On Mount Hood Events
It’s shaping up to be a busy season of books around here, with On Mount Hood scheduled for five events in the next few weeks. There’s one slideshow, a couple big author/artist festivals, a Friday night art walk, and a 30% off sale at a great college bookstore. Surely one of them will help check a name or two off your Christmas list . . .
Book signing, 12-4 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 19, at the Audubon Society of Portland’s annual Wild Arts Fesitval.
Book signing, 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 1, at The Willamette Store’s annual book blowout in Salem.
Book signing, 6:30-9 p.m. Friday, Dec. 2, at Chapters Books and Coffee during First Friday Art Walk in Newberg.
Book signing, noon to 4 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 4, at The Oregon Historical Society’s Holiday Cheer author celebration in downtown Portland.
Slideshow, 7 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 7, at The Mazamas in southeast Portland.
Mount Hood questions — and answers
Every time I give a slideshow or presentation about On Mount Hood — the next one’s coming up on Saturday, Nov. 19 — I get some questions near the end. A lot of them I have answers to; some take a little more digging, and still others find me punting altogether or simply admitting that I have no clue.
My ultimate goal is to be able to answer any question about Mount Hood or, at least, On Mount Hood, that comes my way. That’s a steep goal, considering just how much material Mount Hood, the mountain, encompasses. But to me, it’s also a fascinating goal worth pursuing.
A few questions from recent events:
Q: What does Wy’east mean?
A: The mountain’s modern name, Mount Hood, comes from an Englishman, Samuel Hood, who never saw the mountain and who actually fought against the United States during the Revolutionary War. William Broughton, a member of an expedition under the command of Captain George Vancouver, is credited with naming the mountain after admiral Hood in 1792. But for hundreds of years before that, many Native Americans who lived in the area supposedly called the mountain Wy’east. Lewis McArthur’s invaluable Oregon Geographic Names, says that Wy’east does not appear in any available books on on native dialects of the area, but the term nonetheless found its way into Native American folklore. Nobody seems to know exactly what the word Wy’east means, but according to the lore of the Klickitat tribe, who lived along the north shore of the Columbia River, Wy’east was one of the mythical sons of the Great Spirit. He got into a massive and fiery fight with his brother, Pahto, over a beauty named Loowit. Their battle scorched the land and so infuriated their father that he turned all three into volcanic peaks: Loowit is Mount Saint Helens, Pahtoh is Mount Adams, and Wy’east is Mount Hood.
Q: What’s so bad about the fact that the glaciers on Mount Hood are shrinking?
Courtesy of the Mazamas
A: In the very near term, maybe not much. But if global warming continues on pace and the scientific models play out they way geologists suppose they may, glacial shrinkage on Mount Hood could have some very noticeable effects. Shrinking glaciers mean less water to irrigate orchards in the Hood River Valley. The ice that currently blankets the mountain also helps cement its unstable volcanic mass together. Less ice holding Hood together means more landslides, erosion and flooding, which already comes into play whenever Highway 35 washes out on the mountain’s east side. Mountain maps are already highly inaccurate because they depict glacial coverage that simply doesn’t exist anymore, which can be challenging for climbers and other folks working their way up or around the mountain. And as the temperatures rise, so do the snow levels. Eventually, Hood’s renowned ski and snowboard industry could feel a mighty pinch.
Q: What kind of skis do you use?
A: Rentals. (See the “Down the Hill Chapter” of On Mount Hood.)
Q: What’s the latest on the Cooper Spur land swap?
A: At present, the Forest Service is reportedly moving slowly through the process that will likely approve a swap of 770 acres of land owned by Mt. Hood Meadows on the north side of the mountain for about 120 acres of developable property in Government Camp. The swap, which is dependent upon environmental reviews, appraisals and other considerations, will ultimately protect the acreage on the north side of the mountain from development and will give Meadows the opportunity to develop land in Government Camp. The original timeline for the process appears to have extended past its deadline, but last I was told, the process is still moving forward, albeit slowly.
