1859 Spring 2010

Spring 2010 

artist tracy macewan | silverton, oregon | the kicker debate 

Authentic 

Oregon 

2010’s best 

food, getaways, 

hikes, camping 

and more 

Garden 

Gurus 

Inside two lush gardens, 

plus gardening tips 

$4.95US 

SPRING 201O 

Strong 

Medicine 

Doctors caring for 

the uninsured and poor 

Big Table Farm 

Cooking with Oregon wine 

Lesser Man 

vs. Wild 

A tale of survival 

Rodeo champ 

Stevie Rae Willis 

shares her Top 5 

1859MAGAZINE.COM

Transforming Lives From the Outside In sm 

Artist 

Elizabeth VanderVeer, M.D. 

Board Certified Physician 

President and Medical Director 

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the life we love 

an outdoor amphitheater | art galleries | shops & restaurants 

a 16-screen cinema and scenic river trails | it all adds up to a 

one-of-a-kind Central Oregon experience. theoldmill.com

“One of the 

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and online

There are some things Oregonians can’t cut back on. 

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features 

Spring ’10 

48 

Lesser Man vs. Wild 

Cold, wet and in the middle 

of the Siuslaw Forest with nothing 

more than a knife and a flint. 

A tale of survival. 

by kevin max 

58 

Gallery 

Photographer Brent McGregor 

turns his camera on incredible 

landscapes in a shoot that 

captures essential Oregon 

62 

Strong Medicine 

Four groups of doctors who 

reach far beyond the call of 

the profession to care for 

uninsured and the poor 

by lee lewis husk 

40 

Best of Oregon 

1859’s Best of Oregon 2010. The best eats, drinks, breweries, hikes, 

camping, rustic digs, classic hotels and more 

On the Cover: 

Up and coming rodeo star, Stevie Rae Willis 

Photo by Christian Heeb 

this page: 

Falls in the Opal Creek Wilderness 

Photo by Brent McGregor 

by bob woodward and AddiE hahn 

1859 oregon's magazine spring 2010 7

Making our relationship one of 

your most valuable investments 

With over 200 years of combined experience, our team 

has been helping families in the Pacific Northwest pursue 

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departments 

74 

37 

82 

35 

26 

Spring ’10 

69 

30 

Around the state 

14 oregon notebook 

Events around Oregon, Mother’s Day packages, 

book reviews, and things to see and do 

Local Habit 

30 artist in residence 

Abstract painter Tracy MacEwan defies 

expectations with depth and color 

Oregon Living 

69 Home grown 

Wine makers in the Willamette Valley 

know grapes and how to cook with them 

20 road reconsidered 

Highway 199’s Oregon Caves, 

a stunning Chateau and alternative 

treehouse accommodations 

23 From Where i stand 

Small and charming Silverton, Oregon 

has arts, a budding landscape of wineries 

and the Oregon Garden 

26 sound off 

The Governor and Don McIntire 

weigh in on the controversial kicker law 

32 Top 5 

Budding rodeo star, Stevie Rae Willis, 

tells us what city-folk don’t know 

about rodeo life 

35 What i'm Working on 

University of Oregon archaeologist Dennis 

Jenkins on finding the hemisphere’s oldest 

human remains 

37 Ventures 

Green Lite Motors’ alternative commuter 

vehicle is turning heads and making news 

1859MAGAZINE.COM 

Join us to discuss your favorite book or to read a review of what 

we’re reading at 1859’s Literary Cafe • Tell us your favorite beer and 

recreation pairings • Recipes with our Home Grown Chef • Videos 

Win a weekend package • Vote for your Best of Oregon 

78 outdooregon 

Bend’s Pole Pedal Paddle is an event unlike 

any other—just ask its 3,000 competitors 

82 Design 

Showcase floral and vegetable gardens 

and tips from their creators 

89 explore guide 

Plan your next Oregon adventure with 

suggestions from 1859’s statewide guide 

96 oregon Quotient 

Test your Oregon intelligence and enter 

to win a getaway weekend in Oregon 

98 1859’s oregon map 

A handy map with points of interest 

from this issue 


editor’s letter 

COLLEGE 

Kevin Max 

Editor, 1859 Oregon's Magazine 

YOU CAN GET THERE 

WE CAN HELP 

OregonCollegeSavings.com 

At some point, 

you realize you’re 

in over your head. 

Too often that is the case with me. 

The latest example took the form 

of the 1859 Man vs. Wild Extreme 

Challenge on the Oregon coast in 

January. Survivalist guru and Man 

vs. Wild reality show consultant, 

Mark Wienert, graciously took in 

our group of five and taught us 

what we’d need to know to stay 

alive in fairly extreme conditions 

in the Siuslaw National Forest and 

beyond. We survived. 

In “Lesser Man vs. Wild” (page 48), you’ll read 

the adventures of a civilized man’s foray into 

unfamiliar wilderness, both geographically 

and psychologically. 

I came away from the Siuslaw with a 

mind full of lessons that can be equally 

applied to situational survival and mental 

stress. More important for me was that my 

respect for the wild areas of Oregon was 

rekindled. Despite wilderness areas being 

under constant threat of developmental and 

political flux, they are an enormous asset 

for the state. Groups such as Freshwater 

Trust, Oregon Wild, Oregon Natural Desert 

Association and the Governor’s Office have 

been working to repeal outdated mining 

laws and reclaim wilderness for generations 

to come. Long before these groups, the 

Lower Umpqua Tribe, in the Siuslaw Forest. 

practiced a sustainable creed in which all 

of its environmental actions were held to 

the standard of what effect they would have 

photo by Joni Kabana

COLLEGE 

“upon a seventh generation grandchild’s life.” 

That was 150 years before Oregon earned its 

reputation as the Gulf Coast of sustainable 

energy and enterprise. 

Entrepreneur and hybrid vehicle creator, 

Tim Miller, brings together an all-star team at 

Portland-based Green Lite Motors to help shift 

the paradigm of big-city commuting toward 

smaller and more efficient vehicles. A Portland 

resident who moved from the San Francisco 

Bay Area six years ago, Miller has spent many 

miles and hours in the fog of traffic snarled 

by large gas-sucking cars with sole occupants. 

The fossil fuel consumption per driver got him 

thinking. His answer to that problem makes 

its prototype debut on page 37 in 1859’s new 

department, “Ventures,” which focuses on 

pioneering people in Oregon businesses. 

Back in the features, “Strong Medicine” 

(page 62) introduces us to a refreshing and 

contrarian view of the crumbling health care 

system. We profile hopeful and forwardthinking 

doctors from across the state who 

have made massive strides in patient care 

despite their patients’ inability to pay the costs 

of those services. These doctors have found 

the strength and courage to bring care to 

people who would otherwise suffer silently. 

One doctor dreams of winning the lottery 

to help more people. Another foregoes the 

opportunity to work in a larger market in 

order to give back to the small community 

that supported his education. A third doctor, 

trained at Oregon Health and Science 

University, works toward establishing a clinic 

for women in her native Ethiopia. 

We thank the more than 500 respondents 

to our Best of Oregon survey on our website 

and Facebook page. The results are in, and 

we were pleasantly surprised by many of the 

winners and runners up. Turn to page 40 to 

see this year’s winners. Don’t forget to vote 

for next year’s Bests at 1859magazine.com. 

Cheers! 

YOU CAN GET THERE 

WE CAN HELP 

OregonCollegeSavings.com

MtHoodViews.com 

Actual views 

from lots! 

Homes that rival their views 

Editor 

Kevin Max 

Creative Director 

Anouk Tapper 

executive editor 

Sarah Max 

Advertising Director 

Ross Johnson 

publisher 

Heather Huston Johnson 

Advertising associates 

Julie Intlekofer, Karoline Lamer, Sonja Meixler 

Contributing writers 

Serena Bishop, Cathy Carroll, Kevin Giffin, Lisa Glickman, 

Addie Hahn, Lee Lewis Husk, Gerard Longrier, 

Stephanie Boyle Mays, Bob Woodward 

Interns extraordinaire 

Heather Baro, Jared Lugo 

Contributing photographers 

Christian Heeb, Joni Kabana, Jake Stangel, Jon Tapper, Paula Watts 

proofreader 

Lisa Zeltin 

Artist sketches 

Paul Harris 

tech specialist 

David Browning 

IDA ALUL, MD 

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Around Oregon 

notebook 

MCMenaMins 

every location 

With a number of special events in honor 

of Mom, McMenamins’ main event is 

the signature brunch served at all of its 

historic hotels, including Edgefield, The 

Grand Lodge, Hotel Oregon, Kennedy 

School, and the Old St. Francis School. 

And if brunch isn’t enough, McMenamins 

has put together a number of relaxation 

packages just for Mom at its Grand Lodge 

and Edgefield spas. 

mcmenamins.com 

503.223.0109 

oregon garDen resort 

silverton 

Dine in one of Oregon’s most exquisite 

gardens this Mother’s Day at the Oregon 

Garden Resort. This buffet-style champagne 

brunch includes the traditional 

assortment of favorites including prime 

rib and ham-carving stations, fresh salads, 

homemade pastries, omelets and waffles. 

Bring the whole family and spend the day 

in the garden. 

moonstonehotels.com 

503.874.2500 

the portlanD spirit 

portland 

Cruise along the Willamette River aboard 

one of three vessels, the Portland Spirit, 

the Willamette Star or the Columbia Gorge 

Sternwheeler, while enjoying live entertainment 

and a Mother’s Day brunch 

of Northwest-inspired fare. Leaving one 

of three docks at 9:30 a.m. and 2 p.m., 

the Portland Spirit offers a Mother’s Day 

brunch with views of Portland you don’t 

get to see every day. 

portlandspirit.com 

503.842.7972 

P L A N N I N G A H E A D 

Mother’s Day 

in Oregon 

SUNDAY MAY 9, 2010 

Think of everything 

that Mom has gone through 

this year and then treat her to a 

little primp and circumstance 

on Mother’s Day. Here are some 

good ideas to get Mom to relax 

and get out on the 9th of May. 

Book your plans now, so your 

Mother’s Day gift doesn’t begin 

with the procrastinator’s refrain, 

“What I wanted to 

get you was ... but ...” 

ashlanD springs hotel 

ashland 

The Ashland Springs Hotel, home of the 

Larks-Home Kitchen Cuisine and the 

Waterstone Spa, is a Mother’s Day destination 

that will leave a lasting impression. 

After enjoying a brunch of Dungeness 

crab benedict or Grand Marnier custard 

French toast, visit the Waterstone Spa & 

Salon for Tea for Two, a Mother’s Day Spa 

Package. After a 45-minute foot treatment, 

Mom will be treated to a 60-minute 

facial and 60-minute massage. 

ashlandspringshotel.com 

888.795.4545 

oregon Coast 

sCeniC railroaD 

garibaldi 

For a scenic excursion along the Pacific 

Ocean, board the Oregon Coast Scenic 

Railroad’s Mother’s Day Lunch Train. 

Departing from Garibaldi and traveling to 

Wheeler and back, you will enjoy views of 

the Tillamook and Nehalem bays on this 

three-hour tour. The menu brings fresh 

seafood and local ingredients to the table. 

ocsr.net/specials.html 

503.842.7972 

eagle Cap exCursion train 

elgin 

Enjoy views of Eastern Oregon from the 

comfort of a Wallowa Union Railway passenger 

train while savoring a complete 

Mother’s Day brunch buffet. Aboard 

the Eagle Cap Excursion Train, you will 

venture through some of Oregon’s most 

rugged and beautiful landscape, along 

the Grand Ronde River and past the 

meadows of Chief Joseph country. 

eaglecaptrain.com 

800.323.7330 

14 1859 OREGON'S MAGAZINE SPRING 2010

notebook 

Around Oregon 

DETAILS: General admissions are April 9 through May 16. Ticket prices 

start at $45 for adults and $31.50 for children ages 2-12. For tickets and 

show times go to cirquedusoleil.com. 

Cirque du Soleil’s Kooza 

april 9-May 16, portland 

WHY GO: The blue and yellow grand chapiteau returns 

to Portland’s South Waterfront in April with Cirque du 

Soleil’s production of Kooza. It’s been more than two 

decades since Cirque’s founder, Canadian Guy Laliberté, 

began putting an artistic stamp on the circus by 

merging acrobatic feats with highly-choreographed 

productions complete with handmade costumes and 

original music scores. 

HIGHLIGHTS: Although Kooza pays 

homage to Cirque’s big-top roots, 

it’s done with an avant garde twist. 

Cirque connoisseurs will notice 

that clowns play a more 

prominent role in this 

production than in most. 

That’s no accident. “The 

show doesn’t take itself too 

seriously,” says Kooza’s writer 

and director, David Shiner, a 

former clown himself. No doubt 

you’ll welcome a little comic relief 

after witnessing some of the show’s 

gravity-challenged acts. We won’t 

spoil the surprise, but suffice it to 

say, the “Wheel of Death” seems 

no exaggeration. 

CALENDAR: 

FLOWERS 

let ’er bloom: 

inspirations 2010 flower show 

May 1-2, oregon historical society 

A nationally juried Garden Club of America 

horticulture and flower show, the Let 

‘er Bloom Flower Show will be held at 

the Oregon Historical Society. More than 

90 judges from around the country will 

evaluate the 200 Portland entries. 

portlandgardenclub.org 

OUTDOORS 

spring thaw 

Mountain bike festival 

May 15-16, ashland 

Mountain bike races for all kinds of 

racers—a 9-mile and 23-mile single-track 

race, a downhill race and a kids race. 

There's also prize money, a raffle and 

a post-race party at Standing 

Stone Brewery. 

somba.org/springthaw 

CULTURE 

spring pow wow 

and friendship feast 

May 8, la grande 

Celebrate Eastern Oregon’s Native 

American heritage at the Annual 

Spring Pow Wow and Friendship Feast. 

Join the dancing and drumming or 

just watch from the sidelines. Enjoy 

traditional fry bread and admire the 

handmade arts and crafts. 

visitlagrande.com 

1859 OREGON'S MAGAZINE SPRING 2010 15

Around Oregon 

notebook 

willaMette valley 

Montinore estate 

Using strict methods of biodynamic 

farming, Montinore Estate makes 

wine exclusively from the six varieties of 

grapes grown on its 230-acre farm just 

west of Portland in Forest Grove. 

montinore.com 

rogue valley 

roxyann winery 

Former pear orchard turned vineyard, the 

RoxyAnn Winery is located on land that has 

been bearing fruit for more than 100 years. 

As members of Low Input Viticulture and 

Enology, RoxyAnn creates and maintains 

quality fruit production by using sustainable 

agriculture practices. 

roxyann.com 

northern willaMette valley 

adelsheim vineyard 

Family-owned and operated since its 

inception in 1971, the Adelsheim Vineyard 

is devoted to sustainable farming 

practices and crafting wines of increasing 

caliber each growing season. It combines 

traditional and modern techniques of wine 

making. adelsheim.com 

O R E G O N W I N E M A K I N G 

Wine Varieties 

TOP VARIETIES OF OREGON WINE 

PINOT NOIR 

The color of Pinot noir ranges from cherry red 

to deep purple. Typical flavors include earth, leather, 

vanilla (from the oak), and fruity flavors such as 

raspberry, strawberry and plum. 

 

PINOT GRIS 

Ranging in color from yellow to copper-ink, 

Pinot gris is medium bodied with aromas of pear, 

apple and melon. 

 

CHARDONNAY 

The taste of Chardonnay varies widely, from 

semi-sweet or sour, heady or light, depending on the 

growing location and fermentation process. 

Typical flavors are apple, tangerine, lemon, lime, 

melon and oak. 

 

RIESLING 

Flavors include apple, peach and pear at the 

front blended with floral undertones and often a 

hint of spice or honey. 

 

SYRAH 

Dark in color, Syrah offers spicy blackberry, plum 

and peppery flavors, often with a hint of bitter 

chocolate or mocha. 

 

MERLOT 

Smooth and easier to drink than other red wines, 

Merlot has a mellow complex character, 

with hints of plum, black cherry, 

violets and orange. 

uMpQua valley 

abacela vineyard and winery 

Tempranillo, Dolcetto, Malbec and 

Grenache aren't often associated with 

Oregon wine. But the sunny south-facing 

slopes of the Abacela vineyard southwest of 

Roseberg has proven an ideal location for 

growing these big, bold varietals. 

abacela.com 

applegate valley 

wooldridge Creek 

Although the Wooldridge Creek Winery and 

Vineyards wine-growing roots go back to 

1978, it wasn't until 2002 that the 56-acre 

vineyard began putting up its own wine for 

public consumption. It's production is still 

small, with 2,500 cases produced annually 

and available only at the winery and at 

select restaurants. 

wcwinery.com 

willaMette valley 

ponzi vineyard 

In 1970, the Ponzi family began cultivating 

their vineyard in the lush Willamette 

Valley. Four decades later, they’ve 

set the standard for viticultural innovation 

in Oregon. Along with traditional 

Oregon wines, the Ponzi Vineyard is 

known for Arnels and Dolcetto wines, 

two rare Italian varietals. 

ponziwines.com 

ColuMbia gorge 

phelps Creek vineyard 

Subscribing to the motto that “Pinot noir 

is farmed not made” has helped this tiny 

vineyard in Hood River Valley's “Fruit 

Loop” gain national recognition for its 

savory Pinot noirs and silky Chardonnays. 

phelpscreekvineyards.com 


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Around Oregon 

notebook 

1859’s Literary Cafe 

BOOK REVIEW: Voracious reader and literati, Claudia Hinz, continues 1859’s 

Literary Cafe with a review of Lean on Pete by Oregon writer Willy Vlautin 

(below) and Curtis Sittenfeld’s American Wife online at 1859magazine.com. 

Discuss these books or chat about others in 1859’s Literary Cafe. 

WILLY VLAUTIN’S THIRD NOVEL is as lean and hungry as 

15-year-old narrator, Charley Thompson. Charley steals cans 

of SpaghettiOs and dreams of a “fridge that’s always full of 

food.” In Lean on Pete (Harper Collins), the Scappoose, Oregon 

author again proves skillful with a bare bones narrative, 

delivering an emotional tale on the slim shoulders of a scared 

teenager. Without ever naming hope, despair or love, Vlautin 

powerfully evokes them all. 

When his father dies after a fight with a girlfriend’s husband, 

Charley is suddenly alone. He doesn’t know his mother and he 

has no family in Oregon. He takes what he can carry from his 

home and rolls out a sleeping bag on the floor of a tack room at 

the Portland Meadows. There, he gets a job caring for quarter 

horse, Lean on Pete. His boss, Del Montgomery, is abusive and 

frequently neglects to give Charley enough money for food. 

