Inde-fence-ible: Removal of access gate still the focus of debate
April 26, 2010 by Scott Sandsberry
SELAH — For seven years, horseback riders used the gate behind Bruce Holtzner’s horse-riding arena to enter the Wenas Wildlife Area.
While showing an old Wenas Wildlife Area access gate, Bruce Holtzner clears off pine needles before setting it aside on April 23 north of Selah. The gate was used for years by horseback enthusiasts and was taken out by Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife officials in 2004 because it was considered an “unauthorized” access gate. (TJ MULLINAX/Yakima Herald-Republic)
They wouldn’t have to worry about their horses being startled by the activity near the Sheep Company gate — or by the guns or fireworks that so often occur just up the road — and making the fatal mistake of bolting onto, and into, the cattle guard.
Holtzner’s gate now lies near the fence, unused but not forgotten. Since the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife removed it in 2004 — because, officially, it was “unauthorized” — the gate has become the focus of letter-writing campaigns, petitions and legislative inquiries.
And it has also become the embodiment of two bones that will forever be picked by those whose property abuts state wildlife land:
1) How limited or extensive should recreational access be onto those wildlife areas?
2) Does the WDFW really care whether it’s considered a good neighbor?
That ‘dangerous’ main gate
The Wenas Wildlife Area is lined by 46 miles of elk fence in which there are 35 “administrative gates” — some accessed by private land, some locked and some not — and a never-ending array of holes illegally cut into the fence.
In 1997, when Holtzner and his wife, Becky Hyde, bought the 160-acre ranch they call Paso del Mundo — a nod to the breed of Paso Fino horses they raise and train — the elk-fence gate behind the property was part of the property’s allure.
Holtzner promptly replaced that flimsy gate with a sturdier, steel-paneled one, which over the next seven years, was regularly used by equestrians. Many of them boarded horses at Paso del Mundo; others simply drove up the ranch’s long driveway, parked their trailers in the ample lot behind the arena and left them there while they rode out onto the wildlife area.
“It was nice access,” said “Oatmeal” Graham, a Sheep Company Road neighbor who regularly rides horses into the wildlife area. “The upside is Bruce and Becky would let people park their rigs there, they wouldn’t charge anything and your rigs were safe — there wouldn’t be any vandalism.”
The latter is a reference to one of the issues with the parking lot at the Sheep Company Road entrance, which could be an adventure. Said Holtzner, “You go out there, get your horse out of the rig and go ride, then you come back and your rig’s all shot up with bullet holes.”
Whether vandalism at the main gate was that prevalent is the subject of some debate, but for many riders the gate itself was just as big a deterrent.
“It’s a very dangerous gate,” said Ed Shoenbach, a Wenas resident who boards his horse at Holtzner’s stable. “On weekends, the area’s very small, it’s packed with quadrunner rigs and a lot of times, they’re right in front of the horse gate.
“Sometimes rigs will park on the road, which is illegal, and there’s a cattle guard just to the right of the gate. If the gate is blocked, or if you don’t take your horse in just right, or if they spook, they’re right in the cattle guard. Even walking your horse through, it’s dangerous.”
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‘Unauthorized’
Why, then, was Holtzner’s gate removed?
Bruce Holtzner puts an unused Wenas Wildlife Area access gate aside on April 23 north of Selah. The gates were constructed by Holtzner, who built this one in 1987 because the original Wenas Wildlife Area gate on the property was made of flimsy wire. (TJ MULLINAX/Yakima Herald-Republic)
The neighbor complained, and Confer and the staffer who had done the disking met with him.
“I was defending (the neighbor, who asked not to be identified), “saying to Cindi, ‘Where’d you learn how to farm?’ And pretty soon after that we received a letter from Cindi and (enforcement officer) Morgan Grant about our ‘unauthorized gate.’”
Confer said the gate removal had nothing to do with that confrontation and everything to do with the problems associated with unauthorized gates.
“In 2003, it was like the issue ramped up — people wanting this gate into the wildlife area for their ATVs or their horses,” said Confer, who has managed the Wenas since 2001. “It was, ‘Hey, Joe Blow has a gate, why can’t I?’”
Holtzner’s gate was one of five removed that year by the department on the Wenas Wildlife Area, one in the Elk Heights are and the other four all along what Confer calls “the Selah interface.”
Unauthorized gates, Confer said, might induce others accessing the wildlife area to simply create them whenever and wherever they want them — including simply using wire-cutters to drive in an ATV (which are legal on the wildlife area only on Green Dot system roads, not in the backcountry), a snowmobile or, of course, a horse.
“There are literally hundreds of adjacent land owners along the fence, and a lot of them are horse people who would love to have their own gates,” said Jeff Tayer, the wildlife department’s regional director. “We want some reasonable way of allowing people access to the wildlife area without having them out there cutting holes in the fence willy-nilly wherever they wanted to.”
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‘Good neighbors?’
