The INDEPENDENT, November 15, 2000
Page 13
to document reservoir cleaning project
By Noni Andersen
As a concern, it isn’t on the
top ten list for most people,
but even the best kept reser
voirs accumulate some sedi
ment and must be cleaned
from time to time. That is why
people driving by Vernonia’s
Stoney Point Reservoir in
early October might have
seen what appeared to be a
diver on top of the reservoir.
It was no mirage, it really
was a diver, in full gear.
ing water, the diver’s one-
piece dry suit, plus the hoses
and any other equipment that
would come in contact with
the water, had all been de
contaminated with a bleach
solution.
A helmet-mounted under
water camera, complete with
lights, recorded what could
be seen. Harvey, who had
two-way
communications
with the van, supplied a com
mentary for further clarifica
tion. “The flakes you see are
bits of corrosion off the lad
der," he said, while descend
ing the ladder with the vacu
um hose.
The diver was Mark Har
vey, one of three employees
of Hydrotech Tech Interna
tional who came to Vernonia
from Port Townsend, Wash.,
To keep the diver’s hose
to clean and inspect the and the vacuum hose from
reservoir. Assisting Harvey stirring up sediment, floats
were Chad Masi and Chris are used to suspend them in
Green. Masi stayed on top of the water. Before stepping
the reservoir to tend hoses, onto the bottom of the reser
supply equipment to the diver voir, Harvey vacuumed a
and generally keep an eye on space around the ladder, also
the operation. Green, who to keep from disturbing the
usually dives, was inside the sediment
audio/video-equipped
van
“The interior may be gunit
watching, listening and taping
ed,” he observed, adding lat
the procedure.
er that some of the concrete
After inspecting the exteri was sloughing off and settling
or of the concrete structure, on the bottom along the
including the observation that walls. Approxim ately three
moss was forming on the top, inches of “light, silty sedi
Harvey donned the diving ment” on the bottom was vac
gear and, using the built-in uumed out through a hose
metal ladder, descended into that went up over the top and
the interior through a 24-inch down the side, emptying into
by 48-inch hatch. Because a natural drainage area out-
the reservoir contains drink-
Mark Harvey, in diving gear, and Chad Masi make preparations to start an inspection of the
interior of the Stoney Point reservoir. The large hose on the left is a vacuum hose that will
remove sediment from the bottom of the reservoir.
side the reservoir. The vacu
um couldn’t remove old weld
ing rods, left from the installa
tion of the ladder and hatch,
which could also be seen on
the bottom.
When the Hydrotech crew
left Vernonia, a couple of
dayslater, they also left a
videotape of the job with the
C ity’s public works depart
ment. It’ll never be a top box
office draw, but it’s a lot bet
ter than trying to guess what
shape the reservoir is in.
Book tells story of building a railroad from Hillsboro to Tillamook
The town of Timber was just beginning its growth spurt in this photo from The Saga of Pacific Railway &
Navigation Co. Photos of Buxton, Timber and Cochran are both surprising and fascinating.
By Noni Andersen
Paul Clock grew up in For
est Grove and started doing
historical research in earnest
as a student at Pacific Univer
sity. He also discovered that he
had difficulty staying in the
classroom when there were
mountains and streams calling
him.
When Clock became inter
ested in the history of the Pa
Copies of Punk, rotten & Nasty are available at $29.95
from The INDEPENDENT, 725 Bridge Street, Vernonia.
To order by mail, send a check or money order for $29.95
plus $4.00 shipping and handling to: Corbett Press, P.O. Box
80343, Portland, OR 97280.
Call 503-452-5358 for more information.
cific Railway & Navigation Co.,
he didn’t know how many years
he would invest in the story.
Nicknamed Punk, Rotten and
Nasty because of the compa
ny’s initials, the line is now
known as the Port of Tillamook
Bay Railroad.
Some twenty years after
starting, Clock has produced a
fascinating tale that began, for
him, on hunting and fishing
trips with his father in the Coast
Range drainages of the Tillam
Paul and Elizabeth Clock have self-published
the “coffee table” book filled with historical
photos of the PR&N railroad construction., in
order to keep costs down and make the book
available to more people.
ook and Nehalem Bays.
Photos of early settlements
and huge trees are fairly com
mon in many collections, but
this book stands out for the
range of the photographs.
Many of the most magnificant
show incredible detail of the
engineering and constuction
that were involved in spanning
rivers, streams and canyons as
the railroad crossed the Coast
Range.
Maps, quotes and Clock’s
own narrative add to the detail
and authenticity of this tale of
man’s quest to push his own
limits farther and farther. The
book is totally enjoyable and
sometimes awesome.
Punk, Rotten and Nasty is a
must for many people, but es
pecially for northwest railroad
buffs. The book is well worth
the $29.95 being charged-just
enough to cover the costs of
publication.