HOOD RIVER — Construction has begun on a five-mile section of the Historic Columbia River Highway, known as the Mitchell Point. The Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) and other organizations have teamed up to construct a new segment of the popular Mitchell Point Tunnel. The tunnel wa…

Klickitat County Fire Station No. 32, located in Snowden, fell victim to a roof collapse during last week’s snowstorm.

THE DALLES — On the third floor of the Wasco County Courthouse, five felons stood patiently awaiting their hearing time — 10 a.m., on Jan. 6 with a snow delay. Two hours later, they walked out free, having had their convictions vacated — the first in the state through a new process laid out …

Klickitat County Undersheriff Tim Neher announced late last month that he is running to succeed his current boss, Sheriff Bob Songer, in the November election.

No. 1: Pandemic shadowed 2021; No. 2: Jan. 6 attack sharpens divide, draws criticism; No. 3: Schools reopen to in person learning; No. 4: Google growth plans move forward; No. 5: College opens new housing, skills center; No. 6: Heat, not just fires, impact Gorge; No. 7: Law enforcement highlights; No. 8: SDS Lumber Company sells operations, timberland; No. 9: MCMC announces plans for new hospital; and No. 10: Man struck by lightning 'once-in-a-lifetime event'

The Dalles City Council agreed to see that funding for a bike kiosk at Lewis and Clark Park is allocated in the city budget, following a request from former mayor Steve Lawrence.

Bob Songer, the self-ascribed “constitutional” law enforcement official who has held the office of Sheriff of Klickitat County since 2014, will not run for a third term as sheriff in the November election.

Are you new to farming or ranching, thinking about becoming a producer or serve this audience in your work? You’re invited to Oregon USDA Beginning Farmer Ranchers: In The Know Virtual Events 2022.

PORTLAND — King, the Oregon Zoo’s male black rhino, will have some company soon: Jozi, a 9-year-old female rhino from the Milwaukee County Zoo, is now settling in at Rhino Ridge too. Caregivers hope the rhino pair will hit it off and perhaps eventually add to the population of this criticall…

PENDLETON — Before he can settle into his job leading one of the largest national park systems in the world, Chuck Sams still needs to pack.

Local teams joined forces to contend for a spot at the VEX Robotics World Championship

Riverkeeper hosts webinar

Staffing shortages due to — or exacerbated — by the COVID-19 pandemic is an issue being recognized nationwide, and the Columbia River Gorge is no exception. Despite relaxed COVID safety protocols and a slow return to pre-pandemic unemployment numbers, local employers are still having difficu…

The Hood River-White Salmon Interstate Bridge Bi-State Working Group (BSWG) met Dec. 13 to address finance issues, timeline updates and design contracts. The group is comprised of mayors Kate McBride (Hood River), Martha Keethler (White Salmon), Betty Barnes (Bingen), and county commissioner…

Consolidated Community Credit Union (CCCU), now with a branch in Hood River, released its first-ever Pets Calendar, featuring “stunning, adorable photos from CCCU’s Pet Calendar Photo Contest,” said a press release.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has selected Steve Berendzen as the new Project Leader for the Central Washington National Wildlife Refuge Complex in the Columbia Pacific Northwest Region. He will begin his role in February 2022.

The new “test to stay” option for schools was quickly put into use on its first day of implementation early last week at a North Wasco County School District 21 school, and allowed several students to stay in school rather than go home to quarantine, according to a press release from the Nor…

Children in Hood River and Wasco counties are going to learn new things, see new places, develop new abilities, and open up their world.

The December Weed of the Month is English holly (Ilex aquifolium), a fitting invasive for the season when we “deck the halls with boughs of holly.” While English holly does make a festive decoration, it is not welcome in natural areas where it crowds out native plants.

I would like to reintroduce myself: My name Andrea Flores-Reyna. I work for Oregon State University Extension Service here in the Gorge as the Juntos Program coordinator. For a while now, we have been sheltered due to COVID-19 and it feels great to be transitioning back into in person working.

WASHINGTON, DC — In November, Congressman Cliff Bentz (R-Ore.) introduced H.R.6019, a bill that would codify the Trump Administration’s Northern Spotted Owl (NSO) Critical Habitat Revision, which would fine-tune the NSO’s habitat designation and remove about one million acres of non-NSO habi…

Gas price to rise 3 cents per gallon Jan. 1