One problem about Holtzner’s gate, Confer said, was that it was typically left open in the daytime. And while she couldn’t point to any elk damage caused by that open gate, Confer said it set a bad precedent for users of other gates — like, for example, the “authorized” gate a quarter-mile east of Sheep Company Road on East Holtzinger Road. (Holtzner’s property is roughly the same distance to the west.)
Many horse-riding enthusiasts don’t like to take their horses through this Sheep Company Road gate into the Wenas Wildlife Area because of how close the horse gate — closed at left — is to the cattle guard at the right. And when this parking lot is full on a busy weekend, it can be difficult even to lead an easily-startled horse through the gate. (Courtesy photo)
Holtzner scoffed at that reasoning, saying his gate was never left open when elk were around.
“I’ve got 100 tons of alfalfa there in the fall,” Holtzner said, pointing to his hay barn. “Do you think I’d be crazy enough to leave a gate open for the elk to get to it?”
Confer said Holtzner’s business might be expected to profit by having their own gate into the wildlife area, while the gate on East Holtzinger was on a public road. But the latter has virtually no parking area and couldn’t begin to handle the kind of equestrian traffic that used Holtzner’s lot.
Yet that “authorized” gate was put in about 15 years ago — with the wildlife department’s blessing — at the request of people who boarded horses nearby and, like the Holtzner’s’ friends, didn’t want to have to use the Sheep Company gate.
One particularly bitter pill for the Holtzners is that their gate was routinely used by wildlife area staffers during those seven years, the Holtzners and their neighbors said. It typically occurred while they were clearing the fire break along the inside of the elk fence and replanting native grasses to replace the invasive plants that were constantly being sprayed.
“As long as they were using our gate,” Holtzner said wryly, “they were our friends. What happened to being good neighbors?”
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‘An escape route’
In this 1,000-acre wildfire in the summer of 2000, residents of the few homes on the Wenas Wildlife Area evacuated via Bruce Holtzner’s unauthorized gate (since closed by the state wildlife department) both because of the smoke and the glut of firefighting vehicles on Sheep Company Road. (Courtesy photo)
Among the signatures are several neighbors living on an inholding inside the wildlife area. Two of them wrote letters to the wildlife department requesting the return of the Holtzners’ gate for safety reasons: When a 1,000-acre wildfire broke out near Sheep Company Road in 2000, those residents evacuated the area not through the main gate — the road being engulfed in smoke and cluttered with emergency and fire vehicles — but, rather, through the Holtzners’ gate.
“We need an escape route,” one of those neighbors writes. “If you take out (the Holtzners’ gate), we are stuck out here.”
One of the department’s farm disks still sat last week just outside the Holtzners’ property, where vandals might be less inclined to damage something illuminated by the bright lamplight from Holtzner’s hay barn.
The access and gate issues along Sheep Company Road have drawn the attention of Sen. Curtis King, R-Yakima, who has discussed them with Jeff Tayer and hopes to meet with him again within the next week.
“I think (the Holtzners and others) have some valid issues that need to be looked at,” King said. “I don’t think (wildlife department officials) were closed to looking at it; I do know they don’t want to open Pandora’s box with having too many unplanned-for gates.
“But I think they need to realize those people along the fence need to be their allies, because they are their eyes and ears as well.”
And many of the ones riding horses — or needing another escape route in the event of an emergency — know what they’d like those eyes to see.
“I’d like to see (the gate) back myself,” said neighbor Oatmeal Graham. “I think it’s a win-win deal for everybody.”
Local report: White Swan fastpitch sweeps twin bill
April 26, 2010 by YH-R Sports
WHITE SWAN — Sophia Perez provided the big hit in the first game for the Cougars, connecting on a bases-loaded double to drive in three runs, and White Swan swept its first doubleheader since 2004 by defeating Kittitas 28-18 and 13-7.
Whitney Wilson went 3-for-4 with a double and four RBI and Cheyenne Isadore went 2-for-3 for White Swan (2-4) in the second game.
Game 1
Kittitas 239 31 — 18 6 NA
White Swan 408 88 — 28 4 NA
Greninger, Nelson, Hayes, and Longanecker; Wilson, Perez and Isadore.
Highlights: Sophia Perez (WS) 2b, 3 RBI.
Game 2
Kittitas 110 41 — 7 3 NA
White Swan 141 16 — 13 7 NA
Nelson and Steiner; Perez and Wilson.
Highlights: Cheyenne Isadore (WS) 2-3; Whitney Wilson (WS) 3-4, 2b, 4 RBI; Rivett (K) 2-3, 2b.
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SUNNYSIDE 12, GRANDVIEW 10: At Grandview, Sarasa Partida went 3-for-4 with home run and three runs scored, Melissa Marro went 2-for-4, and Ruby Herrera went 2-for-5 for the Grizzlies as they beat Grandview in a non-league game.
Chelsie McNabb went 2-for-4 with three RBI and Gio Gomez went 3-for-3 for the Greyhounds.
Sunnyside 103 002 42 — 12 10 1
Grandview 140 230 00 — 10 11 4
Maltos and Partida; Van Tress, Sanchez (5) and McNabb.
