyed watching two bald ea
gles swooping down on ducks
as they fled downstream
ahead of us. The eagles never
made an earnest attempt at
catching a duck, but the crow
that was harassing the eagles
never got too close to the ea
gles either. Rounding a curve
in the river, we could see a
large group of young adults
standing on a bluff. When we
got closer, Troy took a picture
of one of the brave young men
as he showed us his diving
skills after climbing up to the
top of a tree high up on the
bluff. The drop was close to 50
feet, and he made a perfect
head first dive just in front of
our kayaks. The river soon be
came tidally influenced. We
had timed the tide just right, as
it was starting to run out and
we were quickly paddling
downstream at close to four
miles per hour. The lower river
is highly developed with
streamside houses and boat
docks. Many houses were in
the process of being lifted for
higher foundations, surely an
aftereffect of the flood of ‘96.
We were paddling by a dock
when one of the landowners
sitting in his easy chair spotted
us and invited us to share a
beer with him.
looked at each other and said,
“Sure.” We had a great chat
and learned how high the wa
ter was in ‘96. We also learned
to steer clear of the domestic
geese that were honking at us
from the other side of the river;
it seems they like to attack
boats. Leaving our new ac
quaintance, we braved the at
tack geese and headed toward
the junction of the North Fork
of the Nehalem River, which
entered from our right about
half-a-mile ahead. Just as I
was pointing out the mouth of
the North Fork to Troy, a kayak
emerged out of it. I asked Troy
if he thought this was a wel
coming party for us, and he
thought not. Our boats were
evidently a little faster than our
new companions, and soon we
were conversing with some of
them as we passed through
their midst. They were day
renters from the paddle center
at Wheeler. Troy and I missed
the turn to go around a mid
channel island, which would
have let us pass right in front of
the town of Nehalem. Who
knows, maybe we would have
gotten another free beer?
Troy’s wife, Helen, soon came
into sight as she waved to us
from the pier at the county boat
launch. We had traveled about
thirteen miles and my arms
were starting to get a little tired
as we ran our boats up onto
the concrete boat launch, our
odyssey was over, we had sur
vived the mighty Nehalem with
only one casualty, a lost
sponge. We have seen a side
of the Nehalem River many will
never experience. We have
traveled through the slow up*
per reach of farms and forest,
through the Elsie/Vinemaple
summer homes, then into the
almost wilderness-like canyon
from Spruce Run campground
Please see page 3