News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon

Articles written by Stuart Ehr


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  • Waiting for the 'poop fairies'

    Stuart Ehr, Correspondent|Updated Apr 18, 2023

    Along with construction and maintenance, Sisters Trails Alliance (STA) also faces challenges like vandalism - and dog poop. The number one mythic question in the woods is not "Is there a Sasquatch?" Rather "Is there a Poop Fairy?" Many seem to believe so, based on their own words. Rick Retzman, a Sisters Trails Alliance board member, has talked to some of these "believers," who think that it is the responsibility of someone else, "fairies" who must flit about the woods after... Full story

  • Waiting for the ‘poop fairies’

    Stuart Ehr|Updated Mar 28, 2023

    Along with construction and maintenance, Sisters Trails Alliance (STA) also faces challenges like vandalism — and dog poop. The number one mythic question in the woods is not “Is there a Sasquatch?” Rather “Is there a Poop Fairy?” Many seem to believe so, based on their own words. Rick Retzman, a Sisters Trails Alliance board member, has talked to some of these “believers,” who think that it is the responsibility of someone else, “fairies” who must flit about the woods a... Full story

  • Navigating Santiam Pass in winter

    Stuart Ehr|Updated Nov 22, 2022

    Driving “The Pass” — as in Santiam Pass — doesn’t have to be a nerve-wracking or potentially hazardous undertaking, if you follow the rules. For Central Oregonians heading westward we have many routes that have a “pass.” This includes Santiam Pass — Highway 20, joined by Highway 126 to Eugene, Highway 22 to Salem, and Highway 20 to Sweet Home-Tombstone Pass. To the south is Willamette Pass, Highway 58 to Eugene, and northbound Highway 26, Governmen... Full story

  • Winter driving conditions arrive

    Stuart Ehr|Updated Nov 15, 2022

    Although Sisters Country will finish the year on the edge of a La Niña cycle (cooler and wetter), it is still impossible to predict with certainty how this will translate into snowfall — and, therefore, local driving conditions. It is best to be prepared for whatever nature brings. In a “typical” year a mile section of road could simultaneously be dry, wet, packed snow, ice, and slush. These driving conditions are brought on by Sisters transitional elevation. At 3... Full story

  • Watch out for deer on Sisters roads

    Stuart Ehr|Updated Oct 18, 2022

    It’s the time of year when deer are on the move. Although known biologically as the rut, their unpredictable and potentially dangerous behavior during October and November has some local hunters labelling it derisively as “the time when deer get stupid.” The odds of expensive and life-threatening car-deer interactions are way up, especially as urban boundaries expand and deer are displaced. Eric Smith of Caliber Collision in Redmond is seeing the collision numbers climb, aside from the rut and fawning (spring/summer) seaso... Full story

  • Search and Rescue in Sisters Country

    Stuart Ehr|Updated Oct 4, 2022

    The last week of summer ended with a string of calls to Search and Rescue (SAR). Most calls and the resulting rescues could have been avoided with a little forethought and always taking the 10 essentials. In the past three years, Deschutes County Search and Rescue has averaged 118 missions per year. (See related story.) Many of the calls that come in to Deschutes County Search and Rescue are not from those needing to be rescued, but from concerned friends or family members... Full story