Highlights: Gio Gomez (G) 3-3; Ashley Van Tress (G) 2-4; Chelsie McNabb (G) 2-4, 3 RBI; Mari Sanchez (G) 2-2; Sarasa Partida 3-4, HR, 3 runs; Melissa Amaro (S) 3-4, 2b; Ruby Herrera (S) 2-5; Maria Olivera (S) 2-4, 2b.
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Auto racing
Dirt track gets under way
Kristi Tracy won the Pure Stocks division main event as the dirt-track season opened Saturday night at State Fair Raceway.
Wayne Griffith (Hornets) and Duane D’Amico (Modifieds) won their respective main events as well.
Uriel Gonzales won the Davis-Ike Lawnmower Challenge.
Pure Stocks — Heat: 1, Larry Tracy; 2, Kristi Tracy; 3, Monica Howard; 4, Gene Red Rooster; 5, Sylvia Stahl. Trophy dash: Larry Tracy. Main: 1, Kristi Tracy; 2, Monica Howard; 3, Larry Tracy; 4, Gene Red Rooster; 5, Sylvia Stahl.
Hornets — Heat 1: 1, Josh Reeves; 2, Joshua Henne; 3, George (last name not provided); 4, Nathen Voyles. Heat 2: 1, Wayne Griffith; 2, Christian Pearson; 3, Ryan Scott; 4, Austin Stahl. Trophy dash: Wayne Griffith. Main: 1, Wayne Griffith; 2, Joshua Henne; 3, Josh Reeves; 4, Christian Pearson; 5, Nathen Voyles.
Modifieds — Heat 1: 1, Craig Moore; 2, Pat Merritt; 3, Don Martin; 4, Dustin (last name not provided). Heat 2: 1, Car 58 (winner’s name not provided); 2, Duane D’Amico; 3, Rick Sjogren; 4, Clayton Merritt. Trophy dash: Pat Merritt. Main: 1, Duane D’Amico; 2, Craig Moore; 3, Car 58; 4, Josh Reeves; 5, Pat Merritt.
Davis-Ike Lawnmower Challenge — Heat: 1, Victor Aguilar. Trophy dash: Uriel Gonzales. Main: 1, Uriel Gonzales; 2, Victor Aguillar; 3, Alen Manzo.
SPEEDWAY RESULTS
Super Late Model — Fast time: Owen Riddle. A Dash: Tanner, Owen Riddle, Bemis, Longton. B Dash: Hargraves, Tayler Riddle, Maggard, Dills. Finishing Order: Owen Riddle, Erick Hargraves, JC Wofford, Mike Longton, Ron Bemis, Christopher Kalsch, Tayler Riddle, Lenard Barthel, Chuck Dills, Joey Tanner
Sportsman — Fast time: Jason Huffines. A Dash: VanAmburg, Peters, Huffines, Raney. B Dash: St. Mary, Mullins, Stewart, Wade. Finishing Order: Richard Peters, John Raney, Don Klang, Jason Huffines, Ron Morton, Matt McDougal, Bobby Stewart, Jeremy Mullins, Kyle Wade, Bobby Stewart, Ed St. Mary, Morgan Morrison, Chris VanAmburg, Dan Wilson.
Youth Hornets — Fast time: Joe Roberts. A Dash:Mears, Trujillo, Lennartz, Roberts. Finishing Order: Joe Roberts, Clayton Mears, Ryan Trujillo, Zach Lenartz.
Hornets — Fast time: Greg Gargett. A Dash: Parmentier, Marang, Washington, Gargett. B Dash: Erickson, Melville, Breshears, Coble. Finishing Order: Josh Parmentier, Josh Washington, Steve Hall, Keith Erickson, Greg Gargett, Daniel Morfin, Chris Marang, Michael Emter, Dave Petersen, Tyler Breshears, Michael Beck, Julie Melville, Chris Morrison.
Bump to Pass — Fast time: Cody Denton. A Dash: Stevens, Trjuillo, Denton, Rojas. B Dash: Pedro, Heigh, Richter, Magger. Finishing Order: Donnie Stevens, BJ Tidrick, Alan Reid, Joe Stevens, Bobby Trujillo, Eric Pedro, Merle Stiltner, Fransisco Rojas, Cody Denton, Wes Heigh, Mark Magger, Jake Breshears, Chrystal Richter, Julie McAlpine, Ben Briggs.
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Prep golf
CBBN
At Walla Walla, par 72
Team scores: Richland 321, Hanford 347, Eastmont 365, West Valley 378, Wenatchee 379, Eisenhower 391, Chiawana 396, Kamiakin 397, Walla Walla 415, Kennewick 418, Southridge 421, Moses Lake 431, Pasco 440, Davis 446.
Top 5 individuals: Kristin Strankman (R) 75, Mary McDonald (R) 79, Kelsey Aiello (H) 80, Taylor Kain-Godoy (H) 82, Hope Neidhold (R) 82.