When Del later discovers Charley sleeping in the tack room, the 

owner is more concerned about him stealing than finding out 

why he can’t sleep at his own home. 

Out 

& About 

ArtWalks 

in Oregon 

As the days grow 

longer and the evenings 

warmer, take a stroll 

through downtown 

streets and celebrate 

local galleries, artists 

and restaurants at one 

of Oregon’s monthly 

ArtWalks. 

ASHLAND 

First Friday 

5-8 p.m. 

AshlandGalleries.com 

SEASIDE 

First Saturday 

5-8 p.m. 

seasidechamber.com 

PORTLAND 

First Thursday 

6-9 p.m. 

firstthursdayportland.com 

BEND 

First Friday 

5-9 p.m. 

visitbend.com 

LA GRANDE 

Third Thursday 

5-8 p.m. 

541.963.5351 

New 

& Notable 

LEAN ON PETE 

A NOVEL BY WILLY VLAUTIN 

“Don’t think about it,” Bonnie, 

another homeless employee at 

the track tells Charley. There is 

so much that Charley tries not to 

think about including his father’s 

use of drugs, his inappropriate sexual behavior, and the 

days and nights he abandoned Charley chasing drugs and 

women. Lean on Pete is the only creature in Charley’s world 

on whom he can depend. He spends hours whispering into 

Lean on Pete’s ear, encouraging the horse to run hard and 

reassuring him that everything will be fine. When Charley 

learns that Lean on Pete may be sent off to a slaughter 

house, he steals the horse and takes off for Wyoming, where 

his aunt once lived. He has no money or supplies, but when 

the trailer breaks down, Charley is determined to walk the 

remaining one thousand miles on the chance that he can 

find his aunt. 

On the road to Boise, Charley hitches a ride with a threatening 

character who asks, “Do you understand what human 

kindness is?” Charley answers, “I’m not sure.” Just when the 

reader is sure that Charley is the novel’s only example of “human 

kindness,” Vlautin surprises us. Even in this grim landscape, 

there are moments of generosity: a truck driver offers 

Charley a ride and gives him food and money; and a mentally 

ill man, who is a compulsive hoarder, suddenly reappears 

with cheeseburgers to share. 

Charley’s hunger is not just the urgent appetite of a growing 

teenager, not just the hunger for a second cheeseburger or 

hand-outs from the back door of a restaurant kitchen. It is a 

driving hunger for safety and love. By the end of the novel, we 

are relieved that Charley is at last safe and well fed, that we can 

forgive Vlautin a pat ending in which we can’t help worrying 

the axe may still fall. And if we are cynical, it is because we 

have traveled 277 pages with Charley. We feel his vulnerability, 

wariness and grief, and we can’t help looking over his shoulder. 


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Around Oregon 

road reconsidered 

Oregon Caves National Monument 

While hunting a bear in 1874, Elijah Davidson followed 

his dog, Bruno, into the caves and made an spectacular 

discovery outside of what is today Cave Junction. 

The Oregon Caves—marble caves formed from recrystallized 

limestone—are one of just a few National 

Monuments in the state. The hour-and-a-half tour of 

the stalactites is well worth any Southern Oregon vacation 

and a must for budding geologists. The last tour on 

summer weekend days is done by candlelight, as it had 

been decades ago. 

Everything is just as it was in the 1930s at the adjacent 

Chateau at Oregon Caves National Monument. Locally 

built and locally sourced, the 76-year-old chateau is a 

monument to artistry and craftsmanship. Unlike most 

grand lodges of the era which were designed by pedigreed 

architects, the chateau was designed by Gust Lium, 

a local contractor with a quiver of creativity. 

The exterior cedar bark is the original from nearby Port 

Orford, the furniture was custom built by a local manufacturer 

and the long-counter coffee shop hasn’t changed a 

lick since it was completed in 1937. The chateau continues 

its local and sustainable habits to this day. The restaurant 

buys its produce from farmers in the Illinois Valley, gets its 

bison from nearby bison ranchers and serves wines from 

the Illinois and Rogue valleys. 

The Duke 

John Wayne was believed to have taken kindly to Oregon 

after his 1975 film, “Rooster Cogburn” (co-starring Katherine 

Hepburn), which was shot in Josephine County, on 

the Rogue and in Central Oregon. His likeness now confronts 

visitors at the Deer Creek Ranch, which The Duke 

co-owned, outside of Selma. Today the ranch has been 

converted into the Siskiyou Field Research and Education 

Center owned by Southern Oregon University. 

by Gerard Longrier 

20 1859 oregon's magazine spring 2010 

Highway 199 from Grants Pass to the California border is 

perhaps the most surprising stretch of road in the state. 

This storied passage was once the pack route for gold 

speculators, who came through the Illinois Valley to pan 

for gold in Josephine Creek and then move on to California. 

After gold miners left and the railroad route went east 

through Klamath Falls, the Oregon Caves became the last 

chance for tourist attraction in the area. In 1922, pranksters 

from Grants Pass went so far as to establish the Realm of 

the Cavemen, which consisted of locals dressed in gunny 

sacks toting bones and clubs. These primitives made visiting 

dignitaries such as Richard Nixon, John F. Kennedy and 

Ronald Reagan a bit uneasy with their humorous inability to 

comprehend civilized behavior. 

Grants Pass 

The small warren of Grants Pass along the Rogue River 

is one of six Oregon cities that has won National Civic 

League’s annual All-America City Award since its inception 

in 1949. The 18-foot fiberglass caveman sculpture 

at the corner of Sixth Street and Morgan Lane was not 

enough to discourage the civic league’s judgment. 

Dutch Love 

Dairy farmers and brothers, Travis and Dane Boersma, 

started the first Dutch Bros. Coffee kiosk in downtown 

Grants Pass in 1992. Today the vaunted drive-thru gourmet 

coffee stands number more than 150 throughout the 

Pacific Northwest, Colorado and Arizona. 

Going Out on a Limb 

An 18-unit resort of spartan to luxury treehouses are part 

of Out `n’ About Treehouse Treesort in Takilma, just 10 

miles north of the California border and 5 miles east of 

199. There are seven swinging bridges, zip-lines, a riverfed 

swimming pool and horseback eco tours through the 

adjacent Siskiyou National Forest. (treehouses.com) 

big cats 

With a collection of lions, and leopards, and tigers, and 

lynx on 10 acres in Great Cats World Park, this unexpected 

attraction in Cave Junction brings an unusual end to your 

Highway 199 ramble. 

photo by Brent McGregor

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Many Stories. 

One Oregon.

from where i stand 

Around Oregon 

Oregon’s garden city 

Silverton 

Silverton rolls out of the cascades to the 

west and over valley soils that support 

sheep farms, tree nurseries, a handful of 

vineyards and other agriculture. Fifteen 

miles west lies the state capitol, Salem, 

and 45 miles north is Portland. Silverton 

takes after neither. Depending on where 

you look, Silverton is a sliver of artistic 

Ashland, a dash of wine country Dundee 

and dose of Eugene oddity. 

Just southeast of Silverton lies 

an alluring outdoor attraction. 

Silver Falls State Park has 25 miles 

of trails and postcard waterfalls 

along Ten Falls Trail in the verdant 

Cascade foothills. 

by Kevin Giffin 


Around Oregon 

from where i stand 


info 

Population: 9,540 

Median household 

income: $38,429. 

Average home sale: 

$152,800. 

Major employers: 

Silver Falls School District, 

Silverton Hospital, manufactured 

home builder 

Champion Homes, meat 

processor Brucepac and 

Mallorie’s Dairy 

what to do 

Visit the Oregon Garden’s resort and spa 

Take a camera to capture the wildflowers, 

the birds and the waterfalls while hiking 

Ten Falls Trail at Silver Falls State Park 

Get a murals map and tour Silverton 

Try the tasty 

Rolling Hills Bakery 

Tour the up and coming Silverton wineries 

Browse the Lunaria Gallery for eclectic art 

Hit the Saturday morning farmers market 

in Town Square Park 

Take in the local brews at Mac’s Place, or 

at Seven Brides Brewery 

“there are a lot of strange cats around 

town, but it makes Silverton Silverton,” says Anna 

Day, a third-generation Silvertonian who owns Le 

Pooch, a dog grooming business. 

Known as Oregon’s Garden City, Silverton is 

home to the Oregon Garden, an idyllic setting 

with twenty gardens, a resort hotel and spa. 

Its downtown is a nicely preserved version of 

Main Street, America. Early century brick Colonial 

stores line Water and Main Streets, where 

there are Thai, Chinese, and Mexican restaurants 

and the Lunaria Gallery. 

Lunaria began in a small storefront in 1996, 

and is an artists’ co-op whose twenty-six members 

each work fourteen days a year and pay $40 

month for rent. Lunaria’s “First Fridays” wine 

and art events have played a crucial role in the 

local arts community. “This seems to be a little 

artist haven,” says Emily Start, 62, a founder of 

Lunaria and a fourth-generation Silvertonian. 

Over the past decade, winemakers and artists 

came for the area’s beauty and its bounty, nudging 

the population 28 percent to almost 10,000. 

The art community of Silverton tells the town’s 

history in fourteen striking murals. Mural painting 

began in the mid 1990s, when David McDonald, 

a local artist, painted enormous versions of 

Norman Rockwell’s “Four Freedoms” on the side 

of a downtown building. Another mural depicts 

the story of Bobbie the Dog, whose owners took 

him on a family trip in 1923 to Indiana, where he 

went missing. Six months later, Bobbie hobbled 

back into town 3,000-miles worse for the wear 

from his heroic solo journey. 

As a young woman who has traveled more and 

more comfortably than Bobbie the Dog, Day, 27, 

wouldn’t want to live anywhere else. Silverton’s a 

town where she can open the monthly tabloid, and 

still identify most of the faces. It’s far enough from 

I-5 to be quiet—even remote—yet still only a short 

distance drive to a big-city fix. 

“When there are big growth things happening 

here, people freak out,” Day laughs. “I’m a 

traditionalist. I don’t want expensive boutiques 

and Starbucks here. I want to be able to afford my 

home town.” 

Silverton’s recent fifteen minutes of fame came in 

a February 2009 People magazine profile on Stu Rasmussen, 

the nation’s first transgender mayor. It’s still 

Mayberry, but Aunt Bee has an Adam’s apple. 

video journal 

See our OPB partner video about 

Silver Falls and the Oregon Garden at 

1859magazine.com.

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Around Oregon 

sound off 

The Kicker 

Share your thoughts about the 

kicker when you click on this 

article at 1859magazine.com 

The kicker is a constitutionally mandated rebate for individual and corporate Oregon taxpayers that is triggered 

when a biennial tax revenue surplus exceeds the biennial revenue forecast by more than two percent. The kicker 

law was approved by voters in 1980 but was not made part of the constitution until 1999. Proponents of the kicker 

law cheer that is has kicked back revenues to taxpayers eight times since its inception. Opponents to the kicker say 

that boom-time revenues should be saved to alleviate bust-time deficits. 

Ted 

Kulongoski 

Governor 

Vs. 

Don 

McIntire 

Taxpayer Association of Oregon 

Oregonians are tired of our roller-coaster budgeting that 

results from our inability to save when revenues are up and the 

imperative to cut deeply when revenues decline. The hard truth 

is that we will never get ahead during good times—and we’ll 

continue to fall further behind during bad times—if we fail to 

enact responsible, balanced kicker reform. We will never end 

this yo-yo budgeting and begin true fiscal stability without a 

strong, constitutionally protected reserve fund. 

I have long advocated for the state to establish a rainy day fund 

to better protect critical services for Oregonians. In 2007, the 

legislature joined me in creating a rainy day fund. Without these 

reserve funds, cuts to schools, human services and public safety 

would have been far more severe in this recession. 

During the 2009 legislative session and 2010 special 

session, I wanted the legislature to take the next step 

in responsible fiscal planning and refer to the voters a 

constitutionally protected emergency reserve fund financed, 

in part, by the kicker. Unfortunately, there wasn’t the 

political will to refer this critical measure to the public for 

the upcoming general election. I believe that the choice to 

push this debate to a future legislative session is a missed 

opportunity and a disservice to the people of Oregon. 

This last boom-bust economic period reminds the public how 

critical it is that we have a strong emergency budget reserve that 

protects services when Oregonians need them most and values 

their investments as taxpayers during more prosperous times. 

We must put politics aside and take the necessary steps of 

forcing the state to save during good times by reforming the 

kicker. These two actions are the only way we can achieve fiscal 

stability for future generations of Oregonians. 


Unfortunately, the Oregon legislature, unrestrained, spends every 

last cent it can extract from Oregon citizens and businesses. 

Legislative budgets are not made on the basis of what is 

necessary but are simply the last budget with new programs, “rollups” 

and fudge factors added in. This method over the last ten 

years produced budgets, which increased at three times the rate of 

inflation. Even corrected for population growth, the increases have 

been breathtaking. 

It could be worse but for two sensible provisions in the Oregon 

constitution which protect us at least somewhat from the politicians. 

The first is that the budget must be balanced. That precludes legislators 

from piling us into debt. The other protection, which was more recently 

adopted, is the kicker law. The kicker was first adopted by voters as a 

statute in 1980 and later put into the constitution. 

The kicker requires that once the legislature adopts a budget, 

any money collected from income taxes beyond what is needed for 

that budget is returned to taxpayers. It’s a sensible protection and 

one of the few disciplines we have to mitigate against the spendeverything 

philosophy of the government class. 

Compared to the amount of total spending by the state, the 

amount of money returned to taxpayers in kicker checks is really 

peanuts, except to the taxpayers. The larger benefit, however, is 

that the money refunded is not included in the base for the next 

budget. Had those kickers been included in successive budgets, 

current spending would be higher by $2.57 billion on the personal 

side and $527 million on the corporate side. In other words, the 

budget the legislature just struggled to fund would have been $3.1 

billion bigger. Without this modest slowing of spending—still 

multiples of inflation—we would have had to raise taxes, not by 

$727 million, but by $3.8 billion. 

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and often get lost in it. 

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503 222 5538 (503-2BALLET) www.obt.org

Local Habit 

INNOVATIVE PEOPLE AND WHAT THEY’RE DOING 

29 Artist 

in Residence 

life in the abstract 

for tracy Macewan 

32 Top 5 

what city-folk don’t 

know about rodeo 

34 What I’m 

Working On 

The archaeologist who 

found the west’s oldest 

human remains 

37 Ventures 

The green wave 

in commuter 

vehicles 

Meet 

the Artist >> 

by Gerard Longrier 

Life in the Abstract 

Tracy MacEwan explores color, texture and 

complexity in paintings that plot a new 

direction for the Abstract movement 

PlYIng hIs traDe in a graduate 

art history class at University 

of Oregon on an otherwise 

unblurted day, Tracy MacEwan 

blurted, “Where in the hell 

has this painter’s work been?” 

As much as this acknowledgement 

of American Abstract 

artist Richard Diebenkorn’s 

painting may have startled his 

classmates, it was the sound of 

a new universe in this medium 

erupting for Tracy MacEwan. 

It wasn’t until MacEwan was a 

graduate student that he realized 

his mind processed things 

differently—he had dyslexia. 

“Going through school reading, 

I’d have a hard time settling 

on the meaning. So my reading 

comprehension was always 

challenged,” he says. “Working 

visually just seemed to make 

sense to me. I found that 

when I read about places, I 

could use my mind to create 

a visual palate to work from, 

my own space.” » 


Local Habit 

artist in residence 

macewan began studying landscape architecture and finished 

with an MFA in photography instead. At some point early in grad 

school, he and his doubtful self, by chance, encountered one of his 

professors at the 2,092-foot summit of Spencer Butte in Eugene. “I 

realized that we were sitting within a few feet of one other,” MacEwan 

recalls. “Then we started talking about whether fine art photography 

was for me and if it would offer me full expression.” 

Even photography had its artistic shortcomings, so MacEwan 

began making marks on his landscape photos. Soon the marks became 

more prominent in his mind than the photographs themselves 

and MacEwan began painting. Sensing that MacEwan was at an 

artistic crossroads, the patrons behind a Saratoga Springs art residency 

gave their new resident the use of both a painting studio and a 

blackroom. His painting flourished. 

MacEwan, now 56, is from coastal Lincoln City, but his art might 

as well come from Prague or Paris. Absent are the blue skies, wafting 

gulls and romantic boats of a typical coastal painter. MacEwan’s 

most recent work is a palate of dark rich colors that don’t typically 

find their way into cottages, at least the common oceanside cottage 

hung with beach, bird and wave paintings. In fact, his recent paintings 

evoke less the boxy Abstractionist of MacEwan’s epiphany, Deibenkorn 

(1922-1993), than they do a moodier “Landscape with Red 

Roof” by Frenchman Pierre Bonnard (1867-1947). 

Take MacEwan's recent painting, “Bridge of Sighs” (shown on the 

top of the opposite page). A prominent hourglass-shape connects 

an orange-hued sky and a complex blue and yellow reflection below 

a horizon. “It explores the next generation of colors for me," he says. 

"These colors are much more complex. The mood is thoughtful. 

There is an ominous background, but it’s not dominating.” 

Color and texture are new areas of discovery for MacEwan. “I feel 

like I’m an advanced apprentice now after fifteen years,” he says. The 

advanced apprentice often mixes cold wax with paint, a mixture 

that behaves like “wet snow.” That wet snow becomes one of many 

layers that will later trigger an avalanche of complexity. “I’m interested 

in layers,” MacEwan offers, “just to see what happens with colors 

one layer on top of another.” 

First a landscape architect, then a photographer, MacEwan’s perspective 

is influenced by these disciplines. Common to both are horizons, 

which MacEwan calls his “safety nets” or “starting points.” 

Many of his recent paintings share this distant horizon, far back in 

the top third of the painting. Perhaps broad horizons, like the westward 

setting sun over the Pacific, could also be a rare coastal influence 

in MacEwan’s work. 

Ultimately, he describes his abstract style of art as a drama in 

which the viewer doesn’t know the whole story. “It’s the experience 

of the viewer that is critical, and because of that, I encourage you to 

use your own imagination." 