Picking books
It had been a while since I’d stopped in my favorite book store, Powell’s City of Books, so I dropped in today after a meeting for work. In addition to some browsing, I picked up a couple new books. One, Bruce Cameron’s A Dog’s Purpose, has been repeatedly recommended by some trusted sources. The other, Andrew Krivak’s The Sojourn, I grabbed on impulse after hearing an engaging interview with the author on my way to Powell’s. I considered some of Jim Harrison’s novels too, after reading a profile of him in the latest issue of Outside magazine, but I had to draw the line somewhere.
Before leaving, I of course had to scan Powell’s Oregon section and the mountaineering section. Glad I did.
Last leg: the Sandy River and Lost Lake
Just like that, the chance of any really nice, warm, Indian summer-like weather here in the Pacific Northwest has left us. While that may be a little bit of a drag, it’s also fairly fine. Not only have we so far had a relatively mild and enjoyable autumn, but we also had a warm and sunny stretch near the end of the summer that almost made up for the lingering gray that hung around far too long early in the season.
And from that last leg, we also have the fond and bright and warm recall of a few of those days. One we spent on the banks of the Sandy River with a stunning view of Mount Hood.
Another found us in pure summertime mode, rowing a leaky rental boat around the picturesque Lost Lake — also with an unmatched shot of the mountain — soaking in every bit of the fleeting season, as if storing up the sunshine and winds and refreshing waters for the inevitable days ahead, the cold and drizzly days, when nothing sounds more inviting than rowing a leaky boat around an amazing alpine lake in the middle of the summer.
Peek into the Mountain
The first time I really ever heard The Heartless Bastards, an incredible band formed in Cincinnati, Ohio, in 2003, was at Pickathon 2010. And the first song I ever heard of theirs is one called, simply, The Mountain.
The band, particularly lead singer Erika Wennerstrom, hit me hard, sharing an energy I’d not felt about any band in quite some time. And the song came at just the right time. I’d been finishing up On Mount Hood and culling my notes and research for some quotes to head up each chapter. The opening lines from The Mountain seemed to convey just what I had in mind for the introduction of the book.
Oh you feel and you taste it
And you want to go higher, so what do you do
And so you peek into the mountain
Where your desire goes
I got to write about the Heartless Bastards and The Mountain a little earlier this spring, as part of Tim LaBarge’s Pickathonography book, which looks at five years of the music festival from 2006 through 2010. The piece went along with some fantastic photos of the band that really captured the musical highlights of the entire weekend for me.
Take a peek.
Good news for Floras Lake
The good news about a plan to destroy one of the most amazing stretches of Oregon Coast came in waves this week.
First, Oregon State Parks and Recreation Department director Tim Wood sent a letter to the Curry County Board of Commissioners. In the letter, Wood essentially told the commission that, while the county had every right to submit a formal proposal for their plan to develop a pristine and beautiful section of Oregon Coast into golf courses, such a plan was highly unlikely to meet the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department’s extremely high standards for land swaps. The county’s plan, you may recall, involved swapping 68 acres of county land for 627 acres within Floras Lake State Natural Area.
“The ‘overwhelming public benefit to state parks’ standard is an extremely high bar,” Wood writes, “set to ensure that any trade or sale of state park property is unquestionably in the best interest of Oregonians as a whole…”
His letter then goes on to say that Floras Lake State Natural Area is a “unique and wondrous” treasure, and that the value of this property is “irreplaceable.”
“While I would advise the (parks) commission to provide the county the opportunity to present a proposal for this project should you desire to do so, I sincerely believe that there is no proposal for sale or trade of this property that would meet the standard established for such transactions.”
That is exactly the kind of response I was hoping to hear from OPRD, the kind of response that could essentially kill this misguided proposal on the spot.
Judging by a story in the Oregonian today, Wood’s letter did just that. The headline alone says it all:
“Curry County pulls the plug on plan to build golf course in Floras Lake area.”
Many thanks, then, not only to Tim Wood, OPRD, and the Oregon State Parks and Recreation Commission, but to everyone who opposed the county’s plan and supported preserving this truly incredible and unforgettable place. There will be no regrets.
On MOUNT HOOD 