West Valley: Anna Elofson 83, Taylor Chadwick 93, Miranda Swanson 97, Kendyl Comisky 105, Krista Nagle 107, Alexis Brown 123.
Eisenhower: Courtney Munsun 88, McKenzie Bond 92, Stefanie Tanasse 92, Adrienne Jensen 119, Melanie Stevenson 123, Brittany Bailey 149.
Davis: Lily Naughton 89, Hannah Naughton 101, Alex Scherer 113, Devin Collicott 143, Bianca Monrique 145, Bethany Barbee 153.
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Prep Tennis
CWAC
Ellensburg boys 5, Othello 0
Singles: Josiah Jackson (E) d. David Charles 6-2, 6-0; Aaron Porter (E) d. Ben Taff 6-0, 6-0.
Doubles: Michael Komorowski-Bryan Elliott (E) d. Parker Davis-Taylor Vigneri 6-1, 7-6 (0); Colton Chanler-Alex Schnebly (E) d. Wesley Cigswell-Ryan Garza 6-4, 6-4; Tim Hurson-Luke Rogers (E) d. Alex Montemayor-Eden Durante 7-5, 7-5.
Record: Ellensburg boys 8-0.
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Ellensburg girls 3, Othello 2
Singles: Abigail Pellett (E) d. Ashleigh Synder 6-1, 6-1; Mizan Brown (E) d. Emily Morgan 6-4, 7-5.
Doubles: Jody Walker-Kayla Spor (O) d. Joelle Smart-Daphne Hall 7-5, 6-2; Emma Hymus-Amelia Roylance (O) d. Kati Camarata-Ali Gray 7-6 (2), 6-1; Teresa Connolly-Nathalie Gruber (E) d. Ashleigh Almaguer-Samantha DeloSanto 6-7 (5), 7-6 (2), 6-3.
Record: Ellensburg girls 7-1.
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Softball duo wins GNAC awards
The Central Washington University softball duo of junior Lauren Hadenfeld and senior Danielle Monson has once again been recognized by the GNAC as its softball Pitcher and co-Player of the Week, respectively, the conference office announced Monday.
Hadenfeld earned her fourth GNAC Pitcher of the Week award this season after earning three pitching victories and a save in Central’s five-game series sweep of visiting Northwest Nazarene University last weekend. In 20 innings of work, Hadenfeld posted a 1.05 earned-run average and struck out 24 batters. The junior right-hander is now 17-4.
Monson, who earned her third GNAC Player of the Week award of the year, set a new NCAA Division II record by extending her hitting streak to 40 games in Saturday’s opening game before having the streak snapped in the series finale against NNU. For the weekend, Monson totaled 11 hits in 20 at-bats, and is now batting .516 on the year with a school-record 79 hits.
Self earns GNAC track honor
For the second time this year, Central Washington University junior Torrie Self has been recognized as the GNAC Female Athlete of the Week for track and field.
Self, who earned the award once during the indoor track and field season, unleashed a school-record throw in the women’s hammer for the second consecutive week while competing in last Friday’s WWU Twilight in Bellingham.
Turkey gobbling one of nature’s notorious sounds
April 26, 2010 by YH-R Outdoors
If you have never heard a turkey gobble in the wild, you are missing out on one of the really fantastic sounds nature has to offer. It will literally send a chill up the back of your neck. Or, at least, it did for me the first time I heard a big tom turkey gobble.
Other sounds in the outdoors will give you goose bumps and make you really stop and listen. The one and only time I heard a wolf howl, it was awesome and eerie at the same time. Like the sound of a rattlesnake rattling, you will never forget the first time you hear a wolf howl.
The deafening calls of a thousand Canada geese circling overhead is an awesome sound, too. They can be so loud you literally can’t hear the person talking next to you. It is even more impressive when you know the geese circling overhead are zeroing in on your decoy spread and within seconds you may be up out of the blind and trying to pick one of the birds out of the flock of whirling, flapping, honking geese to shoot.
When faced with such a situation, most hunters miss. I know that happened to me the couple times I have been fortunate enough to be in that circumstance.
The bugle of a bull elk is another of the great sounds heard in the outdoors. And if the big animal is close by when they let out the guttural bugle, it will make the hairs on your arms stand up. It can be downright frightening.
You can only hear some of these great sounds of the outdoors at certain times of year. Elk bugle in the early fall. Turkeys gobble in the spring. For each, that’s the mating season — and because both are looking to breed as many females of their species as possible, they can oftentimes be duped into the range of any hunter talking the right language.
For most turkey hunters, this opportunity to speak their language in hopes of calling a mature tom into shotgun range is what makes turkey hunting so appealing. Sure, during this spring hunting season, which opened April 15 and will run through the end of May, a good number of turkeys will end up on the dinner table of hunters who waited in ambush and surprised their bird.
A few others will end up as Thanksgiving dinner for hunters who successfully stalked their bird — something that’s extremely tough, the turkey being one of the wariest birds in the wild.
The real thrill of spring turkey hunting for most hunters is to call a big gobbler into shotgun range. This task is almost never easy, but it can be done.
