Faced with poor snowpack, two irrigation districts, a grower and a conservationist share what they expect this summer

THE GORGE — From the high points of Pushpum, you can see all the way from the Gorge to the Blue Mountains. This high ridge along the northern Columbia River (or Nch’i-Wàna, the Big River) near Goldendale has been sacred to the Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation since the beginning of their people.

With bright symmetrical green leaves sprouting out of the Tree of Heaven’s crown, the plant almost earns the namesake based on looks alone. Corrie Podolak, conservation outreach coordinator at Underwood Conservation District (UCD), will tell you otherwise.

HOOD RIVER — Pirate trails had a history of popping up in Post Canyon, said Rachel Crowder, vice president of the volunteer-run, non-profit, Hood River Area Trail Stewards (HRATS). Through word-of-mouth and outdated maps, she started riding the area in spring 2008 on the unsanctioned trails scattered along the western flank of the Hood River County Tree Farm, run by the Forestry Department.

HOOD RIVER — Born in Madison, Wisconsin, the Midwest’s unofficial cycling capital, Megan Ramey had biking infused in her DNA before she could walk. Now at the helm of several bike-forward initiatives, including Hood River County School District’s Safe Routes to School program, the all-star advocate is charting a new, more sustainable path for Gorge youth rooted in soft mobility.

GIFFORD PINCHOT — For the second year in a row, the United States Forest Service (USFS) will not permit commercial picking of huckleberries near Sawtooth Mountain, off Twin Buttes Road or anywhere else in the Gifford Pinchot National Forest, officials announced on April 21. 

ODELL — For the Columbia River Gorge’s 150-plus community health workers (CHWs), helping people isn’t a job, but a necessity. Every client, every mission, is part of a broad, decades-long movement to bridge the divide between underserved communities and institutionalized health care. 

THE DALLES — Plant lovers united at The Coffee Shop on April 4 for its monthly community plant swap, which invites familiar faces and newcomers alike to trade and chat about their botanical belongings.

MOUNT HOOD — After getting the lifts turning just a few days before Christmas, Mt. Hood Meadows is closing for the season on April 12, the earliest date in recent memory.

The hearing centered on the Deschutes Solar and Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) facility, a roughly 14,000-acre proposal located about 7.5 miles southwest of Maupin, largely on land zoned for exclusive farm use.