Showing at: 

Portland Art Museum’s Rental Sales Gallery, Portland 

Attic Gallery, Portland 

Mary Lou Zeek Gallery, Salem 

Dragon Fire Gallery, Cannon Beach 

Salishan and Sheridan locations of the Lawrence Gallery 

Tracymacewan.com 

30 1859 oregon's magazine spring 2010

artist in residence 

Local Habit 

“Working visually just 

seemed to make sense to 

me. I found that when I read 

about places, I could use 

my mind to create a visual 

palate to work from, 

my own space.” 

— Tracy MacEwan 

previous page: Detail from Harvest, oil and wax on panel from the series 

Stay Inside the Lines, 2005. facing page: Number Theory 4, oil and wax on 

panel, from the Numbers series, 2008 (top); Castelrotto (Italy), oil and 

wax on canvas from the Home Away from Home series, 2006 (bottom). 

this page: Bridge of Sighs, oil and wax (top); Numbers, acrylic on canvas 

from the Improvisation series 2004 (bottom). 


Local Habit top 5 

What City-folk 

Don't Know 

About Rodeo 

Stevie Rae willis is a rodeo rider on the verge. Turning 16 

in May, she is training for another breakout summer in the 

northwest Pro Rodeo Association. She started riding at the age 

of 8 in her hometown of Terrebonne. Last summer, at 15, she 

won the nPRA Finals in her favorite event, barrel racing, and 

took the All-Around Championship 2009. This summer, she’ll 

be trying for another All-Around and Barrel Racing title, and 

to win the Breakaway event at the nPRA Rodeo Finals in Salem 

on August 31. 

An early look at Stevie Rae’s rodeo schedule: 

South Douglas Rodeo, Myrtle Creek June 12-13 

Tillamook County Rodeo, Tillamook June 26-27 

nPRA Rodeo Finals, Salem August 31 

5 

Stevie 

Rae Willis Top 

1. I practice two to three hours on school days 

and four to five hours on weekend days. 

2. Rodeo horses have to learn to eat and drink 

on the road like they do at home. 

3. Horses need chiropractic adjustments just 

like people. My dad looks at the horses weekly 

and usually adjusts them monthly. 

4. we spend every weekend on the road during 

rodeo season competing in two to five rodeos in 

different towns and states. 

5. At rodeos, I get nervous and that never goes 

away no matter how long you do it. I just want 

to get in the arena and go. when I put on my 

horse’s protective boots before we compete, he 

knows that feel and he gets very strong. 

photo by Christian Heeb 


Local Habit 

what i'm working on 

The Time 

Traveler’s Life 

interview by Kevin Max 

Archaeologist Dr. Dennis Jenkins went to the Paisley Caves 

to settle a decades-old dispute and ended up with the 

oldest human remains in the Western Hemisphere 

Q 

A 

In 1937, Luther Cressman, credited as being 

the founder of Oregon anthropology, first 

excavated the Paisley Caves, acting on the tip 

of Walter Perry, a local who knew a woman 

who had been digging there for artifacts. The 

Paisley Caves are a system of eight caves north 

of the town of Paisley at the top of the Great 

Basin. At this point, no human remains had 

been found that dated beyond the Clovis era 

(13,500-12,800 years ago). Clovis people were 

believed to have been the first inhabitants of the 

New World of the Western Hemisphere, and all 

Native Americans in North and South America 

were their descendents. In 1940, Cressman and 

his crews found camel, bison and horse bones 

near human artifacts that they thought were as 

old or older than the Clovis era. But because of 

Cressman’s flawed methods, a shadow of doubt 

was cast on his findings at the Paisley Caves for 

decades and beyond his death in 1994. 

In 2002, Dr. Dennis Jenkins, an archaeologist 

at the University of Oregon, returned to the 

Paisley Caves to test Cressman’s controversial 

theory that humans were living alongside 

camels, horses and bisons at that time in the 

Northern Great Basin. Jenkins, along with 

the UO archaeological field school, excavated 

the caves, practicing the most rigorous field 

methods, and made their own discovery— 

bones of camels, horses, bison and an extinct 

artiodactyl alongside human feces that all 

radiocarbon dated to around 14,280 years old. 

Not only had Jenkins and his crew vindicated 

the earlier work of Cressman, they had found 

and directly dated the oldest human remains 

(DNA) in the Western Hemisphere. 

Jenkins, who got his undergraduate and 

master’s degrees from the University of 

Nevada, Las Vegas, spent a lot of his adult 

life on archaeological projects in the Mojave 

Desert, before returning to Oregon for his 

doctorate. He is a senior staff archaeologist at 

the Museum of Natural and Cultural History 

at the University of Oregon. 

Outside of purely academic circles, Jenkins’ 

findings have been celebrated with film 

segments on The History Channel, Oregon 

Field Guide segments on Oregon Public 

Broadcasting, magazine and newspaper 

articles and a recent article in the March issue 

of Parade, a national celebrity magazine. 


what i'm working on 

Local Habit 

“With the DNA 

signature of the 

samples from the caves, 

we have the oldest human 

remains in the Western 

Hemisphere.” 

When did you become interested 

in archaeology? 

I found an arrowhead when I was 10 in San 

Diego, and I looked for others and didn’t find 

more. I was taking a class in anthropology 

in ‘74, and it just clicked. So I took a class in 

archaeology and we went out and excavated 

on Saturdays for the class. We did some 

surveys and excavations, and I got a small 

paycheck. I said, “My god, you can get paid 

to do this! I would do it for free.” 

What brought you back to Oregon? 

I’m originally from Eugene. Once I came 

back from Las Vegas, I knew I wasn’t going 

back to the desert. I ended up teaching at 

the University of Oregon Archaeology Field 

School at the behest of my dissertation chair, 

C. Melvin Aikens (emeritus professor of 

archaeology from the University of Oregon). 

Tell us about your work at Paisley Caves? 

What did you find? 

Paisley Caves has been a major focus for me. I 

visited there with a tour in 2002 and was ready 

to tackle a problem—between Cressman and 

his critics—to find out who was right. Aikens 

and I had been working our way backwards 

through time on sites 3,000 years old and then 

7,000 years old and then, in the last ten years, 

on sites older than 10,000 years. By 2003, we 

had the first radiocarbon dates back for the 

Paisley Caves that were right around 14,000 

calendar years. I was then contacted by Dr. 

Alan Cooper at the University of Oxford, who 

asked if we had anyone doing DNA samples. 

I didn’t know much about DNA sampling 

then. We worked out a deal, and he sent Eske 

Willerslev, a Danish DNA researcher and 

Oxford colleague, to get the samples. 

Eske came in 2004, took samples and went 

back to Oxford. I didn’t hear anything from 

him until late 2005. Then he finally called me 

and asked, “How old are these samples?” and 

I told him some could be more than 14,000 

years old. This could be some of the most 

important poop you’ve ever seen. He said, 

“We’re getting Native American DNA out of 

some of them.” 

What should the lay person know about 

your work in the Paisley Caves? 

With the DNA signature of the samples 

from the caves, we have the oldest human 

remains in the Western Hemisphere. What 

you have is an incredible assemblage of 

artifacts, baskets, charred food, deer, and 

antelope bones and used obsidian. What 

makes this so exceptional is not just that 

we have fossils of horses and camels and 

bison that date to more than 14,000 years 

old, but that we have human remains that 

have been directly radiocarbon dated to the 

same age as those animals. Until now, we 

just didn’t have artifacts or human remains 

demonstrably that old. 

Put this discovery in perspective from 

the academic point of view. 

The vast majority of my colleagues say 

that it’s about time that we have found 

the people we’ve been looking for. The 

Clovis-era technology is an American 

development. There’s nothing exactly like 

it in Asia. And yet everybody knows that 

people had to come from Siberia to get 

here. But no human bone or DNA had 

been found that’s older than 13,000 years. 

What are you able to derive about life as 

a pre-Clovis Oregonian? 

It was probably a hard life. We know they 

were exploiting the entire range of ecological 

settings: desert, forests and marshes of 

the Northern Great Basin. The presence 

of snails tells us that there was fresh water 

flowing over gravelly stream bottoms 

nearby. We know that the area got about 

two and a half times more precipitation than 

there is now. There was less evaporation and 

more vegetation around the caves. There 

were camels, horses, and bison. You would 

have also had mammoths and perhaps 

mastodons in this area. 

Are these the first Oregonians? 

As far as we know they are. But will we ever 

find the first Oregonian? We’ll never know. 

In breaking the Clovis barrier, we are looking 

for a needle in a haystack. We’re looking back 

thousands of years for tools, and human and 

animal remains that nature has been actively 

destroying through erosion and burial. At 

Paisley Caves, the haystack is much smaller 

and the needle available for finding. 

What are you working on now? 

In April in St. Louis, I’m giving a presentation 

to the Society for American Archeology on 

distribution and dating of Paisley artifacts, 

strata, and animal bones. I’m working on 

another article to publish in Science magazine 

on radiocarbon dating. 


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Local Habit 

by Kevin Max 

A Commuter’s 

Green Machine 

The future of niche commuter-mobiles is now, and Oregon’s 

Green Lite Motors is innovating the way with a sleek threewheeled 

hybrid vehicle that right-sizes the commuter car 

above: A rendering of the Green Lite Motors 

urban commuter vehicle. The hybrid 

vehicle gets 100 mpg, turns speeds of 85 

mph and could be in production next year. 

A patented hydraulic lean technology takes 

the motorcycle feel out of this threewheeled 

vehicle. 

an idle mind is the devil’s workshop, 

unless that mind belongs to double 

Stanford graduate Tim Miller. In his case, 

Oregon and urban commuters could soon 

benefit from his deliberation, which ended 

in Green Lite Motors and a prototype hybrid 

vehicle that gets 100 miles per gallon 

and reaches speeds of 85 mph. 

The finished vehicle, which looks like 

a Toyota Prius cut lengthwise, is a threewheeled 

two-seater that is classified as a 

motorcycle. Essentially the Green Lite vehicle 

takes the concept of the three-wheeled 

motorcycle, cages it in a steel framework, 

then balances the front end with proprietary 

hydraulics that lean the vehicle into 

turns and gently bring it upright after the 

turn. The result will be a sleek transporter 

that qualifies for motorcycle and commuter 

lanes but has the safety features of an SUV 

and nearly double the fuel efficiency of 

most hybrids. 

The genesis for the vehicle came in a 

classic entrepreneur oracle in 2005. Miller 

was inching in Portland traffic, as he had 

for eleven years, and observed scores of 

single occupants for each 4,000 pound car. 

“We can do better than this,” he surmised. 

A former executive of Intel and Citysearch, 

Miller, 44, had long been at the 

cutting edge of technology and marketing. 

Yet those were jobs, not vocation. 

“I wanted to do something that I really 

cared about—either to help kids or the 

environment,” he says. “I have a for-profit 

background, and there seemed » 


Local Habit 

ventures 

Green Lite Motors owner, 

Tim Miller, takes the 

prototype vehicle for a spin. 

Green Lite Motors 

Niche: 

Commuter vehicles 

Investors: 

Two angel investors 

and Tim Miller 

Team: 

Tim Miller (owner) 

Fred Lux (design) 

Robert Hill (software) 

Robert Simpson (battery) 

Eric Vaughn (industrial design) 

Current fundraising: $500,000 

Kudos: Won Pacific Northwest Clean Tech 

Open, October 2009--$50,000. 

Expected production: 2011 

Website: greenlitemotors.com 

to be more for-profit opportunities on the 

environmental side.” Given the number 

of children with smog-enhanced asthma, 

he may end up doing a little of both. 

The latest data from the Bureau of 

Transportation Statistics, reveal 135 

million passengers cars in the U.S. 

spewing 75 trillion gallons of gas per 

year. What’s more remarkable is that 

the average number of miles traveled 

per gallon hasn’t really improved over 

the past twenty years. Nearly 11 million 

of these drivers fit the niche that Green 

Lite is targeting—urban commuters 

across the country. 

A better-known statistic in Oregon is 

that 97 percent of Portlanders insist that 

100 percent of the world’s problems can 

be solved with bicycles. In that mindset, 

Miller asked, “Can we make a car from 

bike components?” The business aspect 

made sense: a bicycle town with bikemakers 

galore meant a local labor pool 

and a close supply chain. 

Miller and his team, ultimately 

discarded the upgraded bicycle concept 

and settled on safety and comfort. 

Bike parts would be too light for a 

highway commuter vehicle. The Green 

Lite vehicle envisions motorcyle surrounded 

by a pocket of steel safety cell 

with airbags and four-point seat belts. 

Reinventing the wheel is foolhardy, just 

as is reinventing motorcycles. “Our strategy 

is to use a lot of off-the-shelf components, 

couple it with our unique intellectual 

property in the front end and bring it all 

together,” says Miller. 

The Green Lite team combines 

technology and automotive savvy. 

There’s racecar mechanic Fred Lux; 

Eric Vaughn, from consumer product 

design and marketing firm Ziba Designs; 

Robert Hill, an electrical and mechanical 

entrepreneur; Robert Simpson, who 

worked with embedded processors 

at Tektronix for three decades, and a 

couple of anonymous moonlighters with 

experience in engineering and marketing 

at car manufacturers. 

The car is now in its third generation 

as Green Lite raises a half million dollars 

to integrate technology they’ve developed 

into a fully functional prototype before 

an estimated 2011 production run. Ultimately, 

Miller hopes that production of 

Green Lite Motor’s vehicle could create 

hundreds of jobs that stay in Oregon. 


MINIMUM SIZE LIMIT: 

5-3/4 INCHES. 

MAXIMUM: HOW BIG IS YOUR BOAT? 

OPEN SEASON 

NOW IN EFFECT 

Crab wrangling, lighthouse exploring, taste bud indulging, art gazing, sea lion kissing, 

microbrew sampling, whale watching, general memory catching. DiscoverNewport.com 

THE COAST YOU REMEMBER.

Best 

of 

Oregon 

by Bob Woodward and Addie Hahn 

photo by Brent McGregor

facing page: Postcard photo ops abound along the Opal Creek trails. A 

relatively untouched gem of the central Willamette Valley, Opal Creek 

was once ravaged by early gold miners. this page: Wallowa National 

Forest in Eastern Oregon with Eagle Cap Mountain and Mirror Lake. 

Outdoors 

Hiking 

This spectacular forest preserve off the Santiam 

Highway (Hwy 22) was mostly unheard of until 

1859 when gold was discovered in the area. That 

led to years of misuse of the resource. 

In 1989, a group called Friends of Opal Creek (now the Opal Creek 

Ancient Forest Center) was created to try to save the area. After receiving 

a gift of 151 acres from one of the remaining mining companies in 

1991, a surge of activism resulted in federal legislation that created the 

20,827-acre Opal Creek Wilderness in 1996. The Opal Creek Ancient 

Forest is a quintessential Oregon outdoor experience. Trails in the 

forest pass a crystal clear mountain stream under a canopy of massive 

old-growth trees. Within the vast Opal Creek Valley are, besides notable 

trees and ferns, fifty waterfalls and five lakes. 

A four-mile out-and-back heads through the forest to the base of spectacular 

Sawmill Falls. Just a shade more than seven miles long, a loop 

trail leads to the serene Opal Pool and beyond it to the abandoned mining 

town of Jawbone Flat. Hiking Opal Creek is the experience of a 

lifetime and one that gives 

video journal 

See our OPB partner video about 

Opal Creek at 1859magazine.com 

a glimpse into a place that 

was an Eden-like home 

to Native Americans for 

centuries. (opalcreek.org) 

Runners Up 

Hiking Saddle Mountain (oregonstateparks.org) in the Coast Range means seeing 

plenty of wildflowers and gaining 1,650 feet of elevation from the trailhead to the Peak’s 

3,283-foot summit. Cape Perpetua (fs.fed.us/r6/siuslaw) on the Oregon coast south of 

the town of Yachats offers all sorts of hikes that head inland or wander along the coastline. 

Columbia Gorge (portlandhikers.org) hiking is all about spectacular waterfalls and 

lush greenery. Quite the opposite, hiking in Central Oregon’s Three Sisters Wilderness 

(trails.com) is done in a classic alpine landscape. 

photo by Brian Bloebaum 

Camping 

Perhaps it’s the crystal clear waters or the 

small islands covered in wildflowers that 

makes camping on the Metolius River under stately Ponderosa 

pines so special. There are twelve car-accessible campgrounds along 

with a walk-in campground (carts provided to haul in gear) near the 

head of the Metolius, where the river springs from the ground to 

where it joins Lake Billy Chinook some thirty miles later. 

As to what to do beyond relaxing around camp, there’s hiking 

along the river, mountain biking on nearby Green Ridge, road 

cycling to Sisters and back, canoeing and kayaking on the river 

for the experienced and, of course, blue-ribbon fly-fishing. Best 

of all, even when it’s close to 100 degrees hot during the dog days 

of summer, it’s cool at night along the banks of the Metolius, the 

coldest continuous flowing river in the state. 

(metoliusriver.com) 

Runners Up 

The Wallowa Mountains in the state’s northeast corner offer high alpine country 

camping at its best along with spectacular lakeside camping at Wallowa Lake 

(fs.fed.us/r6/w-w/). For campers who desire solitude, Central Oregon’s Ochoco Mountain 

campsites (forestcamping.com) are seldom, if ever, crowded. Camping along the 

Rogue River (roguerivertrips.info) is a treat for rafters doing either the section of river 

before Grave Creek or after it on the river’s Wild and Scenic section. 


Towns 

A band plays outside Terminal Gravity Brewery in Enterprise. 

Tucked in the northeast corner of the state, Enterprise sits among the 

Wallowas in “America’s Little Switzerland.” below: Western-themed 

Sisters has its own diversions in the Three Sisters Wilderness and the 

adjacent Deschutes National Forest. 

Small Town 

What’s not to like about 

Enterprise, the gateway to 

the Wallowa Mountains? It 

has an old fashioned main 

street lined with brick buildings, 

offers a slow pace of 

life and spectacular scenery 

everywhere you look. 

Founded in 1886, the town 

sits at an elevation of 3,757 

feet and has a population 

of just under 2,000. It’s also 

the county seat for Wallowa 

County. And since it’s the 

county seat, the town has 

more than its share of good 

places to eat from the local 

diner to excellent Mexican 

restaurants and a deli. 

Adding that most Oregonof-Oregon 

touches to the 

community is the Terminal 

Gravity Brewery and Public 

House on the outskirts of town. Located in a refurbished home, 

the brewery has a spacious lawn dotted with clusters of aspen 

trees and a stream running through it. That setting easily qualifies 

as the most bucolic place in the state to swill craft beers in 

the summer. 