Actually, there are the few rare times when calling a lovesick tom into range can be very easy. Any sound even resembling the cluck or purr of a lonesome hen turkey will set toms to gobbling and running to find their future mate. In 10 years of hunting turkeys I have only seen this once. Each of the other times I’ve bagged a turkey has involved a whole lot of coaxing and pleading with the turkey call to try to get a gobbler in range.
Again, that is the fun, and the challenge, of turkey hunting.
Young male turkeys — jakes — are often much more gullible and can be easier to call. For many hunters, if a jake gobbles and struts and comes to a call, he is fair game. The laws allow you to shoot one if it has a visible beard, and one encounter with a jake may be the only chance you get.
Other hunters are totally into taking mature toms — the ones with the long beards and the big sharp spurs on their legs. They will pass on the younger male birds in order to get one with a full tail fan and a little more meat for the oven. When you have bested an old gobbler, you know you have done something.
Part of the fun of turkey hunting is just hearing the birds. If you can get them to talk back to you when you talk to them, that’s all the better. If you are lucky enough to coax a big tom into shotgun range, that’s the icing on the cake.
Right now the turkeys around the state are in a mating mood. The toms are searching for hens and that means they are gobbling. If you’ve never heard the gobble of a wild turkey, you are missing out on hearing one of the really neat sounds in nature.
• Rob Phillips is a freelance outdoor writer and partner in the advertising firm of Smith, Phillips & DiPietro. He can be reached at rwphillips@spdadvertising.com.
Spring chinook fishing on Yakima opens Saturday
April 26, 2010 by YH-R Outdoors
With somewhere around 100 spring chinook already past Prosser Dam, anglers will have something to be fishing for on Saturday, the day the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife opens two stretches of the Yakima River for this year’s highly anticipated springer season.
The four-chinook daily limit hoped for by WDFW regional fish program manager John Easterbrooks wasn’t approved by the department’s senior staff in Olympia, but the standard two-fish daily limit will be back — with anglers probably standing a better chance of reaching that limit more regularly.
With some 12,000 hatchery springers expected to make their way up the Yakima on their way to the waters around the
Cle Elum Hatchery, there’s still a possibility the limit could be bumped up.
Easterbrooks said the two-fish limit, though, was agreed upon in Olympia “with the understanding that if the run size and high percentage of hatchery chinook actually materializes, then we can quickly bump the limit up to three or four hatchery chinook per day, with a one- or two-day turnaround on the rule change.”
The May 1 opener includes two sections of the Yakima, with different ending dates because of their different locations in the river.
The lower stretch, from the Interstate 182 bridge at Richland to 400 feet downriver of Horn Rapids (Wanawish) Dam, will be open through May only.
The upper stretch, from the I-82 bridge at Union Gap to the Burlington Northern railroad bridge some 500 feet downstream from Roza Dam, will be open from May 1 through June 30.
The 400 feet upstream from the upstream side of the Yakima Avenue/Terrace Heights Road bridge in Yakima — including the area adjacent and downstream from the Roza Wasteway No.2 fish barrier rack next to Morton & Sons — is closed to fishing.
Minimum harvest size is 12 inches, and wild salmon — or steelhead (rainbow trout longer than 20 inches) — must be released unharmed without ever being removed from the water.
4/27 What’s Happening
April 26, 2010 by YH-R Outdoors
Deadline lifted for Kids’ Fish-In event
Here’s some good news for young anglers: the April 30 deadline for the Kids’ Fish-In event on Saturday, May 8, has been lifted. The reason? Well, there are still plenty of openings — which is really surprising, considering what a tremendous deal this is for kids who want to learn to fish and the fact that the event usually fills up really quickly.
Just imagine this: For only $5, a child between the ages of 5 and 14 gets a rod-and-reel that he or she can keep, receives hands-on fishing training from volunteers from local fishing organizations and state wildlife fisheries biologists — who will also provide the bait and even help the kids use it — and then gets to fish in a heavily stocked Sarg Hubbard Pond.
Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife staffers will be filling the pond with 5,000 rainbow trout just for this event, and each young angler gets to keep the first two fish he or she reels in.
Kids (or their parents) can sign up and turn in registration sheets right there at the Greenway headquarters opposite the Sarg Hubbard Park playground, right up until the openings fill up.
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Love to fly-fish? Here’s your fair
This weekend will be the center of the state’s fly-fishing world when the Washington State Council Federation of Fly Fishing hosts the Washington Fly Fishing Fair on Friday and Saturday at the Kittitas Fair Grounds in Ellensburg.
The event, which will run from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday and 8 to 5 on Saturday, will feature headliners Brian O’Keefe and Skip Morris, part of a lineup of more than 100 fly-tyers around the country will demonstrate their craft. The weekend will be full of seminars, fly-tying classes, casting instruction and casting games, plus a silent auction, raffle and, of course, food.
For info, go online to: washingtoncouncilfff.org/2010FFFFrameset-1.htm.
