The independent., October 01, 2009, Image 1

PRESORTED STANDARD
U.S. Postage Paid
Vernonia, OR 97064
Permit No. 37
Vol. 24, No. 19
“Voice of the Upper Nehalem River Valley”
October 1, 2009
A chinook salmon works hard to get to its spawning bed. This one came more than 80 miles
up the Nehalem River, then continued up Rock Creek, where this photo caught its efforts near
the swimming pool.
Don’t harass spawning salmon Reappraisals set
The opportunity to watch
Chinook Salmon returning to
their place of birth to lay eggs
for the next generation of
Salmon is almost universally
considered to be awe-inspiring.
Watching is fine, but it’s very
important that the Salmon not
be touched. Each Salmon has
traveled over 90 miles from the
Pacific Ocean, through low and
warm waters, to reach their
spawning beds.
The trip, plus the physical
toll of making between 5,000
and 8,000 eggs, stresses the
resources of the fish. Additional
stress from being touched,
having rocks thrown at them,
being poked with sticks, or in
any way being harassed, can
lead to what’s called “pre-
spawn mortality,” the term for
fish that die from being over-
stressed before they can
spawn.
In 2006, Assistant District
Fish Biologist, Chris Knutsen,
with the Oregon Department of
Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) in
Tillamook, said, “There are
usually only enough surviving
Salmon returning to replace
their parents. It’s real important
to leave them alone and let
them spawn.” Knutsen went on
to say that Salmon stay in the
ocean for two to seven years
(the average is four to five) and
only a handful manage to sur-
vive to return and spawn.
Another reason to leave
Salmon alone is that Wildlife
Harassment, can be punish-
able by a fine of $300. Enjoy
the sight, but do not touch.
See page 15 for information
on Salmon Poisoning disease
in dogs.
Fund Raiser for
Darrold Mushatt
Kidney Transplant
Fund Raiser for Darrold
Mushatt Kidney Transplant.
Eat at the Blue House
restaurant on October 11,
from 4:00 p.m. to closing. Or-
der your favorite menu item
and the proceeds will go to
the transplant fund.
for valley areas
The Columbia County As-
sessor’s Office is in the pro-
cess of reappraising all resi-
dential, farm and forest proper-
ties in the rural Vernonia area,
Mist and Birkenfeld for the
2010-11 tax roll. The last time
most of these properties were
physically inspected was in
1989-90. Appraisers will be
verifying the physical condition
of buildings and accessories
and any additions or deletions
since it was last inspected.
Most of the inspections will be
conducted from the exterior of
the property and the appraiser
will attempt to contact property
owners only to verify substan-
tial changes to the property.
See Appraisals page 5
Vernonia
Salmon Festival
Saturday, Oct. 3
10 AM to 6 PM
Hawkins Park
An unidentified visitor takes a close look at one quilt among
the myriad available at St. Mary’s Quilt Sale.
Casey and Kyle will entertain you
Starting with this issue, on
page 17, you’ll find a new fea-
ture: Casey and Kyle (CK) is a
self-syndicated comic strip ap-
pearing both in print and on the
web. Since its debut in Febru-
ary of 2008, it has been select-
ed as two-time Editors Pick by
Comicsherpa.com (your guide
to undiscovered comics) and
has been hailed as “reminis-
cent of Charles Schulz’s clas-
sic, Peanuts” (Newberg Graph-
ic). The first collection of CK
strips is now available in book
form.
Casey and Kyle is written
and drawn by Will Robertson.
Robertson enjoys playing mu-
sic and working on his tennis
serve. His favorite beverage is
an iced tea with no lemon. He
loves tacos and panini sand-
wiches and is fond of road trips.
He lives with his wife and two
children (not named Casey and
Kyle) in Oregon’s Willamette
Valley. His house is yellow.
For more information on
Casey and Kyle, including an
introduction to each character,
go to caseyandkylecomics.com
Banks schools schedule Blood Drive
There will be a Red Cross
Blood Drive at Banks schools
on Wednesday, October 7,
from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
Call 503-324-2281 for more
information.