The Nugget Vol. XLVI No. 46
POSTAL CUSTOMER
News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
www.NuggetNews.com
Wednesday, November 15, 2023
Keeping the wild in Whychus Creek
Deputies detain man at post office
By Maret Pajutee Correspondent
Correspondent
Funding has fallen short for improvements to Barclay Drive where it runs through the Sisters Industrial Park. In its 156-page Tr a n s p o r t a t i o n S y s t e m Plan (TSP) adopted by City Council in December of 2021, the Public Works Department planned to improve Barclay Drive from Locust Street on the east to Pine Street on the west. The improvements between Pine and Locust streets were to include a three-lane cross section, curb and gutter, 10-foot concrete sidewalks, stormwater drainage, and lighting. The goal
Inside...
See WHYCHUS on page 11
See DEPUTIES on page 6
Whychus Creek still feels wild, even just few a miles out of town. It is a favorite place for locals and visitors to hike, sit by the rushing waters, and contemplate the power and beauty of nature. glacial melt. Unconsolidated dams of glacial remnants (till, rock, gravel, and ice) held these lakes in place. It turns out that the Three Sisters and Mt. Jefferson areas have one of the highest concentrations of neoglacial moraine-dammed lakes in the U.S. A U.S. Geological
Barclay Drive improvements stall By Bill Bartlett
triggered the alarm in 1985 when geologists from the USGS became concerned about one particular lake at the base of Prouty Glacier on South Sister, which they predicted could be a disaster for the city of Sisters. Carver
Deschutes County Sheriff’s deputies detained an adult male on a police officer hold in the parking lot at Sisters Post Office on Thursday afternoon, November 9. The man was apparently experiencing mental health issues. According to Lt. Chad Davis, the post office and The Lodge at Sisters were briefly on lockdown until the incident was resolved. The man was transported via ambulance to the hospital. Lt. Davis reported that deputies were dispatched to a welfare check on Thursday, November 9, at 3:49 p.m., regarding an older male who was walking northbound on North Larch Street, who appeared disoriented and in need of assistance. A deputy located the man walking on North Larch Street and offered assistance to him. The man allegedly responded by making threatening
was to have these upgrades in place on or before the completion of the new roundabout, now scheduled for opening by June. The new roundabout will strongly encourage through traffic to bypass Cascade Avenue and use Barclay Drive. However, the City has come up short with the necessary funds to complete the Barclay improvements. Only enough money is on hand for the section between Locust Street and Larch Street where the Post Office sits. That leaves a big chunk that will remain without sidewalks, as well as constricted traffic flow just as See BARCLAY on page 9
Survey (USGS) report from 2001 noted that moraine dams tend to breech between July and October and result in flows of debris laden flood water. called lahars, which can extend far downstream. (https://pubs.usgs. gov/pp/1606/report.pdf) That’s exactly what
PHOTO BY MARET PAJUTEE1
On a clear day the expansive view of rolling forests to the base of the Three Sisters can tap you into a feeling of the wild. And there is an unusual amount of wild land along Whychus Creek, even outside the designated wilderness. Twenty years ago, during studies of the Whychus Creek Wild and Scenic River, the Forest Service did detailed surveys from town to the wilderness boundary. Specialists found large areas without much of a human footprint. There was no string of campgrounds and few trails along portions of this scenic creek. Just remnant old-growth trees of many species, waterfalls, cliffs, and quiet refuges for common wildlife, including bear, cougar, and birds of all kinds. Strangely, the reason for this stretch of wildlands was the fear of imminent disaster caused by an interaction of climate change and geology. The “little ice age” was a period of cool weather, which ran roughly from the mid-1400s to 1850. When it ended, things warmed up, and between 1900 and 1940 new lakes were born from
PRE-SORTED STANDARD ECRWSS U.S. POSTAGE PAID Sisters, OR Permit No. 15
Food Bank needs community’s help By Jim Cornelius Editor in Chief
The Sisters Kiwanis Food Bank helps hundreds of people each month to keep food on the table. Faced with rising costs and continuous demand, the Food Bank is short of the cash it needs to purchase the food that many people in Sisters rely upon. Doug Wills, who, along with Jeff Taylor, manages the Food Bank, told The Nugget last week that Kiwanis spends $130,000 on food, and has taken in $95,000 in donations. The shortfall is significant, because 80 percent of the food provided at the facility is purchased. NeighborImpact provides food, and the Food Bank receives donations of canned food and staples from the
PHOTO BY JIM CORNELIUS
Volunteers help clients at the Sisters Food Bank keep food on the table. The Food Bank is seeking community support as costs rise. community, but those kinds that we have to have,” Wills of donations don’t provide said. either enough food or the The program cannot opervariety of types of food that ate on in-kind donations are required to meet the need alone. and to create a consistent “There’s just not enough,” menu of available foodstuffs. “There are certain items See FOOD BANK on page 7
Letters/Weather ............... 2 Roundabout Sisters .......... 3 Announcements...............10 Obituaries .......................16 Crossword .......................21 Meetings .......................... 3 Bunkhouse Chronicle ........ 5 Entertainment .................14 Sudoku ........................... 22 Classifieds................. 22-23