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Learning to fly-fish? Here’s your course
A course for beginning and intermediate fly-fishers, following up on an April course strictly for beginners, will be part of this spring’s continuing education curriculum at Yakima Valley Community College.
The instructor will be Gary Fairbanks, longtime proprietor of Gary’s Fly Shoppe at Glenwood Square (now Fairbanks Outfitters on Yakima Avenue); he also taught this month’s beginners course.
The five-week, noncredit class begins May 6 and runs for five consecutive Thursdays, three of them 7-9 p.m. in-class sessions and two in-the-field trips at earlier times to be arranged between instructor and students.
The $80 class fee is payable upon registration, which can be done in advance at the registrar’s office or online at yvcc.edu.
For more information, call Fairbanks Outfitters at 509-457-3474.
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Snow still affecting campgrounds, trails
Most National Forest campgrounds remain closed as crews check for hazard trees and prepare for opening, which typically happens just prior to Memorial Day weekend. Some area updates, provided by the Naches Ranger District:
• Clear Lake camping areas not closed behind gates are being used now, and the boat launch is in full use as fishermen go after recently planted fish; the day-use site itself will probably open closer to Memorial Day.
• Longmire, Long Meadow and Ponderosa Camp — three areas approved this year for the $5-per-vehicle fee — are free of snow and being used by campers, with crews working on the areas as conditions warrant. Snow is still patchy beyond the 1911 in the Little Naches and, of course, the higher in elevation you go the more snow you will encounter.
• Snow is still a limiting factor in the South Fork Tieton. Minnie Meadows is reportedly snow free, but at higher elevations the going gets tougher, especially near Grey Creek.
• The North Fork Tieton is relatively snow free to within a quarter-mile of Scatter Creek trailhead, after which there’s plenty of snow cover remaining.
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BIRD ALERT
Two hours spent along the Yakima River riparian area at the base of Selah Butte was fairly productive for one local birder. Highlights included hundreds of swallows with tree, violet-green northern rough-winged and cliff swallow all being present, as well as several hermit thrushes, both ruby and golden-crowned kinglets, Nashville warblers, chipping, white-crowned and golden-crowned sparrows. Over the cliffs he observed red-tailed hawks, a golden eagle, and American kestrels all soaring and playing in the winds above the cliffs.
On the way up to Selah Butte were white-throated swift, the singing of vesper sparrows and this spectacle — a female prairie falcon leapt from her cave ledge and snatched the meal in flight from her mate.
Other noteworthy sightings include a pair of Eurasian widgeon and approximately 20 dunlin spotted in a flooded field along Pumphouse Road; about 120 sandhill cranes coming to roost at the end of Mieras Road; a male calliope hummingbird atop an alder shrub guarding a nice patch of wax current in bloom along the Ellensburg Pass Road; two pairs of harlequin ducks on the Tieton River along Highway 12; and two male purple finches heard and seen in the Nile.
Strange encounter of the week: the winter wren that decided to take a tour of a Yakima home, visiting the kitchen, living room, hall and bedroom before ending up sitting on the table in front of the home owner.
Please call your bird sightings into the Yakima Valley Audubon phone line at 509-248-1963.
— Kerry L. Turley
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AROUND AND ABOUT
GET INTIMATE WITH THE SHRUB-STEPPE: The 11th annual event of that name is set for 9 a.m. (well, except for that 7:30 a.m. birding field trip) to 2 p.m. at Helen McCabe Park and the Umtanum Recreation Area in the Yakima River Canyon, and if you’ve never gone, it’s a bundle of fun. Check out the full field trip and lecture schedule at kittitasee.net/events/giss2010.html and for a real popular one, check out “Snake Sneaking” with Dan Beck, a Central Washington University professor who’s one of the country’s foremost experts on such things as (gasp) rattlesnakes and gila monsters. (None of the latter on this trip, though. Sorry.)
WOODCUTTING: The calls are already coming into ranger stations, but hold our chainsaws — woodcutting won’t begin on the Naches Ranger District until next Monday (May 3). That’s when permits will go on sale, starting at 7:45 a.m.
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ON THE CALENDAR
TODAY: The Cascadians’ energetic “Tuesdays” will do a hike to Eagle Creek, meeting at 7 a.m. (an hour earlier than usual) at the 40th Avenue Bi-Mart Parking lot and heading out from there, breaking into faster and slower groups.
WEDNESDAY: The Mount Adams Cycling Club’s weekly riders of the 24-mile Naches Loop will head out at 5:30 p.m. from the Fred Meyer/Key Bank parking area, probably after breaking into smaller groups based on their chosen pace.
THURSDAY: The Cascadians’ Pokies are doing a “Naches expedition,” hiking the new Greenway extension from Naches and also touring the renovated Naches train station. For meeting time and place, call June Anderson at 509-972-0195.
SATURDAY: The Cascadians will host a hike of Big Burn Canyon. For meeting time and place, call trip leader Maurine Peck at 509-453-4244.