“What makes Enterprise so livable, is that it’s not overly populated, 

it’s pretty and there’s a real sense of community here,” 

observes Terminal Gravity co-owner Ed Millar. “I also love the 

fact that there’s not a single stoplight in all of Wallowa County.” 

(wallowacountychamber.com) 

Runners Up 

Get beyond the faux-Western storefront 

look and Sisters (sistersoregon.com) 

proves to be a town full of soul from its 

art galleries to the famous outdoor quilt 

show in July and the Sisters Folk Festival 

in September. 

With wide brick buildings and stately old 

homes, Baker City (visitbaker.com) is just 

minutes from superb outdoor recreation. 

Don’t forget to pop in for a little Oregon 

lore at the National Historic Oregon Trail 

Interpretive Center. 

top photo by Joseph Whittle; bottom Brent McGregor 


No December is complete without the Ducks-Beavers football 

tradition that began in 1894. Bragging rights belong to the Ducks for 

the moment. The rivalry comes back to Corvallis on December 4. 

below: The Hood to Coast relay runners cover 197 miles in August 

with teams of eight to twelve. 

Sports 

top photo by Steve Dykes/Stringer; bottom Jan Greune 

Runners Up 

Take 2,000 cyclists and put them on 

the road for a week around a section of 

the state and you have Cycle Oregon 

(cycleoregon.com). Put alpine skiing, 

cross-country skiing, cycling, running and 

paddling together in a race and that’s 

Mass 

Participation 

It’s all about statewide bragging 

rights, as in “my school is 

better than your school,” and it 

all comes down to one football 

game—The Civil War. First 

played in 1894, The Civil War 

gridiron game pits the University 

of Oregon Ducks against 

the Oregon State University 

Beavers and, for one weekend a 

year, turns the hosting city into 

a one wild town. 

“The Civil War isn’t health 

care, it’s not the economy, 

it’s not school budget issues, 

but there are a good number 

of people here who get more 

passionate about the rivalry 

between Oregon-OSU than 

they do those things,” says 

The Oregonian sports columnist 

John Canzano. “Not sure that’s healthy, but it’s telling. The best part 

of the rivalry isn’t the outcome of the game, but the ability of an entire 

state to come to an agreement on one issue—they desperately need 

each other for the rivalry to work.” 

True it’s not just about the game. The pre- and post-game tailgating has 

grown from a minor sideshow into a full-fledged main-stage event. So 

big indeed that some tailgate groups take up multiple parking spaces at 

Eugene’s Autzen stadium—one space for a bus converted into a traveling 

kitchen and more spaces for all the grilling apparatus and tailgaters. 

The Civil War attracts alums from and fans of both schools from all 

over the Northwest and beyond. The partying starts on Friday afternoon 

and lasts well into Sunday morning. 

Who’s on top in the 113-year-old rivalry? That would be the Ducks with a 

57-46-10 edge. Last season, for the first time in the history of the rivalry, the 

winner of the Civil War was Rose Bowl-bound. (civilwarsports.com) 

Bend’s annual Pole Pedal Paddle 

(mbsef.org). Form a relay team and run 

197 miles from Mount Hood to Seaside) 

and you have the annual late-August 

ritual that is Hood to Coast Relay 

(hoodtocoast.com). 


Getaways 

The Green Ridge Lookout in the Deschutes National Forest is a highly 

coveted address that overlooks the Metolius River and four peaks of 

the Cascades. below: Dusk at the Wallowa Huts after carving up some 

of Oregon's best backcountry skiing. 

Rustic Digs 

Leave it to travel-savvy Oregonians 

to sleuth out a sleepover gem with 

world-class views at a crash-pad price. 

Since 1963, the Green Ridge Lookout 

23 miles north of Sisters in the 

Deschutes National Forest has served 

as both an advantageous observatory 

for volunteer fire spotters and a spectacular 

refuge for visitors. 

Available for rental in spring and 

early summer, the two-story-high 

lookout tower rests on a breathtaking 

location aptly described as “the top 

of the world.” Perched at 4,800 feet, 

guests in the single-room cabin can 

take in views of Mt. Jefferson, Three 

Fingered Jack, North Sister and Mt. 

Washington. Below the lookout, flyfishing 

opportunities abound in the 

Metolius River. Bird watchers can spy 

morning eagle feedings at the nearby 

Wizard Falls Fish Hatchery. You can hike down the Green Ridge trail 

to the Metolius River or up to Black Butte for moderate day hikes. 

“Unlike many of these lookouts, you can drive right up to Green 

Ridge,” says Sandy Sharp of the US Forest Service. “Once you’re 

there, it’s absolutely quiet. You’ll see no highways. There’s no 

electricity. And yet there’s a special sense of place.” 

Green Ridge Lookout sleeps a maximum of four, though there’s room 

to pitch a tent below the cabin. A propane stove and refrigerator are also 

provided, as is a picnic area and an outhouse. The lookout is booked 

through this summer, but there are always last-minute cancellations 

that come available. Reservations for next year open in July. 

The lookout is nine miles off Highway 22 on a gravel road and can be 

rented mid May to late July for $40 a night. (recreation.gov) 

Runners Up 

Craftmen’s craftsmen, Henry Steiner and 

sons, who had a hand in building Timberline 

Lodge, built a series of charming cabins 

from hand-cut and peeled fir logs in 

the tiny unincorporated town of Zigzag in 

the shadow of Mt. Hood. Today, guests can 

curl up beside one of the oversized river 

rock fireplaces when they rent an original 

Steiner Cabin (mthoodrent.com). In Cave 

Junction, Out ‘n’ About Treesort offers 


tree-high accommodations in an array of 

sizes and styles (including Swiss Family 

and Saloon varieties) for the enjoyment of 

kids and parents alike. The elegant, snowcapped 

Wallowas surround guests staying 

at the Wallowa Huts. Four- and Five-day 

trips into these glades, bowls and couloirs 

should make your winter or spring. In 

winter, the hut skiing is easily some of the 

best in the Northwest. 

top photo by Dave Bohning

The historic Wallowa Lake Lodge sits pretty between the Wallowa 

Lake and Wallowa River. There’s no better base camp for exploring 

the Eagle Cap Wilderness, than one of its rooms or cabins. 

Lodging 

Runners Up 

Just two and a half blocks from the 

Columbia River, guests of Hotel Elliot 

(hotelelliot.com) can take in stunning 

views of the waterfront and the Astoria- 

Megler Bridge from the rooftop terrace of 

the hotel, in downtown Astoria. Built in 

1924 and carefully renovated, it features a 

mix of modern amenities and Old World 

charm. History abounds at America’s 

oldest settlement west of the Rockies and 

Lewis and Clark’s western terminus. 

Originally built in 1925 and recently 

restored to its original splendor, Ashland 

Springs Hotel (ashlandspringshotel. 

com), just one block from the beloved 

Oregon Shakespeare Festival, offers cozy, 

elegant quarters. The hotel recently 

acquired the adjacent Waterstone Spa, 

making weekend pampering even easier. 

Built in 1936 as a project of the Works 

Progress Administration from timbers 

in the surrounding Mt. Hood National 

Forest, Timberline Lodge (timberlinelodge.com), 

is a national institution and a 

symbol of cooperation, innovation and 

grandeur. Overnighters can kick back 

in the magnificent lobby, swim in the 

outdoor heated pool or hike the Pacific 

Crest Trail before heading in for a drink at 

the Blue Ox Bar and dinner at the elegant 

Cascade Dining Room. 

From the same American Great Lodge Era, 

comes the Chateau at the Oregon Caves in 

Cave Junction. Built more than 75 years ago, 

The Chateau at the Oregon Caves is filled 

with original, handmade Arts and Craftsstyle 

furniture and has a stream running 

through its dining room. Relax, play chess, 

board games or tour the underground 

Oregon Caves, one of Oregon’s few National 

Monuments. The last cave tour each Friday 

in summer is done by candlelight. 

Historic Hotels 

Once accessible only by boat, 

Wallowa Lake Lodge in the 

northeast corner of the state was 

built in 1923, when the region was 

being developed as a resort. For 

years, an eighteen-passenger boat 

carried guests four miles north 

to a lively amusement park with a 

bowling alley, dance hall, outdoor 

movie theater and horse-drawn 

carousel. In 1940, heavy snow 

crushed much of the park, but 

fortunately, the lodge survived. 

Bordered by the Wallowa River on 

the west side and Wallowa Lake on 

the north side, the lodge is revered 

for its charming rusticity. There are 

twenty-two lodge rooms furnished 

with antiques and ten cabins 

updated with mountain cabin furniture 

and wood-burning stoves. 

“People find peace and quiet and leave with memories to share with 

friends and family”, says Steve Larson of Wallowa Lake Lodge. 

Aside from the pastoral Wallowa Lake, the Eagle Cap Wilderness is 

a great place to get out and hike and a reminder of why the Nez Perce 

Tribe made its home in this area more than a century ago. Nearby Chief 

Joseph Trail crosses the Wallowa River on suspended bridges and intersects 

with waterfalls. Check out the scores of other trails that lead into 

Oregon’s largest wilderness area, or take the tramway to the top of Mt. 

Howard for lunch at the 8,150-foot summit. Views from the top of Mt. 

Howard reinforce the area’s moniker, “America’s Little Switzerland.” 

For those who prefer a bit of art in their lives, Wallowa Lake Lodge sits 

just outside the town of Joseph, known for its world-class bronze foundries. 

Or ride your bike six miles north along Wallowa Lake Highway to 

Enterprise to see why it was voted as Oregon’s Best Small Town by 1859 

readers. Before you leave Wallowa Lake Lodge in the morning, be sure 

to order hazelnut pancakes with maple syrup and marionberry butter. 

The lodge and restaurant, serving breakfast and dinner, are open all 

summer. Cabins are available throughout the year. (wallowalakelodge.com) 


Dining 

RingSide Steakhouse is a staple of classic dining in Portland. The ambience 

recalls an era of grandeur with an emphasis on service. 

Classic 

When James Beard, the late culinary 

genius and Portland native 

declared a plate of onion rings the 

best he’d ever tasted, the Ring- 

Side Steakhouse kitchen was 

duly flattered. Today unforgettable 

onion rings make up only 

a small part of the menu at this 

celebrated Portland institution, 

established in 1944. Most notably, 

there is the revolving lineup 

of award-winning steaks: from 

filet Mignon to New York strip 

and from rib-eye to porterhouse. 

Carnivores with alternative tastes 

can feast on Alaskan king crab 

or fried chicken; vegetarians can 

savor a bowl of sweet onion soup 

with melted Gruyere cheese. 

“The RingSide strives to remain 

true the foundation of what the 

place has been for more than 

sixty years—great steaks and 

impeccable service in a timeless 

atmosphere,” says owner, Craig Peterson. 

Visiting RingSide on Burnside Avenue indeed is to be transported 

to a classy and sophisticated place where waiters in tuxedos take 

your order. For Cyndi Palmer-Lewis, RingSide memories date 

back to her high school homecoming in 1971. “Though I was very 

nervous, I will always remember what a wonderful meal we had.” 

Decades later, RingSide is still her favorite restaurant. 

Portland’s eastsiders can now enjoy the RingSide Glendoveer 

location on the golf course. Oenophiles will relish a wine list 

that prompted Wine Spectator to name the restaurant “One of 

the best restaurants in the world for wine lovers.” If it’s possible 

to save room for dessert, the Oregon berry crisp and the chocolate 

bread pudding will make it worth the effort. 

Make your reservation now. As of May 13, the downtown location will 

close for renovations through January 2011. During renovations, Ring- 

Side will move to the Fox Tower Mezzanine, where RingSide's menu 

and incomparable service will continue. (ringsidesteakhouse.com) 

Runners Up 

Since 1936, Pine Tavern Restaurant 

(pinetavern.com), a Deschutes riverside 

eatery in Bend with a 250-year-old 

Ponderosa central to its dining room, has 

served its famous scones with honey butter 

and hearty meals. Summer dining on 

the Pine Tavern’s riverfront lawn is a great 

Oregon experience. 

Historic train cars, a 1912 depot and a 

menu with prime rib and seafood collide 

at Oregon Electric Station (oesrestaurant. 

com) in Eugene. Designed by the same 

architect as Portland’s handsome Benson 

Hotel, the Electric Station’s open Georgian 

Revival architecture of the lounge area 

contrasts with the intimacy of its classic 

train car, bringing two dining experiences 

together on the same track. 

photo by Jon Tapper 


Tops in the cheap-but-good realm is Burgerville, which uses local 

farms and ranches to serve up a tasty burger. 

Grub 

Brewery 

For more than two decades, 

Deschutes Brewery (deschutesbrewery.com), 

founded in Bend, 

has been winning over beer 

aficionados with sturdy favorites 

like Mirror Pond Pale Ale 

and Black Butte Porter. In 2008, 

Deschutes Brewery opened its 

Portland public house to bring 

Portlanders a new drinking 

experience in the Pearl District. 

Though Deschutes Brewery is 

now an expanding regional powerhouse, 

the quality of its trade 

has not suffered. 

Runners Up 

Homebase for the lengthy lineup of 

tempting Rogue Ales (rogue.com) is in 

its flagship brewpub in Newport, but the 

brewery’s influence can also be consumed 

at family friendly “meeting halls” 

in Astoria, Portland, Eugene and even 

San Francisco. 

McMenamins Edgefield Brewery 

(mcmenamins.com) in Troutdale is the 

largest brewing facility in the company’s 

fleet of refreshingly distinctive establishments. 

Here they craft classics and new 

varietals in an old cannery building. Two 

par-three golf courses on the Edgefield 

campus makes the property a favorite 

for budding pitch-and-putters. 

Ashland’s own full-service brewpub, 

Standing Stone (standingstonebrewing.com), 

has more buzz per square 

foot than any other restaurant in town. 

Inventive handcrafted lagers and ales 

made on-site, and are served in an 

environmentally-conscious, renovated 

historic space in downtown Ashland. 

photo by T.S. Whalen 

Cheap Eats 

With thirty-nine locations and 

counting throughout Oregon 

and Washington, Burgerville 

(burgerville.com) is fast food 

with an Oregon ethic: great 

taste with smart, locally 

sourced ingredients. Wouldn’t 

it be great if all fast food were 

more like Burgerville? 

Runners Up 

For an exquisite burger from the bygone 

drive-in era, head to Pilot Butte 

Drive-In (pilotbutte.com) in Bend, 

where options like the guacamole 

cheeseburger or The Tavern, complete 

with ham, bacon, Swiss cheese, grilled 

onions and a fried egg, are sure to 

induce a delicious food coma. 

Synonymous with the coast is the chowder 

at Mo’s Seafood (mosseafood.com), 

a sumptuous velvety base teeming with 

fresh clams. The walls of Mo’s are hung 

with photos of the many dignitaries who 

have dined at this coastal institution. 

For tasty, healthy options delivered fast, 

head to McMinnville’s newcomers, 

Oly’s Wrap Shack (olyswrapshack.com), 

where vegetarians and meat-eaters can 

happily coincide. 

On weekends, you can expect a wait, 

but the hearty, homemade breakfasts at 

The Glenwood (glenwoodrestaurants. 

com) on University of Oregon’s campus 

or in south Eugene are worth it. Fantastic 

omelets, French toast and the like are 

served all day. The soups are killer too. 

The next time you go crabbing, rent 

your crab ring at Tony’s Crabshack 

(tonyscrabshack.com) in Bandon. While 

you’re there, savor a bowl of cioppino or 

a crab Louie in Bandon’s Old Town, at the 

confluence of the Coquille River and the 

Pacific Ocean. 

your vote counts 

Vote for your favorites candidates 

at 1859magazine.com. 


lesser 

Man vs. Wild 

good reasons against tackling a foolhardy 

outdoor adventure in the middle of 

the winter on the Oregon coast. 

After hiking for hours in the rain, we reached Three Mile Lake. 

North, along its banks, we’d find shelter and attempt the 

impossible: to create fire in a water-logged environment. It was 

a make-or-break moment for the 1859 Man vs. Wild Challenge. 


y Kevin Max 

photos by Joni Kabana 

THE PAST FORTY-EIGHT HOURS WERE DIFFERENT SHADES OF WET 

masquerading as day and night on the Oregon coast. Best I could 

tell, from the back of the van, was that we were in the Siuslaw 

National Forest, scarred as it was by clear-cutting. I made a mental 

note to take up that nonsense if I survived the next day and a half 

in the heart of the county of Umpqua. 

What mattered for the moment was that I had been kidnapped 

by a benevolent faction of outdoor survivalists, who had sharp 

knives and more knowledge about how to get along in wilderness 

than I ever would. The rules were that we could bring only knives 

and a flint and magnesium to start a fire. No food, no water, no 

cell phone—nuthin'. Fire turned out to be everything. 

“When all else fails, 

fire is the simplest means 

of providing comfort and 

warmth against cold and wet 

in the northwest forests” 

— Mors Kochanski, Bushcraft 

It was the first day of a survival challenge that I had arranged with 

reality show Man vs. Wild consultant Mark Wienert, whose outfit, 

Lifesong Wilderness Adventures, operates from a secluded lodge 

south of Reedsport and another camp farther south near Mt. Shasta. 

Wienert is built like a bear, has a child’s heart and talks in a voice 

humbled by Mother Nature and experience. As a young man on 

the Oregon coast, Wienert filled himself with the lessons of nature. 

When he turned 15, he discovered that he enjoyed sleeping on the 

bare ground in the path of wolves and grizzlies in British Columbia 

and Alberta. Still consumed by nature, he formalized his outdoor 

education under the tutelage of Tom Brown Jr., an Apache-trained 

tracker who had spent ten years wandering America’s wilderness 

with no manufactured tools. 

Lately Wienert has worked with Bear Grylls, the Man vs. Wild 

survival monger, whose British accented narration makes starvation, 

dehydration and hypothermia sound more gamely—even fun. “If 

only Oy cood foind a bit of wahta, Oy cood fashion a spot uff tea 

from this poyne tree.” If this malnourished punter from the U.K. 

could hoist his arse up a rock face with his belt repurposed as a 

camming device, why couldn’t I? 

The Lost County of Umpqua 

Months ago, I tripped over a blink of text about Wienert and 

Discovery Channel’s Man vs. Wild in Outside magazine. The 

unlikely connection between the show and Oregon was all I 

needed to start a phone conversation. Now, wet and trekking into 

630,000 acres of the coastal Siuslaw Forest on a winter morning, » 


lesser man vs. wild 

above: Steel wool and a 9-volt battery 

will create sparks that could lead to a 

full-fledged fire. right: Tule reeds are 

soft enough for bedding, or, here, can 

be tied into bundles for roofing. 

