News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon

Articles written by Stu Ehr


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  • Why I quit cutting firewood

    Stu Ehr|Updated Nov 12, 2024

    I did the math. It’s probably not the math you’re thinking of. Not how many BTU’s (British Thermal Units) from a certain species of wood you could get. Also not a comparison of the cost of a cord of wood versus the electricity you would use for heating on any given winter. The upside is a free wood cutting permit to harvest up to eight cords of wood for personal use. It didn’t used to be that way. My math doesn’t even consider the cost of a saw, trailer, vehicle to tow a couple tons of wood, or the fuel, oil, chains, s... Full story

  • Be a student of driving

    Stu Ehr|Updated Oct 29, 2024

    Assume. It’s what we do every time we climb behind the wheel of a car. We assume we are going to get to our destination safely. Odds are you will. Often that creates a complacency that will catch up with you sooner or later. On average there are six injury accidents, and dozens more “fender-benders” that police do not respond to in Deschutes County daily. Even a seemingly low-speed accident may cause serious and sometimes life-altering injuries. How to make sure you don’t eventually end up involved in one of those serious... Full story

  • Fire disrupts PCT treks

    Stu Ehr|Updated Aug 20, 2024
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    One of the great thru-hikes of the world, the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT), has been a monumental challenge for the class of 2024. This is the time of year that thru-hikers from around the world and all 50 states arrive in Sisters, either hiking northbound (NOBO) from the Mexican border, or southbound (SOBO) from the Canadian border, and attempt to hike a continuous footpath from one national border to the other. A journey of 2,650 miles, or 6.2 million steps if you prefer.... Full story

  • Annual PCT migration is underway

    Stu Ehr|Updated Aug 1, 2023

    Once again, the annual migration is underway for thousands of backpackers trying to complete a thru-hike of the Pacific Crest Trail, a 2,650-mile footpath from Mexico to Canada. Possibly you have seen them resupplying, doing laundry, going to the post office, or removing the miles of caked dust from their tanned limbs as they take a "zero" day (non-hiking) and move through Sisters for a quick return to the trail. As in 2017, a previous heavy snow year, the remains of winter... Full story

  • Sisters man stands tall - with tech help

    Stu Ehr, Correspondent|Updated Mar 28, 2023
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    Erik Himbert has lived in his Sisters home for over 10 years but never walked the scant 100 yards to his mailbox. It wasn’t for lack of desire. Yet late last week, servo motors hummed and Himbert — a paraplegic —was able at last to walk the short distance to his mailbox, a journey that invariably elicited excited responses from the neighbors. A woman who Himbert has known for years stood in her yard with her mouth agape and exclaimed, “I never knew you were so tall!... Full story

  • Where NOBOs and SOBOs meet

    Stu Ehr|Updated Jul 26, 2022

    One of the great annual human migrations is underway. From mid-July to mid-August thru-hikers from roughly 45 countries and nearly every state pass through Sisters in an effort to complete one of the world’s great thru-hikes, the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT). Stretching 2,650 miles from Campo, California, at the Mexican border to Manning Park, British Columbia, Canada, hikers start out from either border in attempt to complete the hike in a four-to-six-month period before the s... Full story