SUNDAY: The Cascadians will do a hike on the north side of Cleman Mountain. For meeting time and place, call Ted Gamlem at 509-697-5051.
4/26 Valley track and field leaders
April 26, 2010 by Scott Spruill
VALLEY TRACK AND FIELD LEADERS (through April 26)
NOTE: In events shorter than 400 meters, the top eight times listed are all with automatic timing. Other notable hand times (add .24 for comparison) are listed separately. Send additions or corrections to sspruill@yakimaherald.com
BOYS
100 — Sungyoung Lee (Ellensburg) 11.34, Logan Olney (Zillah) 11.34, Elias Medrano (Sunnyside) 11.47, Kennedy Sarmiento (Sunnyside) 11.50, Anthony Corbray (Davis) 11.51, Cody Carlsen (Lyle-Wishram) 11.54, Kent Gartrell (Riverside Christian) 11.60, Max King (West Valley) 11.60. Hand timed: Kennen Pilot (Prosser) 11.0, Delwin Bazilme (Riverside Christian) 11.3, Isaac Anderson (Prosser) 11.3, Carlos Ramirez (Toppenish) 11.3.
200 — Elias Medrano (Sunnyside) 22.73, Anthony Corbray (Davis) 22.97, Logan Olney (Zillah) 23.01, Sungyoung Lee (Ellensburg) 23.03, Cody Carlsen (Lyle-Wishram) 23.20, Mike Esparza (Eisenhower) 23.38, Kent Gartrell (Riverside Christian) 23.80, Austin Wagner (Davis) 23.89. Hand timed: Jose Razo (Grandview) 23.0, Kennen Pilot (Prosser) 23.3.
400 — Elias Medrano (Sunnyside) 50.80, Delwin Bazilme (Riverside Christian) 51.2, Jose Razo (Grandview) 51.91, Jordin Silva (Prosser) 52.09, Francisco Villegas (Toppenish) 52.21, Matt Glenn (Ellensburg) 52.65, Kyle Mellander (West Valley) 52.74, Cody Carlsen (Lyle-Wishram) 52.8.
800 — Timothy Cummings (Eisenhower) 1:58.29, Matt Glenn (Ellensburg) 1:59.70, Kyle Mellander (West Valley) 2:00.39, German Silva (Eisenhower) 2:01.38, Eduardo Torres (Wapato) 2:01.43, Grey Peone (Eisenhower) 2:02.16, Taylor McDowell (West Valley) 2:03.34, Joseph Knox (Davis) 2:03.53.
1600 — Timothy Cummings (Eisenhower) 4:18.74, German Silva (Eisenhower) 4:22.24, Bryan Simison (Eisenhower) 4:26.45, Eduardo Torres (Wapato) 4:27.98, Alberto Melchor (Davis) 4:30.98, Matt Glenn (Ellensburg) 4:32.13, Grey Peone (Eisenhower) 4:36.76, Jeffrey Ott (Ellensburg) 4:37.25.
3200 — Bryan Simison (Eisenhower) 9:19.23, Ben Villanueva (Toppenish) 9:49.15, Jeffrey Ott (Ellensburg) 9:55.91, Jaziel Rodriguez (Eisenhower) 10:03.67, Eduardo Torres (Wapato) 10:04.69, Alberto Melchor (Davis) 10:08.04, Santos Vargas (Eisenhower) 10:12.25, Mason Yates (East Valley) 10:18.22.
110 hurdles — Kennedy Sarmiento (Sunnyside) 15.35, Brendan Shearer (Zillah) 15.94, Henry Matai (Lyle-Wishram) 16.17, Kyler Roberts (Davis) 16.60, Lee Hector (Prosser) 17.02, Mike Troianello (La Salle) 17.30, Jeremy Oram (West Valley) 17.32. Hand timed: Troianello 16.8, Carl Tilton (Kittitas) 17.1.
300 hurdles — Kennedy Sarmiento (Sunnyside) 41.27, Jeremy Oram (West Valley) 42.54, Carl Tilton (Kittitas) 42.82, Brendan Shearer (Zillah) 43.49, Benton Murray (Selah) 43.77, Piers Cheney (Ellensburg) 43.82, Mike Troianello (La Salle) 44.09, Henry Matai (Lyle-Wishram) 44.10. Hand timed: Kailey Stroupe (Selah) 43.7.
4×100 — Davis (Corbray, Lopez, Wagner, Garcia) 43.99, Riverside Christian 44.23, Zillah 45.2, Prosser 45.2, Ellensburg 45.45, Selah 45.7, Kittitas 45.7, West Valley 45.88.
4×400 — Riverside Christian (Bazilme, Van Tuinen, Byrne, Ke. Gartrell) 3:31.73, Toppenish 3:33.57, Eisenhower 3:34.30, Prosser 3:37.55, Wapato 3:37.55, West Valley 3:38.58, Sunnyside 3:38.87, Davis 3:39.76.