I questioned having made that call and my own ability to grasp the 

reality part of reality TV. What the hell had I been drinking/thinking? 

What if my belt failed as a camming device? What if Bear Grylls 

was only an actor whose stuntmen were so plentiful and dispensable 

that three to five of them perished un-remarkably each episode only 

to be replaced by the next? 

For the span of 1851 to 1862, Umpqua was its own county before 

being absorbed by Coos and Douglas, and has the distinction of 

being Oregon’s only county lost in transition from territory to statehood. 

How long could I, a descendant of Starbucks, mobile technology 

and good wine survive in the primitive wilderness of Oregon’s 

only lost county? 

“Panic kills,” Wienert shared on the first day of training, as if he 

were still contemplating all of the prior campers who had panicked 

and died not knowing they were only five feet from Highway 101. 

I hadn’t actually planned on panicking, but his grave-like gravitas 

stirred panic in me. The fact that he had softly said, “Panic kills” 

with an inaudible comma and not a fully exclaimed exclamation 

point put me in an a full ellipses fit. And so … ? 

He paused and surveyed the five of us in the cabin. There was 

Shane, my neighbor and a deliberative civil engineer with a well-protractored 

garage interior; Roger, a tougher Clint Eastwood who prefers 

wilderness to walls and compasses to company; Ely, the youngest 

of us by a more than a decade and a survivalist protégé who’d 

already taken a full battery of life-sustaining courses; and Josh, a 

bearded Ohioan and former Peace Corps missionary just back from 

a decade of survival in Madagascar. Then there was me. 

My prior survival credentials consisted of getting lost in Brooklyn 

twice (age 31), pushing an overburdened VW microbus over the 

Tetons on family vacation (age 7), and hauling ass from a flooded 

canvas Sears tent into the same VW bus during a violent electrical 

storm in the middle of the night before the Stratford Shakespeare 

Festival (psychological degradation, age 10-40). 

The National Geographic Society would not consider the Max 

family “campers” by any fair reading of the word. We had a tent, 

but it wasn’t for our love of the great outdoors. My dad was simply a 

cheap bastard (ongoing) who believed the money saved on accommodations 

was better spent on six tickets to The Mikado and a single 

appetizer divvied according the eater’s height and weight. 

If there was a weak link in the group, it was me. 

Eating Out 

Wienert had arranged a condensed four-day version of his six-day 

extreme Edge camp. For the first two nights, we bunked in yurts 

at the Umpqua Lighthouse State Park. With the exception of a few 

isolated outposts, this yurt was the most rustic thread count I’d endured 

to date. This is what bear cubs suffer to become Bear Grylls. 

Over the course of the first two days, we learned how to start a fire 

out of nothing, how to build a shelter from branches and leaves, and 

how to decide which plants and bugs made good eating. My first for- 


Wienert is built like a bear, 

has a child’s heart and talks 

in a voice humbled by Mother 

Nature and experience. 

ay into this primitive Whole Foods Market was almost my last. 

While Wienert was teaching us about the staph-infection fighting 

Old Man’s Beard, the green mossy drape over trees on the 

wet side of the state, a slow-moving piece of sashimi squirmed 

out from underneath a clump of leaves. I pinched it and brought 

it to my mouth. 

“I wouldn’t do that,” Wienert leveled with no urgency. “The neurotoxins 

on the newt will kill you within ten minutes. … Oh and you 

might want to wash your hands, too. In the dirt. Right now.” 

The Siuslaw National Forest stretches nearly 130 miles up the Oregon 

coast from Coos Bay to Tillamook with an unforested interruption 

around Newport. The easternmost edge of the forest is Marys 

Peak, a designated scenic botanical area ten miles west of Philomath. 

Ubiquitous on the floor of the Siuslaw (and elsewhere throughout 

the Cascades) is a juicy salamander called the rough-skinned newt, 

or Crater Lake newt, or Mazama newt. In all cases, you want to keep 

your distance or die. Bear Grylls would have known that. Canvas 

camper didn’t. 

Into the Wild 

After two days of cub training, mama bear Wienert chased us from 

his warm and dry cabin and out into a wet world where I saw more 

obstacles than opportunity. It was 7 a.m. and there had been no 

French press, in fact, no breakfast at all in the morning scrum into 

the wild. I tried not to let my stomach’s revolt reach my head. 

Maybe it was because we were unspoken failures of our compulsory 

exercises of fire-making, tree-eating and shelter-conceiving the 

prior two days. Maybe it was because Wienert didn’t trust the ongoing 

weather we’d been having. Or maybe he had read my dad’s unau- 



thorized biography, Profiles in Panic, The Disastrous Story of One 

Family’s Sole Outdoor Excursion. But, at the last minute, the survival 

master decided against blindfolding us along the kidnapper’s 

route into the forest. We weren’t fit to be blindfolded, as promised. 

Panic crept into my head and back to my stomach as the van drove 

deep into the forest and kept going. 

Then the van stopped suddenly and we stepped into the void for 

the next day and a half. 

“Remember what you’ve learned,” Wienert said, his soft voice 

barely audible over the falling rain. “You’re going to need tinder. 

Keep an eye out for places that would make good shelter. Don’t 

panic.” I felt as prepared as The Jerk’s Navin R. Johnson Jr. being 

cast into the real world with his family’s advice: “Never trust whitey,” 

and “If you find it, see a doctor and get rid of it.” 

It was now around 8 a.m. and we set out along the trail, getting 

wetter and farther from food and drink and medical remedy. I 

kept an open mind all along. After all, the Man vs. Wild guru had 

opened my eyes to new possibilities in survival situation that, just 

two days ago, would have put the stink of fear on me. 

Off trail to the left and to the right, we found branch-covered 

dens that could have adequately served as shelter should five grown 

men with knives want to spoon for the night. We walked on. 

As we hiked the trail, we occasionally looked behind us to commit 

to memory trees, stumps, branches, rocks and clearings should we 

consider high-tailing it out the same way. This was a tracking technique 

I’d used on longer trail runs in the Deschutes National Forest 

but without the looking back part and with much less anxiety. 

A good chunk of any survival challenge is stopping the creep of 

panic in your mind—a Man vs. Mind. More obvious obstacles 

for us were that we had only knives and the clothes on our back. 

We were vulnerable to a three-pronged attack: weather, Coastal 

Range bears and ourselves. I was in decent control of the latter, 

trusted in hibernation for the second and at the mercy of the 

first. In January, the central Oregon coast gets about ten inches 

of rain and the temperature averages 45 degrees. The hypothermia 

bacteria thrive in these conditions. As we tramped farther 

into the forest, our chances of finding dry tinder were dimming. 

I could feel the bacteria organizing on my limbs, along my spine 

and up to my hypothalamus. 

One rule in fire fuel collection, so stupid it’s clever, is to never 

collect kindling or tinder lying on the ground. Of course, the 

ground gets wetter and stays wetter than its upright cousins. Instead, 

look for recently dead tree branches on vertical trees. 

Roger, our Clint Eastwood, snatched twigs and grasses and pocketed 

them inside his rain shell and close to his body. His body heat 

would help dry out the material over the next couple hours of hiking. 

Those materials would help, but they might not be dry enough to 

bring about ignition. 

Among other trees, the Siuslaw has Douglas firs, Sitka spruce, 

the Western red cedar and Ponderosa pines. The Ponderosa pine 

tree is one-stop shopping for survival. It’s a survivalist’s all-youcan-eat 

buffet and makes good bedding as well as being the ignition 

key for pyromania. The inside of the bark is high in protein 

and can be eaten. Indians across this continent knew this long be- 

Father Nature told us that we might reasonably 

expect to find tule along our path. If I was sacrificing food and water, 

I reasonably expected a foot-thick Tule-Pedic bed to ease my suffering. 


One rule in fire fuel collection, 

so stupid it’s clever, is to never collect 

kindling or tinder lying on the ground. 

above: Survival is about having 

a good knife for carving, whittling 

and severing branches. 

LeFt: At Three Mile Lake, Shane 

finds grasses, which we’d likely 

feed into our unlikely fire. 

fore the white man and made good use of it during harsh winters 

and while being chased by U.S. Army Infantry. I munched a bit 

and quickly decided to save the rest for my own prolonged flights 

from infantrymen. 

Pine needles not only make good bedding, they also make 

an aromatic tea that is high in vitamin C. Douglas fir needle 

tea, however, is the Celestial Seasons of the wild. It’s aromatic, 

soothing and even a little spicy—the mood-enhancer among 

courting survivalists. 

The rain continued as we pressed on. We were still hours from 

our destination when young Ely drew his knife. He halted abruptly 

before confronting a Ponderosa pine. He carved tumorous lobes 

from its bark. Our survival dojo had taught us to look for these 

tumors of gum, or “pitch,” clinging to the bark of Ponderosa pines. 

This rosin is highly combustible and burns intensely at lower temperatures. 

We would need these lobes of pitch to bridge the gap 

between dry tinder and wet kindling. 

Things were looking incrementally better and our spirits lifted 

an inch or two. 

Must keep feet dry: Still on the Trail 

During training, we had spent some time inside a dry cabin trying 

to make fire from wet grasses that we rubbed into finer, dryer fiber. 

Our survival master had taught us to gauge the dryness of the fiber 

by pressing it against our lips. Strangely the same lips that are often 

coated with saliva, coffee, beer and other life-sustaining liquids 

are highly sensitive to trace amounts of moisture. 

In the cabin, we had shaved wet branches down to their guts and 

then shaved piles of dry sawdust from those guts. We tested them 

against our lips and then pushed them into small piles of varying 

moisture. For hours, we had hovered over bundles of tinder and 

shavings, throwing sparks at them with flint and striker. Among 

the most advanced piles was Ely’s. Spark number 5,436 caught and 

festered, and Ely gently blew it into a flame. At last we had ignition! 

We whooped with elation. 

Behind that elation crouched an ominous feeling that we were 

likely going to have to replicate that effort in a downpour. 

As you’re plodding through a drenched forest in the winter and 

looking for tinder for the night’s fire that you know may never 

happen, and contemplating hypothermia as the witching hour descends 

like a blackbird, it helps to recall Churchill’s famous redundancy: 

Never, never, never give up. Ahead in the path, lay a large 

pine tree, inconsiderately forcing us up and over it. The others had 

crossed over marched up the trail. As I came to the fallen giant, I 

crouched down and reached into its scar. 



“Shangri-La!” I shouted. 

When it fell, the tree had cracked open and left a splintered 

interior that was bone dry with rivulets of sap. This discovery 

of dry timber on a planet awash tingled with the same euphoria 

as finding the fossil link between African Homo Erectus and 

modern man. Piltdown Tree! Pinus Non-erectus! Bear Grylls certainly 

would not understate a discovery of this magnitude. “It’s 

extreeeeeemly rayah to encounter wude this dry in the middle of 

a veritable dayluge! That will make fa supahb kindling latah and 

keep me aloive through the noight.” 

Non-erectus had thoughtfully left a big enough gap that you could get 

in there with your knife and carve out some of it. We stashed the dry kindling 

under our rain jackets and merrily went up the trail and into history. 

Survival Lessons 

Gleaned from the 1859 Man vs. Wild Challenge 

Food/water 

Don’t eat newts, they’ll kill you 

Bring water to a boil to kill giardia parasite 

Ponderosa pine and Douglas fir needles make for good tea and have high levels of 

vitamins A and C 

Dandelions are also high in vitamin C 

Common wild berries on the coast: huckleberries and wild blackberries 

Shelter 

Make your shelter small to lock in your body heat 

Select a spot that opens to the east for morning sun/warmth 

Build your shelter parallel to your fire and parallel to wind direction 

Get off the ground with a minimum of four inches of bedding material 

Many kinds of reeds and Ponderosa pine needles make good bedding 

Fire 

The driest kindling comes from standing dead trees 

Grasses can be rubbed into thin fibers for good tinder 

You can find dry wood by shaving wet layers off twigs 

Pine trees have combustible sappy lobes called “pitch” 

Build a fire the length of your body so your feet don’t freeze 

Build a reflector wall with rocks behind your fire to reflect the heat toward you 

Cold 

Hypothermia can occur at temperatures up to 60 degrees 

If you can’t touch your thumb to your pinky, you’re on the way to hypothermia. 

You can stuff your clothes with grasses, leaves and reeds to help stay warm 

Panic kills! 

For one euphoric and delusional moment, I considered revising the 

Max Family History to account for an achievement of this magnitude. 

Three Mile Lake and Tule in the Afternoon 

The trail ended in a clearing at the southern tip of Three Mile Lake. 

We skirted the western edge of the lake and found detritus 

like rope, which we frayed into fine and more combustible material. 

I was somewhat comforted by the fact that the Lower 

Umpqua Tribe had lived among the elements here 160 years 

ago, but I was also troubled by our differences from the 

Umpqua. They had embraced and nurtured the land like one 

of their own—Man with Wild. My relationship was more antagonistic 

and had a “versus” between us. They considered 

their present actions in a sustainable framework of how it 

would effect the grandchild of seventh generation hence. I was 

striving to save my ass and, if needed, those of my companions. 

The Umpqua had built 20-foot-long wooden lodges with 

removable roof planks to accommodate interior fires in the 

winter. Judging from the rudimentary sketches of shelters that 

Wienert had made the night before, the best we could hope for 

was a labor intensive lean-to or worse a pile of wet leaves to 

chipmunk into. 

The nearby Umpqua River and the Winchester Bay are 

chock full of sturgeon and striped bass, and crabs and clams. 

The Indians of the Lower Umpqua were likely fish whisperers 

who could talk fish into their weirs and eat abundantly. In 

winter, alongside an inland lake, we had only a fool’s chance of 

catching a winter crawfish or two. 

If you subscribe to the coincidence that a broken clock is 

right twice a day, however, then mine were the hands that 

would pull the unlikely fish. Fortune favored my second lifetime 

catch. The first lifetime catch came in Mexico while deep 

sea fishing in ,90. I thought I was landing my first and only 

lifetime catch in more than a dozen futile angling attempts. 

No one—my weathered guide assured me—had ever caught a 

plastic milk carton the size of mine. 

“A full gallon!” he howled. “Raro en el mar abierto,” 

“Your tip,” I scowled. “Raro en el mano abierto.” 

The Indians had also cut tule reeds for soft sleeping mats. Father 

Nature told us that we might reasonably expect to find tule 

along our path. If I was sacrificing food and water, I reasonably 

expected a foot-thick Tule-Pedic bed to ease my suffering. 


ight: Ely, the younger, takes grasses 

that he will later rub into small-fiber 

tinder to aid fire ignition. 

beLoW: Broad leaves can be 

used for collecting 

rainwater for drinking. 

It was after 1 p.m., and we had been 

hiking and gathering for five hours without 

food and water. 

From where I stood, Three Mile Lake appeared to be at 

least two lakes separated by a sandy saddle. We had hiked the 

length of the first and tipped on to the next. As we did, the 

rain stopped and the sun broke its three-day fast and gorged 

itself on the lost county of Umpqua. 

We found discarded buckets that we could use for hauling 

kindling and water, and a piece of plywood to cover the tinder 

while we threw sparks at it. Around a bend, golden rays of 

sunlight reached down to golden reeds of tule wading in the 

lake! There on the second stretch of Three Mile Lake, we had 

found our camp. 

Must keep feet dry: Dusk 

The more you’re dehydrated, the less that zombie slogans like, 

“Must keep feet dry” matter. Death’s pecking order in wilderness 

survival starts with those who panic, those who dehydrate as a 

close second and those who starve a distant third. It was after 1 

p.m., and we had been hiking and gathering for five hours without 

food and water. We had about four hours of daylight/graylight 

left and a load of work yet to be done. 

A council of others debated the merits of potential shelters 

in the area. I didn’t want to join in and prolong the discussion. 

The break in rain gave us a window of opportunity to begin our 

pyrotechnics. We needed to seize the moment. The great shelter 

debate, I feared, would only diminish our chances for fire. 

Knife and I slumped off to cut tule mattresses. Zombie slogans 

like, “Must keep feet dry” not only lose their structure when 

dehydrated, but invert to, “Must get feet wet” when you’re wading 

into shallows where the tule grows. I pulled off my boots 

and socks, rolled up my pants and walked into the lake. It was 


When the shavings ignite the tinder and flame up 

after a long, wet day of trekking and hoping, stern 

faces erupt into smiles and whoops. Fire at last! 

above: Roger finds drier 

wood in the belly of a 

branch during a break in the 

rainfall. right: Sparks fly in 

a trial run of fire ignition 

inside the cabin. 

cold at first, but soon my legs and feet lost feeling to forgive me. 

Obsessed with the possibility of tule-supported comfort at day’s 

end, I waded deeper and deeper, squeezing together then cutting 

bunches of reeds just above the water level. The piles of tule grew, 

and Shane, the engineer, humped them up a steep dune to where 

the council’s deliberations had apparently ended. 

I was singularly focused on procuring twice the amount of tule 

needed. If we couldn’t start a fire, we’d need to stuff our clothes 

with tule until we resembled the scarecrow from the Wizard of 

Oz. This was an old technique that Wienert had taught us earlier. 

This concept seemed the most practical and crucial to basic survival 

in any hypothermic climates. 

Exhausted after two hours, I made my last harvest of tule and 

my first trip up to the council-approved campsite. They had settled 

on a spot covered by low hanging branches of a Douglas fir, but it 

was a far cry from the digs of the Lower Umpqua tribe. 

My survival mates had used their knives and buckets to dig a 

pit and were intently trying to make it a pit with fire. Ely, Roger 

and Josh were huddled under the branches of the Douglas fir and 

sparking flint with steel knives into a tiny nest of tinder and 

shaved magnesium. I stopped to watch. 

When magnesium shavings go up, they create an ephemeral 

but intense sparkler-like effect. When the shavings ignite the 

tinder and flame up after a long, wet day of trekking and hoping, 

stern faces erupt into smiles and whoops. Fire, at last! 

We had gathered some kindling, but the appetite of a nightlong 

fire was four times that of the material we had on hand. As 

darkness folded out, we ducked back into the forest on an earnest 

fuel-finding mission with a renewed sense of purpose. 

Finally, our shelter needed many amendments if it was to 

continue calling itself shelter. It was too spacious to be cozy 

and our roof needed roofing. Shane began to tie together small 

packages of tule that would fill out our branched-in roof. The 

ceiling was probably too high to lock in heat, but the reeds 

would help keep out the rain. 

The balance of the tule we distributed generously across the 

floor of the shelter for bedding. 



Talk around the fire: Night 

Campfire is the perfect lack-of-conversation piece. For all of the 

day’s experience, we uttered not a word but stared into the hypnotic 

flames waiting for our water to boil. There wasn’t much to 

say. We knew that we had beaten the odds, by getting a fire going 

under these conditions. We knew that we had all put our backs 

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into it. And we knew that a long night still lay ahead. 

With the breeze added back, the night temperatures dipped 

to near 40, but the storm had passed and we had a fire. The wellwatched 

pot of water boiled and then cooled. We drank the best 

hot water we’d ever tasted and then made tea with Douglas fir 

pine needles. Our words were re-hydrated and conversation soon 

returned. Madagascar, food and time were the primary themes of 

babble well into the night. 

Morning 

Morning broke like the first day on Earth. The sun wormed 

through dissipating coastal fog creating oceans of bright blue 

for three bald eagles to rise in the morning breeze. A mile to the 

west, the ocean was folding itself into thousands of downward 

facing doggies and breathing deeply. We stood outside our shelter, 

stomping warmth into our feet and clapping feeling back into 

our numb hands. 

We had kept the fire burning through the night, but it did little 

against the night’s cold. We slept fitfully, five heads to the fire. 

Ideally we would have all slept parallel to the fire to keep our entire 

bodies warm, but that would have required a fire pit at least 

12 feet long and gobs more of fuel to keep it aflame. 

In the end though, survival is never about “ideal” situations. It’s 

not so much Man vs. Wild as it is making the best possible decisions 

in less-than-ideal conditions. It’s making do with what you 

have and never, never, never giving up. 

We kicked out our fire and trudged up over the dunes to the 

ocean and up the coast to our pickup location. It would be the 

first time that Josh, by way of Ohio and Madagascar, had seen the 

Pacific Ocean. 

In the end though, survival is never about “ideal” situations. 

It’s not so much Man vs. Wild as it is making the best possible 

decisions in less-than-ideal conditions. 


photography by Brent McGregor 

Behind 

McGregor's 

Lens 

Outdoorsman and Oregonian, 

Brent McGregor turns 

his camera on the state's 

wonders and how to make 

the most of them 


HOT SPRINGS Deer Creek Hot Springs on 

the McKenzie Pass flows directly into the 

McKenzie River. Hats optional 

WATER DROP Photographed at Trillium Lake 

near Mt. Hood. Canon 20 D. 70-200 lens at 

200mm f/9.0 1/2500 seconds ISO 400. 

TWILIGHT A kaleidoscope of stars over 

the Cacsacdes at night. Three Fingered 

Jack, night shot with star trails. Throwing 

clothes and camera gear into a pack, I 

headed cross-country over the snow to a 

high ridge where I found an unobstructed 

view of Three Fingered Jack. Clear skies 

soon presented the possibility to capture 

images of star trails that I’d wanted for 

a long time. What was anticipated as a 

two-hour shoot lasted until 1 a.m. Canon 

30D 17-85 lens at 17 mm f/5.0 1,514.0 

seconds (25 minutes) ISO 320. 

HIGH WIRE Slackline to the mouth of 

Monkey Face. Smith Rock State Park 

is a world-class climbing destination. 

Monkey Face is a landmark tower in the 

park. A handful of days each year a few 

fearless climbers seeking a diversion 

from climbing the routes at Smith Rock 

anchor flat webbing used to traverse 

high above the ground.


Sunset with Mt. Hood and Trillium Lake. The half dozen photographers along the water’s edge that evening knew they 

were in the right place at the right time. The colors continued to build, the shutters clicked away. At one point, I heard 

one of the photographers say, “I’m so excited I can’t shoot!” That was proof to me that a grand sunset was there for the 

taking. To capture this image, I used a polarizer and a neutral grad filter along with a tripod, cable release, mirror lock up, 

and a level bubble. 


gallery 

SAWYER’S CAVE A caver examining 

icicles where total darkness reins deep 

inside Sawyer’s Cave. 

FIRE DANCER Fyreflyte, a group of fire 

dancers perform in downtown Bend to 

captivated crowds. Canon 20D 17-85 

lens at 20 mm lens f/13.0 0.4 seconds 

ISO 800. 

Three Sisters from Mt. Bachelor. 

A forty-minute snowshoe in the dark 

at 6 below zero positioned me at this 

vantage point as this incredible light 

appeared highlighting a lone tree heavily 

coated in rime ice. 


photo Jake Stangel

“We struggled financially at first. Sometimes I went without 

a paycheck, or coughed up some money to cover the payroll.” 

- Harry Rinehart, M.D. 

wriiten by Lee Lewis Husk 

Strong 

Medicine 

For most americans, the gateway to healthcare is through a 

job, turning 65 or poverty. But what about the unemployed, 

the young and the working poor? About 637,000 Oregonians 

in 2008 were uninsured — 16.8 percent compared with 15.4 

percent nationwide. Excluding those 65 and older who qualify for 

Medicare, one in three Oregonians had no health insurance between 

2007 and 2008. With soaring unemployment, Oregon had 

the 12th highest uninsured rate in the country, according to the 

Oregon Health Policy and Research office. 

In an era when health care costs are far outpacing our ability to 

pay for them, where do people go when they break a leg or develop 

diabetes? Who takes care of them? 

The current trends don’t offer much comfort. People are out 

of work. The Oregon Health Plan for low-income people has a 

waiting list. Family health insurance premiums have shot into the 

stratosphere, averaging $1,049 a month in 2008 compared with 

$467 in 1998. Businesses are either dropping health insurance or 

shifting more of the costs to their employees. 

These doctors have gone far beyond the call of their jobs to answer a higher calling of 

humanity. They have found ways to bring critical health care to people who would 

not otherwise be able to pay for it. 

Even those with insurance can’t always get care, especially 

if they are geographically distant from clinics and hospitals or 

because high co-pays and deductibles cause them to delay or forego 

preventive services. Plus, the high cost of medical care foreshadows 

bankruptcy. This is reality. 

In this feature, 1859 profiles three extraordinary medical 

practices that care for people regardless of their ability to pay, plus 

a collection of physicians who are taking their expertise and that 

generous ethic abroad. 

A common thread between these medical providers is that 

they have found ways, or donated their time and expertise, to 

bring critical health care to people who would not otherwise be 

able to pay for it. 


strong medicine 

Rinehart’s Rural Clinic 

a century of service 

... We’ve done what the nation hasn’t 

been able to do—provide care to 

everyone who graces our door. 

- harry rinehart, m.d. 

“grandpa developed a formula for treating arthritis that was 

very effective,” recalls Harry Rinehart, M.D. “We don’t know what it 

was, but he told people it was clam juice from Nehalem Bay.” 

Harry is the third generation of Rinehart physicians to care for 

people in north Tillamook County. In addition to his grandfather, 

his parents, Robert and Dorothy, both M.D.s, practiced in 

the small coastal community of Wheeler. Harry chose to practice 

in Prineville until the U.S. Army Reserves called him to serve in 

Desert Storm. In 1992, he returned to Wheeler where he faced a 

personal dilemma. 

The county has twice the national rates of poverty and elderly, “giving 

us a high burden of illness,” Rinehart says. A private practitioner 

would have to limit service to the poor to sustain a medical practice; 

yet Rinehart couldn’t imagine turning away old friends and neighbors 

whose taxes supported his education and the benefits it gave him. 

His solution was to open a private, nonprofit organization run by a 

board of directors. The Rinehart Clinic opened in 1996, the only fulltime 

medical practice between Seaside and Tillamook. “We struggled 

financially at first,” Rinehart recalls. “Sometimes I went without a 

paycheck, or coughed up some money to cover the payroll.” 

With improvements in billing and collection, and rising patient 

volumes, the clinic began to thrive in the early 2000s. Today it is one 

of the largest employers in the area with about thirty employees. It 

records 13,000 visits a year from residents and tourists. Patients are 

seen on a sliding fee scale, with charges as low as $5 a visit. In 2008, 

it became a Federally Qualified Health Center, which gives it higher 

reimbursement rates from Medicare and a federal grant of about 

$120,000 a year. 

The nonprofit status allows the clinic to solicit donations. Rinehart 

calls it his favorite charity. “I give more to the Rinehart Clinic 

than to any other organization—and I enjoy it. I don’t mind at all 

asking community members for $10,000 and up, because I’ve given 

more.” Donations range from as little as $10 a year to $50,000. 

“He’s a Renaissance man, an Oregon native and a highly-skilled 

primary care physician,” says Leila Salmon, current board chair. 

“And his letters of appeal show evidence of his heartfelt dedication to 

the community he serves.” In 2009, donors gave more than $100,000 

for the clinic. 

“Rural clinics are key to getting health care to residents in rural 

areas,” says Robert Duehmig of the state Office of Rural Health. 

“Without them, people would have to drive great distances to get 

what care they could. Rural clinics survive because of people like Dr. 

Rinehart. I wish we could clone him.” 

Rinehart, 64, says he can’t imagine doing anything else. “We’ve 

resurrected a rural health care delivery system that is second to 

none, and we’ve done what the nation hasn’t been able to do—provide 

care to everyone who graces our door.” 

photo Jake Stangel 



Volunteers in Medicine 

clinic of the cascades 

back in the 1970s, when the rest of Oregon 

was experiencing physician shortages, Bend 

enjoyed an enviable influx of doctors. But 

what do all those docs do when they retire? 

Ronald Carver, M.D., an obstetrician/ 

gynecologist who came to Bend in 1974, 

heard about a clinic in Hilton Head, South 

Carolina, that used retired health care professionals 

and community volunteers to care 

for the local uninsured population. 

Carver and several community leaders 

visited Oregon’s first VIM clinic in Eugene 

and then sent letters to area health professionals 

asking if they would participate in a 

free clinic. The response was “unbelievably 

positive,” says Carver. With a parcel of land 

from St. Charles Medical Center, a large 

anonymous donation and community funds 

to build the clinic, and pledges of time from 

countless clinicians, VIM started seeing 

patients in 2004. 

In Deschutes County, where today 19 percent 

of residents are uninsured, Volunteers in 

Medicine (VIM) Clinic of the Cascades fills a 

huge gap in the lives of thousands of patients. 

“Bend is unique,” says Carver, who served 

as VIM’s first medical director. “This type of 

clinic can’t happen everywhere.” 

The clinic, which receives no government 

or insurance funding, exists almost entirely 

on the largess of local businesses, individuals 

and hundreds of volunteers. To avoid 

overlap with other programs, VIM serves 

the working poor—people who don’t qualify 

for the Oregon Health Plan, Medicare or 

whose employer doesn’t provide insurance. 

Since 2004, VIM has cared for more than 

6,000 of these people. The clinic expects 

to see about 2,600 patients in 2010, 

according to Kat Mastrangelo, executive 

director. Although this is about the same 

number of patients VIM saw in 2009, the 

number of visits will increase because its 

patients are sicker and now average five, 

rather than three, visits a year. The clinic 

is at capacity, she says. 

As a team, we’re making a real difference. 

- ronald carver, m.d., 

founder of volunteers in medicine 

clinic of the cascades 

Other VIM clinics that don’t have Bend’s large retired population 

and volunteers typically have higher staffing costs. Nearly half of the 

volunteers are retired physicians, nurses and other health care practitioners. 

In 2009, VIM’s 295 active volunteers logged 22,366 hours. 

The clinic raised $729,285, with 57 percent coming from individual 

donors. VIM estimates that it donates $2.5 million worth of service, 

pharmaceuticals and pro bono care each year. 

The facility focuses on primary care and coordination of specialty 

care with a network of 185 specialists who accept VIM patients by 

referral on a pro bono basis. 

Carver, who retired in 2001, emphasizes that the clinic couldn’t 

happen without community-wide support. “As a team, we’re making 

a real difference,” says Carver. 

photo Terry Manier 



Brave 

Women 

of ethiopia 

It was really sad to see the many women we 

weren’t able to provide care for after they had 

walked for hours to reach us. — rahel nardos m.d. 

in february, five oregon physicians took temporary leave 

from their jobs and boarded planes for a destination half a world 

away to stitch together the lives of twenty-seven women. They were 

broken by poverty, lacking education and had no access to decent 

health care. 

For six days and nights, the Americans worked indefatigably 

alongside local doctors and nurses in a hospital in rural Gimbie, 

Ethiopia to heal women with uterine prolapse, an injury of obstructed 

labor and hard physical exertion. Many of the women 

had walked for days, lining up outside the little seventy-one-bed 

hospital for the chance to live without pain and the social stigma 

that comes from having unhitched female parts fall to the outside. 

It’s a condition rarely encountered in the West where women 

have access to prenatal care, birth attendants and surgeons to 

perform emergency C-sections. 

“Women walk from sunrise to sunset, carrying huge loads of 

wood for fuel, water and kids on their backs,” says Ethiopian-born 

Rahel Nardos, M.D. She left the country seventeen years ago for 

a chance at an American education. Now 35, she’s in a urogynecology 

fellowship at Oregon Health & Science University, reinforcing 

her education with the skills and knowledge she needs for 

this and future missions to her native land. “If women are unable 

to carry these loads, their families sometimes abandon them, or 

their children might have to fend for themselves,” she says. 

In just two hours in Gimbie, Philippa Ribbink, M.D., saw four 

cases of severe prolapse – about the same 

number as she’s seen in twelve years of practice. 

“The amount of prolapse there was unbelievable,” 

she says. She and Kimberly Suriano, 

M.D., both obstetricians/gynecologists at 

Everywoman’s Health clinic in Portland, were 

in Ethiopia for the first time, part of a team of 

Oregonians hoping to establish an ongoing 

relationship with the Gimbie hospital. 

Word of the American surgeons’ presence 

in Gimbie spread quickly, and soon the hospital 

had far more women than it could help. 

“It was really sad to see the many women we 

weren’t able to provide care for after they had 

walked for hours to reach us,” Nardos says. 

With the right care, this condition can be 

prevented through family planning, midwifery 

and nurse training, community outreach 

and education, and pre- and post-natal 

care and emergency obstetrical care. 

Nardos hopes that OHSU and the Gimbie 

hospital can establish an ongoing collaboration, 

where OHSU physicians experience health 

care unlike anything they’ll see at home and 

Ethiopian women get their lives restored. 

“After surgery, one patient sounded like 

she’d been reborn,” Nardos says. “She was 

kissing everyone and hugging us—she was 

so grateful.” 

The Oregon team, which also included 

OB/GYN Michael Cheek, M.D., of Lincoln 

City, and his brother David Cheek, M.D., a 

Portland-based anesthesiologist, taught two 

local doctors the latest techniques of prolapse 

repair so that they could continue doing 

cases after the Americans went home. 

Because of the extreme overcrowding and 

lack of nurses at the hospital, the women who 

had prolapse surgery were discharged after 

just two days. Women in the West who get 

this type of repair are advised not to lift anything 

more than five pounds for two months. 

Nardos knew that they’d be lifting heavy objects 

soon after the surgery because their lives 

and their children’s lives depended on it. 

“What kind of brutal doctor am I to send 

women home after two days,” Nardos asked 

after returning home. “But I know that I 

didn’t have a choice. We had to be conscious 

of not abusing their system and making sure 

patients left on time.” 

photo Joni Kabana 



photo Jake Stangel 

Salem 

Physician’s Mantra: 

whatever it takes to help the children 

james lace, m.d., pauses midway through a telephone interview, 

and says, “I’m buying a lottery ticket now.” 

If he wins the jackpot, he has big plans: help more orphans and 

homeless kids in Tanzania, bring clean water to Maasai villagers 

and set up rotations in Tanzania for students from Oregon 

Health & Science University, Western Oregon University and 

Pacific University. 

His international humanitarian work follows decades of advocacy 

for children in Oregon. Lace, 61, started Childhood Health Associates 

in Salem in 1977, fresh from a pediatric residency. The clinic’s staff, 

he says, really pushes the envelope for kids. Unlike most clinics that 

adhere to a formula for profit, Childhood Health Associates doesn’t 

limit the number of poor or under-insured patients it sees. The 

clinic also employs four full-time interpreters to serve the third of 

its patients who are Hispanic. About 60 percent of its patients are 

covered by the Oregon Health Plan, 30 percent have commercial 

insurance and the remainder of patients pay out of pocket. 

The clinic never allows the lack of money to prevent children 

from getting their vaccines or other needed services, Lace says. 

Advocacy for him starts with two questions: Why are kids 

dying and what can we do to prevent children from dying? He has 

successfully lobbied the Oregon legislature to require child safety 

seats, bike helmets and to give newborns vitamin K to prevent 

bleeding. In 2009, he was instrumental in the successful passage 

of the Healthy Kids Plan, the state’s landmark law providing health 

coverage for all Oregon children. 

Lace’s mission hasn’t gone unnoticed. His colleagues have 

nominated him for a prestigious award with the American Academy 

of Pediatrics. The Oregon Medical Association named him 2006 

Doctor Citizen of the Year, and the Marion-Polk County Medical 

Society honored him with the President’s Achievement Award. 

In 2001, Lace went to Tanzania as a doc on a climbing 

expedition to Mount Kilimanjaro and “got sucked into the tragedy 

of HIV-affected orphans.” He asked himself, “How can I walk 

away?” He couldn’t, and now Lace travels to Africa a couple times 

a year to help get kids off the streets, off drugs and into vocational 

training. He volunteered with Medical Teams International in 

tsunami-ravaged Sri Lanka in 2005 and 2006, and is currently 

waiting to hear whether he’ll be part of a medical team to Haiti. 

The 2010 Oregon legislature passed a resolution commending 

Lace for his service to children locally and internationally. One of 

the resolution’s sponsors, Sen. Jackie Winters, of Salem, has been 

on missions to Africa with Lace and says that “he contributes so 

much in this country and now he’s taking [his work] abroad.” 

The Lace resolution notes thirteen deeds, each one a selfless act of 

caring in a long and distinguished mission spanning thirty years. 

The clinic never allows 

the lack of money to prevent 

children from getting 

vaccines or other 

needed services. - james lace, m.d. 


Oregon Living 

FOOD & WINE, THE GREAT OUTDOORS AND TRAVEL 

69 Home Grown 

Growing grapes and 

making good food go 

hand in hand in the 

vineyards of Oregon 

78 Outdooregon 

The famed Pole 

Pedal Paddle courts 

Olympians to weekend 

warriors, and there’s 

always a story 

82 Design 

Two lush Oregon 

gardens and tips for 

creating your own 

89 Explore Guide 

Restaurants, hotels and 

recreation for putting 

together your next 

Oregon vacation 

Wine 

Recipes 

Inside >> 

Eat Drink 

Graze Love 

by Cathy Carroll 

photos by Clare Carver 

Winemakers in tiny Gaston strike a balance 

in winemaking, sustainable farming and life 

outside of Napa Valley 

brian marcy and clare 

Carver live by a seemingly 

simple creed: eat, drink, enjoy. 

In heeding this doctrine, Carver, 

37, a graphic artist, and Marcy, 

40, a winemaker from Napa Valley, 

were raising chickens and 

growing food on a 7,000-squarefoot 

lot at their home in the renowned 

California wine region. 

Convinced that the best 

food and wine require the finest, 

freshest ingredients, they 

searched for land they could 

afford, so they could grow their 

own grapes and raise animals. 

By 2006, they had laid claim 

to 70 acres in Gaston, a blink 

of a town at the northern edge 

of Oregon’s wine-growing 

region 23 miles west of Portland. 

Marcy and Carver gave 

it the name Big Table Farm, 

and began raising free-range 

poultry, pigs, cows, and egglaying 

chickens. Creating a 

vineyard—particularly on land 

that hadn’t been farmed for 

more than half a century—is a 

slow and expensive process. » 


Oregon Living 

home grown 

Life at the Big Table 

above: The “Big Table” at Big Table Farm regularly hosts guests and friends. Reserved group dinners and events are frequent 

at the farm, when Marcy cooks many of his signature dishes from the farm’s home-grown produce and animal products. 


home grown 

Oregon Living 

In the interim, the couple has been leasing 

land at other vineyards and buying grapes, 

mostly from Willamette Valley farms with 

environmentally responsible farming practices. 

Since their first Pinot, Syrah and rosé 

were released in 2006, they have earned 

high marks. 

“My wine making is very hands-off. I just 

sort of guide the grapes, and they make the 

wine themselves,” says Marcy. “I don’t add 

yeast or enzymes or modern winemaking 

ingredients. It’s a really old process. People 

have been making wine for thousands of 

years, and additives have only been around 

“My wine making 

is very hands-off. 

I just sort of guide 

the grapes, and they 

make the wine 

themselves.” 

- BRIAN MARCY 

the last fifty. With just a little bit of thought, 

there are lots of other ways to do it.” 

The Wine Advocate, called the 2006 Big 

Table Farm Syrah “superb,” and gave it 90 

points, citing its blackberry and acacia flower 

notes, good acidity, and “beautiful purity 

and length.” Last fall the San Francisco 

Chronicle picked the 2008 Big Table Farm 

Resonance Vineyard Yamhill-Carlton Pinot 

noir as one of the top Pinot noirs of the year, 

acknowledging a “burnt orange peel, sweet 

extracted cherry and a bell-clear cranberry 

highlight, with a mineral edge.” In February, 

The Oregonian chose that same wine as a 

top Pinot, for its silky texture, lightly spiced 

baked fruit flavors, and even the “keepsakeworthy” 

label featuring Carver’s drawing of 

resident cow, Josephine, smiling. 

Josephine has good reason to look content 

on that label. When Marcy and Carver were 

looking for farmland, they were reading 

Michael Pollan’s 2006 book, The Omnivore’s 

Dilemma, seminal in the small-farm movement. 

In part, it profiled Joel Salatin and 

his small-scale ecological rotation farm in 

Virginia, where he adheres to natural conditions 

as closely as possible, recycles waste 

and uses few artificial products. 

“It really struck a chord,” says Carver. 

Soon the couple adopted a managed intensive 

grazing system and farming methods 

that would build the soil and sequester 

carbon. For example, their pigs, chickens 

and organic egg-laying hens move around 

the farm to fresh, clean grassy grazing areas. 

The wheel-mounted “winnapigo” and 

“chicken bus,” made with scrap metal from 

the property, provide shade, rain protection 

and rainwater troughs at each fresh 

grazing site. Solar-powered electric fences 

keep the pigs, cows, horses and goats on 

alternating stretches of land at a time. The 

only fertilizer at the farm comes from the 

grazing animals. 

Carver uses her newly-trained team of 

draft horses to pull a harrow, a raking tool 

that looks like a section of chain link fencing, 

and aerates and spreads manure. The 

low-emissions horse-powered plow is in 

line with their lofty aspiration–certified 

biodynamic farming. Beyond the standards 

of organic farming, biodynamic farming 

certification looks at the entire farm as one 

self-sustaining organism. “I look at it like 

yoga,” she says. “You practice, and maybe 

someday you attain a proficiency level.” 

Producing meat is just one of several 

BIG TABLE FARM 

gaston 

503.662.3129 

bigtablefarm.com 

CUCINA BIAZZI 

Ashland 

541.488.3739 

cucinabiazzi.com 

THE DUNDEE BISTRO 

Dundee 

503.554.1650 

dundeebistro.com 

LE PIGEON 

portland 

503.546.8796 

lepigeon.com 

VIDEO JOURNAL 

See our OPB partner video 

on Organic Vineyards at 

1859magazine.com. 


Oregon Living 

home grown 

left: Brian Marcy and Clare Carver making wine at their Big Table Farm. right: At Le Pigeon in Portland, Gabriel Rucker, right, 

nominated for “rising star chef of the year” in the 2010 James Beard Foundation Awards and Sous chef Erik Van Kley. 

lines of business the couple runs. 

There’s the winery, Marcy’s winemaking 

consulting, seasonal dinners at the farm’s 

big table, and Carver’s graphic design 

and painting. “I realized we need to have 

weekly meetings—just the two of us—to 

plan and make sure we were on the same 

page,” Marcy says. 

Clearly, living and working that closely 

with another person is challenging, Carver 

says. This is a situation, however, that has 

strengthened their partnership. “It’s like my 

horses. If they both aren’t pulling their weight 

the same way at the same time, things get all 

catywompus and don’t work right.” 

When things don’t work right, Marcy can 

often cook his way out of it. “You could be 

mad as hell at your husband, and then he 

makes a homemade pizza with prosciutto 

from one of our pigs that he cured, and kale 

and some other gorgeous thing, and you 

can’t stay mad,” Carver admits. 

The final part of the couple's creed— 

enjoy—largely involves sharing their food 

and wine with others, at their 16-foot-long 

table for which their farm was named. 

From their window, they can see the 

south-facing slope where, soon, they hope 

to plant their own acres of Chardonnay, 

Riesling and Pinot. 

Cooking with Wine 

from growers to restaurateurs, chefs 

from some of the best restaurants around the 

state described how they use wine in their dishes. 

At Le Pigeon in Portland, Gabriel Rucker, 

nominated as a 2010 James Beard Foundation 

Awards’ “rising star chef of the year,” 

estimates he uses up to nine cases a week 

in cooking. His most notable use of wine is 

in the beef cheek bourguignon, an adaptation 

of the classic French dish, in which 

Rucker braises the beef cheeks overnight in 

burgundy wine. 

A new dish for spring is his version of 

French onion soup that includes pigeon 

marinated overnight in “cheap pinot,” and 

topped with a bone marrow crostini. 

“(Sous chef) Erik Van Kley and I were 

talking about how to get pigeon back on 

the menu, and we were throwing ideas back 

and forth, and Erik said, ‘Why not put red 

wine in it? How about zinfandel?’” Rucker 

suggested the more subtle Pinot to not 

overwhelm the pigeon. “We let the wine be 

the stagehand rather than the star,” he says. 

At The Dundee Bistro, founded in 

Dundee wine country by the Oregon wine 

pioneering Ponzi family, chef Jason Stoller 

Smith showcases the Willamette Valley’s 

finest wines and ingredients. He says that 

winemakers who dine there love the Manila 

clams (see recipe on p. 74), steamed with 

Oregon Pinot gris, and finished with butter, 

cream and parsley. 

He also makes a dessert dish for which he 

macerates Oregon berries then steeps them 

in Oregon Pinot noir, with a little sugar. 

“It’s great over ice cream and meats, 

where you wouldn’t necessarily expect it,” 

Smith says. It’s a perfect treat to serve, he 

says, during the International Pinot Noir 

Celebration in McMinnville in July, when 

hundreds of visitors converge on the area 

to celebrate the Oregon varietal. 

At Cucina Biazzi in Ashland, wine is 

used to create variations of several traditional 

Tuscan dishes. Sous chef Shane Hardin 

says that, in summer, a lighter version of the 

classic Bolognese sauce for pasta employs 

white wine, chicken and pork. In winter, a 

more robust, comforting version is created 

with Chianti Classico, beef, pork and sausage. 

Both are scented with nutmeg and fennel 

and finished with cream and butter. Another 

dish Hardin likes in the cold months is 

spezzatino, a classic Tuscan dish of braised 

pork with prunes and cooked with Chianti 

Classico, sage, onions, garlic, tomatoes, 

chicken and beef stock. In summer, he uses 

Grecante white wine for a softer version of 

the dish. 


old world elegance. new world style. 

GO WINE TASTING! 

The Guide to Willamette Valley Wineries includes 180 wineries 

and tasting rooms, a tour map, Where to Stay & Eat and Things 

to See & Do. Request a copy at willamettewines.com. 

DON’T MISS MEMORIAL WEEKEND IN THE WINE COUNTRY May 29-31, 2010

Oregon Living 

home grown 

Chocolate Hazelnut Torte 

with Pinot gris grappa 

(serves 8-10) 

Created by Diana Lett of Eyrie Vineyards 

½ pound butter 

½ pound Callebaut semi-sweet 

chocolate, or other fine chocolate 

½ cup Eyrie Pinot gris grappa 

or good brandy 

½ pound wheatmeal biscuits, 

coarsely crushed 

Slightly sweetened whipped cream, 

for garnish 

½ cup coarsely chopped dry-roasted 

hazelnuts, for garnish 

a day ahead Butter the sides of an 8-inch springform 

pan, and line the bottom with buttered wax paper. 

Melt the butter and chocolate together in a double boiler. 

Beat the eggs and sugar together until foamy, and 

add the melted butter and chocolate. Add the brandy 

and crushed biscuits. Stir together gently, and pour into 

the paper-lined pan. Refrigerate overnight. 

day of Unmold, peel off the paper, and slice into 

servings. Garnish each serving with a generous dollop 

of slightly sweetened whipped cream. Sprinkle 

with the chopped roasted hazelnuts or shaved 

chocolate, if desired. 

Wine Country Manila Clams 

Serve with 2009 Ponzi Pinot gris 

Created by chef Jason Stoller Smith 

of The Dundee Bistro 

1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil 

1 clove garlic, sliced thin 

1 shallot, peeled and minced 

1 pound Manila clams, rinsed 

1 cup Oregon Pinot gris 

1 tablespoon butter 

¼ cup whole whipping cream 

¼ cup Italian flat leaf parsley, rinsed and minced 

Kosher salt and fresh ground pepper to taste 

In a sauce pan, heat olive oil and garlic over medium-high heat. 

Stir to prevent browning. When garlic is cooked through but not 

yet browned, add shallot and clams, toss a bit to warm through. 

Add Oregon Pinot gris and reduce by half. Add butter, cream, 

parsley, salt and pepper. Cover and cook until clams open. Season. 


home grown 

Oregon Living 

Pear Salad 

with Pinot noir glaze and 

warm walnut vinaigrette 

(serves 4) 

Created by chef Gavin McMichael, 

of Blacksmith Restaurant in Bend 

Pears 

2 Bartlett or Anjou pears 

1 bottle Oregon Pinot noir 

¼ cup of sugar 

1 star anise 

½ teaspoon black peppercorns 

½ teaspoon kosher salt 

Vinaigrette 

1 medium shallot, finely chopped 

3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped 

1¼ cups olive oil 

1 cup toasted walnut pieces 

½ cup white wine 

1 tablespoon white wine vinegar 

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard 

String Potatoes or Frites 

1 russet potato, peeled 

1 quart canola oil 

For assembly 

3 cups of mixed greens 

1 cup of crumbled 

Oregonzola bleu cheese 

Peel the pears. Combine the remaining ingredients in 

a pot and bring to a simmer. Let simmer for 5 minutes. 

Add the pears, and cook them over medium-low heat 

for about 20 minutes, or until fork tender. Remove 

from the liquid to a bowl of ice water for one minute 

to stop cooking. Reserve liquid. Continue reducing the 

poaching liquid over medium-high heat for about 15 

to 20 minutes, until reduced by two-thirds. Remove 

from the heat, and allow to cool. 

To make the warm walnut vinaigrette, sauté the 

shallots and the garlic in two tablespoons of the oil, 

in a medium-sized pan over medium heat. Add the 

walnut pieces, and stir for 20 to 30 seconds. Add the 

wine and white wine vinegar. With a whisk, add the 

Dijon, then slowly stream in the remaining oil, whisking 

constantly, until completely incorporated. Heat the 

vinaigrette over very low heat. 

Fill a large, heavy pot halfway with oil. Heat to 360˚F. 

On a vegetable turner (found at most kitchen stores) 

spin the potato into strings, or cut into very thin strips. 

Dry the prepped potato quickly with a towel, then 

place in the oil to fry until golden. You will need to 

turn them for even cooking. Remove the potato from 

the oil and put in a bowl lined with paper towels to 

drain and cool. 

Slice the pears lengthwise on either side of the 

core into six even pieces. With a spoon, take some of 

the cooled reduced cooking liquid (which should be 

a syrupy consistency) and stream or streak onto the 

plate. Place one of the largest pear slices down on 

the plate over the pear glaze. Place some of the bleu 

cheese crumbles on the pear slice, then some of the 

greens dressed in a little oil, then carefully place the 

next largest piece of pear on top and repeat. Spoon 

some of the warm walnut vinaigrette next to the 

stacked pear, and garnish with the potato nest or frites. 


Oregon Living 

home grown chef 

Coq au Pinot Noir 

(SERVES 4-6) 

Oregon 

Home 

Grown 

by Lisa Glickman, Home Grown Chef 

photos by Paula Watts 

tHe two Hardest tHings about making 

coq au vin is remembering to plan a whole 

day ahead, and using more than an entire 

bottle of precious Oregon Pinot noir just 

in the recipe. Just do your prep the night 

before, and you're already halfway there. 

The next day, you can do a bit at a time 

and get most of your ingredients knocked 

out before you start cooking the actual 

dish. Take your time, and enjoy a glass or 

two of Pinot noir while you cook. 

Pinot noir is well suited to pork, lamb, 

beef, poultry and even fish. It plays well 

with rich sauces as well as spicy seasonings, 

making it one of the most versatile 

food wines. The wine used in coq au vin 

is typically Burgundy, where Pinot noir 

grapes are grown, making this the perfect 

dish to showcase our Oregon Pinot noir. 

The word coq is French for rooster. Old 

hens or roosters were used in this dish because 

they were tough birds and benefited 

greatly from a long slow braise to make 

them tender. These days most all recipes 

call for chicken, but the slow braise in wine 

and vegetables is still the same. Caramelized 

pearl onions, sautéed mushrooms and 

crispy bacon lardons make this a beautiful 

dish for entertaining on a cool spring night. 

Serve with buttered egg noodles, a light 

spring salad and crusty bread 

Choose a reasonably priced Pinot noir for 

the recipe, and then serve the finished dish 

with the best you can afford. I used a Viridian 

2006 Pinot noir from Rickreall, Oregon 

for around $12 a bottle in this recipe. 

1 bottle plus one cup Oregon 

pinot noir 

1 onion cut in ½ inch dice 

2 carrots cut in ½ inch dice 

2 celery ribs cut in ½ inch dice 

4 whole cloves 

1 tablespoon whole black peppercorns 

1 bouquet garni* 

1 whole chicken cut into pieces 

(or a combination of parts, bone in 

and skin on) 

Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper 

2 tablespoons olive oil 

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided 

1 tablespoon flour 

¼ pound smoked bacon, cut into 

lardons, or ½ by 1 inch oblong strips 

½ pound white mushrooms 

20 pearl onions, blanched in boiling 

water and peeled 

* Bouquet garni is a few sprigs of flat leaf parsley, a few 

sprigs of fresh thyme and a couple of bay leaves tied 

together with kitchen twine. 

a day ahead Combine the bottle of Pinot noir, the 

diced onion, diced carrots, celery, cloves, peppercorns, 

and bouquet garni in a large, deep bowl. Add the 

chicken and submerge it in the liquid so that all of 

it is covered. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and 

refrigerate overnight. 

day of Remove the chicken from the marinade and 

pat it dry. Put it aside. Strain the marinade through a 

fine strainer, reserving the liquids and solids separately. 

Season the chicken with salt and pepper. In a large 

Dutch oven, heat the oil and two tablespoons of the 

butter to medium high. Sear the chicken on all sides to 

evenly brown the skin. Once browned, remove it from 

the pot and set it aside again. Add the reserved onions, 

celery and carrots to the pan and cook over mediumhigh 

heat, stirring occasionally, until they are soft and 

golden brown. About 10 minutes. 

Sprinkle the flour over the vegetables and mix well. 

Cook for about one minute. Stir in the reserved strained 

marinade. Put the chicken back in the pot along with the 

bouquet garni. Bring to a boil, turn to low and cook for 

about one and a half hours over low heat. 

While your chicken stews slowly in the pot, cook the 

bacon lardons in a sauté pan over medium heat until 

golden brown. Remove bacon from pan and drain on 

paper towels. Make sure to leave about two tablespoons 

bacon grease in the pan. Sauté the mushrooms 

in the bacon grease until golden brown. Set aside with 

the bacon. In a small sauce pan, combine the pearl 

onions, a pinch of sugar, a pinch of salt and enough 

water to just cover the onions, and cover the pan with 

parchment paper. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, 

and cook until the water has evaporated. Remove the 

paper cover and continue to cook until the onions 

are golden brown. Set the onions aside and add the 

remaining cup of Pinot noir, scraping up all the brown 

fond on the bottom of the pan. Reduce by half over 

medium heat. 

When the chicken is done, carefully remove to a deep 

serving platter and tent with foil to keep warm. Strain 

the cooking liquid into the reduced Pint noir. Add 

the bacon, mushrooms and pearl onions to the wine 

sauce, and adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper. 

Swirl in the remaining two tablespoons of butter and 

pour the sauce over the chicken. 


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OLD WORLD ELEGANCE AND ROMANCE.

Oregon Living 

outdooregon 

Racing 

Mountain 

to Town 

From humble origins, 

Bend’s Olympian-laden 

Pole Paddle Pedal has 

mass appeal 

wHen Jenny and daVe sHeldon left Jackson, 

Wyoming to move to Bend in 1975, they 

brought with them the idea of a new type of 

outdoor sports competition involving alpine 

and Nordic skiing, paddling and cycling, an 

event similar to what had been run successfully 

in Jackson that spring. 

Settled in Bend and with a season of skiing 

at Mt. Bachelor under their belts, the 

Sheldons decided a multisport event would 

go over well with Bend’s growing outdoor 

sports community. 

In May of 1976, they staged Bend’s first 

Pole Pedal Paddle. “It was a drought year,” 

recalls Bend native and former alpine ski 

coach Terry Foley, “and there wasn’t enough 

snow to have the alpine leg of the race.” 

From that year on, the format for the Pole 

Pedal Paddle (dubbed the PPP) was set. It 

begins with a short mass-start uphill run to 

alpine skis and the top of the downhill ski 

leg of the race. Downhill skiers then switch 

skis and boots to begin the 5-mile crosscountry 

ski on a course that ends in a grueling 

quarter-mile climb to the bike transition. 

The 25-mile cycling leg from Mount 

Bachelor to Bend is predominantly downhill, 

with one tough hill climb within the 

first few miles. The transition from the bike 

to the 5-mile run is often cited as being the 

toughest. Today’s running course follows 

Century Drive back up the mountain, with 

a little elevation gain and back to the Old 

Mill District along the Deschutes River. 

From there, runners take to kayak, canoe, 

or anything that floats on the Deschutes 

River for a mile and a half paddle. Finally, 

by Bob Woodward 

photos by Alan Huestis 

a scramble ashore and a short sprint to the 

finish line in the Old Mill District. 

From its inception, the race was divided 

into two distinct participation categories: individuals 

and teams. Within the team competition 

there are many sub-categories from 

mixed teams to same-sex teams, to pairs in 

different combinations and all in various age 

brackets. Today, there are a total of forty-five 

team classes in the event. 

In the PPP’s early years, individual male and 

female winners were experienced alpine skiers. 

That quickly changed as Bend became known 

as a premier North American destination for 

Nordic ski racers in training. From the late ,70s 

on, the race’s individual competition has been 

dominated by cross-country skiers. 

Justin Wadsworth, a former Olympian 

(Lillehammer, Nagano, Salt Lake City) 

holds the record for the most individual 

wins by a male with eight. Second to 

Wadsworth with six wins is Ben Husaby, 

another former Olympian (Albertville and 

Lillehammer). 

Husaby’s wife, Julie Verke, won the women’s 

title five times, a record she shares with Suzanne 

King, two-time Olympian (Lillehammer 

and Nagano). 


Gearing 

Up 

The Right 

Stuff for the PPP 

If you want to compete in style, 

here are some ideas on the right 

gear to use. 

alpine ski leg 

Good: Recreational alpine (slalom) skis 

Better: GS or Super G skis 

Best: Downhill racing skis 

cross-country ski leg 

Good: Stable waxless skis 

Better: High performance skate skis 

Best: Racing skate skis waxed to perform 

cycling leg 

Good: A stock road bike 

Better: A road racing bike with low gearing 

Best: A time-trial bike with aero bars and rear 

disk wheel and aero helmet 

running leg 

Good/Better/Best: Shoes that are easy to put 

on and are relatively lightweight 

paddling leg 

Good: A stable touring kayak or recreational canoe 

Better: A sea kayak with a rudder 

Best: Either a downriver racing kayak or surfski 

cost 

Good Gear: Stuff you or your teammates 

already own 

Better Gear: Time to stress the credit card a bit 

Best Gear: Contact a lending institution pronto 

Early registration deadline is April 20 ($67). 

Regular registration deadline is May 10 ($77). 

top: The Nordic-to-bike transition at Mt. Bachelor. Cross-country skiers are happy to see their 

bikes at the top of a quarter-mile climb. left: Skiers, still wearing their helmets from the alpine 

leg coming in to the 25-mile bike leg. right: In the individual competition, races are won and lost 

on the grueling 5-mile run. Legs, just get me to the paddle! 

On the surface, it would appear that Nordic 

skiing Olympians would always have the 

edge. It wasn’t always so as three-time Olympian 

(Lake Placid, Sarajevo and Calgary) 

Dan Simoneau found out. “In the 1985 PPP,” 

Simoneau recalled, “I figured, as an Olympian, 

I could do anything. I opted to paddle a 

very fast but unstable kayak, thinking I could 

muscle through the paddle leg.” 

Simoneau was well ahead in the individual 

competition when it came to the paddle, the 

last long leg. On the water, things started to 

unravel. “I dumped the boat three times and 

had to swim to shore to empty it and get go- 

ing again,” he says. “Soon people were passing 

me. Two more bailouts and swims, and I 

went from first to a very wet fifth. I became 

famous that day for my swimming.” 

The following year, Simoneau listened to 

the advice of experienced paddlers and opted 

for a sluggish yet stable kayak and won the individual 

title handily. A year after that, with 

months of paddling training, he went back to 

the fast, narrow and unstable kayak. By then, 

he had learned to balance the reed-like boat 

to win his final PPP. 

During Simoneau’s agony of defeat and 

winning years, the PPP came of age. The 

Each mug is handmade in 

potter Bill Earhart’s studio in 

Tumalo. After throwing the 

mugs, Earhart adds an embossed 

PPP logo, date and key sponsor 

information. Then the mugs 

are fired, cooled and are ready 

to be awarded. 


Oregon Living 

outdooregon 

left: Every winter since 1997, potter Bill Earhart, 46, begins the lengthy process of turning 1,200 pounds 

of clay into 800 to 1,000 mugs that will be awarded to the PPP’s top individual and team category 

performers. middle: weakened weekend warriors often turn to mush by the day’s end. right: costumed 

racers included Wonder Women and Tutu-licious. 

number of participants soared and it 

gained recognition as one of the Pacific 

Northwest’s top sporting events. The PPP’s 

individual winners also started to earn a 

modicum of fame. 

“I remember walking into a meeting at the 

Inn of the Seventh Mountain just after the 

PPP in 1987,” Simoneau laughs. “The resort’s 

sales manager looked at me and said, ‘I know 

who you are. You’re the PPP winner.’” 

Though the PPP is a track for elite racers, 

it quickly became the playground for 

the masses. The event started attracting top 

athletes from all over the West as well as hundreds 

of weekend warriors battling for age 

and team division titles. 

Costumes now range from silly to outrageous 

and have become part of many teams’ 

raison d’être. From the looks of it today, 

more teams spend as much time crafting 

their team name and costumes as they do 

on training for the event. Take last year’s 

duo, Bangers and Mash Reunited, and men’s 

teams like the Kilt Lifters, Into Thin Hair 

and Tour de Pends. Among the women’s 

teams were The Hot Flashes, We Bust Ours 

2 Kick Urs and Mentalpausal. 

A few teams take the event seriously, 

but, surprisingly, the fastest team time ever 

set for the PPP (one hour and thirty-one 

minutes) was set in 2001 by a team of Bend 

locals who decided to race just hours before 

the event. 

“Two days before the race, Mike Dudley, 

who’d just gotten back from a running camp 

at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in 

Colorado Springs, said he wanted to put together 

a PPP team,” says Mike McMackin of 

Hutch’s Bicycles in Bend. McMackin quickly 

called eight-time winner Wadsworth to see 

if there were any hot Nordic skiers around 

who might like to join a team. “Wadsworth 

said he wasn’t doing anything and would 

gladly join in.” 

Within minutes of the drop-dead deadline 

for entries, McMackin entered a team composed 

of himself skiing the alpine leg, Wadsworth 

doing the cross-country leg, cyclists 

Jim Lewis and Mark Katter doing the bike 

leg on a tandem bike, Mike Dudley doing the 

run and longtime local kayak instructor Greg 

Terhaar paddling. 

In search of fast times, fun, and camaraderie, 

the PPP’s entries have gone from eighty 

in the event’s first year to a record high of 

2,932 competitors in 2009, with 257 racing as 

individuals. 

“The PPP is so much fun because there are 

so few events that allow you do all the sports 

you like in one day,” notes Portlander Mary 

Ross, 52, who competes on a team with her 

husband, Mike Resnik. “Then there’s the 

weather, which is always interesting. You 

never know if it’ll be winter or summer come 

race time.” 

As much as May seems the perfect 

month to hold the race in Central Oregon 

the weather has not always totally been 

compliant. “Several years at the PPP, I’ve 

started the bike leg in freezing temperatures 

and six inches of snow and then arrived in 

town to 75 degree temperatures,” laughs 

Foley, the former alpine ski coach. 

Tips from 

the Top 

How a little 

technique 

can make 

you faster 

Four-time PPP winner (’06- 

’09) and XC Oregon elite 

cross-country ski racer Marshall 

Greene, 28, cites pacing 

as the most important 

overall aspect of competing 

in the individual PPP. “Especially 

in the initial run up to 

the alpine skis, don’t sprint,” 

he says. “Relax and don’t go 

anaerobic in the first thirty 

seconds of the event and 

then never recover.” 

Like most great individual 

PPP competitors, Greene 

wears his cross-country ski 

boots inside his oversize 

alpine boots for the mass 

start and then jumps out 

of his alpine boots into 

his Nordic skis for a fast 

transition. 

“For the cross-country 

leg, I never lace my boots 

but simply zip up their 

boot covers and tighten 

the buckles over the ankles. 

That makes it easy to get 

the boots off to get into my 

cycling shoes.” 

On the bike, Greene uses 

the first few miles to consume 

energy food and 

drink. “It’s the only chance 

you’ll have to replenish—so 

get it done.” 

Pacing is also the key to the 

run leg along with training 

that consists of bike rides 

followed by a run. “A lot of 

people cramp in the race 

when they jump off the 

bike and start running.” 

Finally to the paddle, 

where he hugs the right 

side of the Deschutes 

River going upstream to 

make better headway. And 

though the river is still cold 

in May, Greene implores 

competitors to practice 

paddling before race day. 


Live wild animals. 1880s pioneers. The spirit of the West. It’s closer than you think. 

open daily 9-5 | five minutes south of bend | 59800 s. hwy 97 | 541-382-4754 | highdesertmuseum.org

Oregon Living 

design 

A Tale 

of Two Gardens 

by Stephanie Boyle Mays 

photos by Robin Bachtler Cushman 

One Willamette Valley flower garden. One vegetable garden in 

the Valley. Though the appeal and missions of these settings are 

completely different, they share the beauty and the best practices 

of hobby and professional horticulturists. 

in walterville, east of Eugene, gardens 

may surround the house, but the focus 

of Lindsay Reaves’ attention is the creek 

that runs through the backyard. Subject 

to spring floods, summer marshiness and 

late fall drought, Reaves worked with the 

creek’s personality and moods to create 

a blousy European-style flower garden. 

To protect the banks and to help guard 

against erosion, she lined the creek with 

rocks. “Water has its own mind,” she says. 

“You have to move with it.” After the 1996 

floods, for example, she built rock steps 

into the creek areas that had been gouged 

by the fast water. During high water, the 

steps became a waterfall; in low water they 

resumed their function as stairs to the 

water so she could “weed” the creek during 

summer. Ever mindful of run-off and 

her downstream neighbors, she used organic 

soil and avoided chemical fertilizers. 

Despite the creative stream management, 

though, it’s the pastels of foxgloves planted 

along the creek’s banks that inspire awe 

among visitors. 

Foxgloves became a passion for Reaves, 

47, who started to collect native and hybrid 

seeds and varieties. The creek area 

became an experiment for what would 

work and what wouldn’t. Yet for all her 

devotion, she was not sentimental. “I 

became pretty attached to not being attached,” 

explains Reaves. “It if didn’t 

work, then I just pulled it out.” 

The creek garden’s blooming splendor 

takes up only one part of the property’s 1.7 

acres. Reaves’ husband, Tom Baumann, had 

planted trees and grasses before Reaves arrived 

on the scene. In the years since their 

marriage, they’ve added fruit trees, shrubs 

and perennials to attract wildlife and birds. 

The water remains as the primal magnet. 

“There’s the juxtaposition of water and its 

sound, the hardness of the banks and the 

graceful flowers. Something just happens.” 


facing page: Grecian foxglove 

(also know as Wooley foxglove) 

in the foreground with 

common foxglove in pink. 

Lindsay Reaves’ streamside 

garden in Walterville 

bordered with foxglove, 

columbine, and poppy. 

right: Another look at the 

streamside garden with a 

footbridge over the brook.

Oregon Living 

design 

clockwise from left: Vegetables and flowers in Chauncey Freeman’s garden in Junction 

City. Mixed zinnias. Hubbard squash can reach fifty pounds, have the flavor of pumpkin 

and are best in casseroles or cooked with a dash of brown sugar and nutmeg. 

Chauncey, 

the Protégé 

flowers also grow in the Junction City 

garden tended by Chauncey Freeman, but 

there they appear in a supporting role with 

vegetables the lead. Freeman grew up on 

his parents’ five-acre farm in an area now 

surrounded by subdivisions. He started 

gardening at the age of 8. He was charged 

with taking care of the family’s tomato 

crop, and worked side by side with his parents 

to plant and nurture a bountiful vegetable 

garden that keeps family and friends 

stocked with food year-round. 

All the gardening lessons were not lost 

on Freeman, an only child. While in high 

school, he participated in Future Farmers 

of America in the nursery landscape, dairy 

foods and environmental science categories. 

(In 2003, his Junction City chapter was 

named national champion in environmental 

science.) Last year he graduated from 

the University of Oregon with a degree in 

landscape architecture. 

Today, Freeman’s half-acre vegetable 

garden is organized in beds arranged in 

squares, in which plants are grouped by 


growing patterns so they don’t compete 

with each other. For example, in square 

one are squash and other vine plants. In 

square two are tomatoes and peppers. 

Square three has broccoli and Swiss chard, 

and in the fourth square are root vegetables 

such as potatoes and onions. Other crops 

such as peas, beans and herbs are tucked in 

between. There are often three varieties of 

any given crop. 

Berry patches and corn have their own 

plots, and grow adjacent to a half-acre orchard 

with apple, cherry and plum trees. 

Freeman estimates that among the fruits 

and vegetables reaped by his family last 

year there were sixty quarts of tomatoes, 

forty jars of pickles, twenty jars of sauerkraut, 

thirty bags of corn, fifteen quarts of 

marionberries and raspberries. “Obviously, 

you have to dabble in the preservation of 

food,” says Freeman in a flash of understatement. 

Freeman has since taken his avocation to 

vocation with his budding landscape business, 

Fifth Season. 

“Obviously, 

you have to dabble 

in the preservation 

of food.” 

- Chauncey freeman

and 1859 

are proud to support the 

“As a member of the YWCA’s Executive Board of Directors, I am proud to 

support the mission of helping women, children and families in crisis. The 

work of the YWCA’s staff and volunteers is essential to the health and welfare 

of our community. As a small business owner, I wanted to do more, and 

donated a portion of one month’s proceeds from our services to The Yolanda 

House. Our financial gift was significant, and participation made our staff 

and patients feel part of something important to those in need in our city. I 

encourage other small business owners to join me in support of the YWCA.” 

— Dr. VanderVeer 

Elizabeth VanderVeer, M.D. 

Medical Director, VanderVeer Center 

Executive Board of Directors, YWCA of Greater Portland 

VanderVeerCenter.com 

503-443-2250 or toll free 877-443-2250 

Transforming Lives From the Outside In sm 

Open All Year: Summer Hours, Wed - Sun 9-6 

Easy to find, right off I-5 near Woodburn 

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Oregon Living 

design 

“Not everything 

works, and you 

need to try different 

plants 

each year.” 

- lindsay reaves 

Expert 

Advice 

Planting Particulars 

If you’re contemplating a foray into gardening, 

here are some tips from Reaves and Freeman. 

take your time 

Before starting a new garden, watch 

the site for a year so that you know 

what to address in all seasons. 

good sunlight 

Full sunlight is crucial for a successful 

vegetable garden. 

group and water 

Different plants have varying water 

requirements, so it is best for your 

garden (and the environment) to 

water plants individually. As a corollary 

to this advice, group plants with 

similar thirst. 


use good soil 

What you put in is what you get 

out, so use the best materials and 

soil amendments available, such as 

organic soil and fertilizers. Start a 

compost pile and use the resulting 

riches for your garden. 

plant native species 

Use native species, which are 

well-adapted for the area and don’t 

threaten other plants in the garden. 

plan your pathways 

Make paths wide enough to accommodate 

a wheelbarrow; put in a bench 

or two so you can enjoy the views. 

clockwise from left: Frog sculpture with Lady’s Mantle. Stream garden with fern, Oriental poppy, California poppy, forget-menot, 

columbine, coral bell and foxglove. Stream bank cluster of crocosmia and montbretia. Cabbage patch with marigold 

and zinnias. Chinese gooseberry climbs onto the studio porch. 

create entryways 

Create an entrance or some sort of 

statement that allows you to identify 

one area from another. Reaves’ entry 

is a wrought iron gate made by a 

local blacksmith. 

marigold deterrence 

Plant marigolds as a deterrent to 

bugs and pests. 

experiment 

Be flexible. Not everything works, 

and you need room to try different 

plants each year. 

be resourceful 

Look everywhere for ideas. Don’t forget 

to tap in to the vast resources offered 

by the state extension service. Administered 

by Oregon State University, the 

office offers advice and information on 

sustainability, soil amendments and 

testing, planting dates, shrubs, flowers, 

small woodlands, vegetables and other 

gardening subjects. It can also hook 

you up with local experts such as those 

in the master gardeners program, 

canning classes and other gardening 

interests. Find your local office and 

more information at http://extension. 

oregonstate.edu.

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FESTIVALS 

Concerts Under the Stars 

World 

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Country 

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2009 Pink Martini Performance - Photo by Josh Morell 

Join us for the Britt Experience… 

world-class performances and spectacular 

scenery in a casual, intimate atmosphere 

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Explore 

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Destination KOOZA 

Cirque du Soleil evokes its roots with acrobatics and zaniness 

kooZa is a return to the origins of Cirque du Soleil: It combines two circus 

traditions – acrobatic performance and the art of clowning. The show highlights the 

physical demands of human performance in all its splendor and fragility, presented 

in a colorful mélange that emphasizes bold slapstick humor. 

cirquedusoleil.com 

south Waterfront, Portland 

1859MAGAZINE.COM 

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1859 Spring 2010

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