Shot — Jake Callaghan (La Salle) 45-10 1/4, Edgar Molina (Bickleton) 45-2, James Shumate (Wapato) 44-0, Lane Pearson (Prosser) 43-2, Braydon Ross (Goldendale) 43-1 1/2, Jose Barajas (Sunnyside) 43-0, C.J. Sanchez (Zillah) 43-0, Luis DeLeon (Eisenhower) 42-11.
Discus — Paul Oursland (Kittitas) 142-6, Abel Soto (Eisenhower) 137-3, Josh Bartlett (La Salle) 133-3, Felipe Rangel (Wapato) 133-2, Nathaniel Deardorff (Zillah) 131-5, Henry Matai (Lyle-Wishram) 131-2, Andres Cantu (Sunnyside) 127-8, Brian Bennett (Sunnyside) 127-8.
Javelin — Derek Byrne (Riverside Christian) 195-1, Sean Cole (Highland) 164-6, John Rheaume (Selah) 162-9, Paul Oursland (Kittitas) 157-7, Nolan Gudde (Prosser) 157-7, Greg Moore (Prosser) 156-2, Christopher Lambert (Klickitat) 153-3, Gus Martinez (Mabton) 150-10.
High jump — Ignacio Romero (Selah) 6-2, Wayne Minthorn (Wapato) 6-0, Cody Allen Russell (Ellensburg) 5-10, Taylor Moulton (West Valley) 5-10, Tyler Enfield (West Valley) 5-8, Henrick Heldahl (Bickleton) 5-7.
Long jump — Derek Byrne (Riverside Christian) 21-7, Anthony Corbray (Davis) 21-6 1/2, Kyle Gartrell (Riverside Christian) 21-1 3/4, Nate Van Tuinen (Riverside Christian) 20-2, Justin Ferrari (West Valley) 19-9, Carlos Ramirez (Toppenish) 19-5, Joseph Notman (Highland) 19-4, Andrew Garcia (Davis) 19-2.
Triple jump — Kyle Gartrell (Riverside Christian) 44-7 1/2, Nate Van Tuinen (Riverside Christian) 43-6 1/2, Joseph Notman (Highland) 40-10, Austin Strock (West Valley) 40-2 1/2, Noe Gutierrez (Mabton) 39-5 3/4, Taylor Moulton (West Valley) 39-4 1/2, Brendan Shearer (Zillah) 39-1 1/2, Matt Bennett (Ellensburg) 39-1.
Pole vault — Marcus Schooley (Davis) 14-7, Michael Martinez (Davis) 13-6, Joseph Keeton (Eisenhower) 13-6, Kyle Gartrell (Riverside Christian) 12-6, Ryan Tollackson (West Valley) 12-6, Jacob Hino (Eisenhower) 12-6, Ignacio Ibarra (Wapato) 12-6, Jesse-Ryan Hernandez (Sunnyside) 12-0, Tyler Hakala (Highland) 12-0.
GIRLS
100 — Chantel Jaeger (West Valley) 12.46, Shanai Campbell (Eisenhower) 12.67, Angie Zuniga (Toppenish) 12.83, McKenzie Arnold (Eisenhower) 12.96, Delaney Romero (Naches Valley) 13.12, Marlee Rees (Prosser) 13.20, Beth Klingele (Eisenhower) 13.33, Jody Tyrrell (La Salle) 13.40. Hand timed: Zuniga 12.3, Rees 12.5, Alicia Ashby (La Salle) 12.9.
200 — Chantel Jaeger (West Valley) 24.87, Angie Zuniga (Toppenish) 26.22, McKenzie Arnold (Eisenhower) 27.11, Teaera Churchwell (Lyle-Wishram) 27.19, Ashley Packard (West Valley) 27.21, Helen Petersen (Prosser) 27.44, Chelsea Nell (West Valley) 27.45, Haley Curtis (West Valley) 27.61. Hand timed: Alicia Ashby (La Salle) 26.2, Marlee Rees (Prosser) 27.3.
400 — Lindsay Burns (West Valley) 58.00, Madison Moore (Prosser) 1:00.63, Chelsea Nell (West Valley) 1:02.36, Ashley Packard (West Valley) 1:02.64, Marisa Broersma (Sunnyside) 1:02.82, Liz Vogt (Trout Lake-Glenwood) 1:03.5, Karla Martinez (Davis) 1:03.60, Rachel Freeman (Eisenhower) 1:03.66.
800 — Kaitlin Kaluzny (Davis) 2:22.15, Kirsten Sheffield (Eisenhower) 2:22.27, Mayra Chavez (Eisenhower) 2:23.72, Natalie Gibb (Kittitas) 2:26.56, Chelsea Nell (West Valley) 2:27.35, McKenzie Graf (Ellensburg) 2:28.86, Tiffany Tate (Ellensburg) 2:29.45, Grace Noe (Davis) 2:30.98.
1600 — Mayra Chavez (Eisenhower) 5:11.24, Audrey Urlacher (West Valley) 5:13.87, Kaitlin Kaluzny (Davis) 5:16.75, Yasamin Mohsenian (East Valley) 5:29.48, Berenice Penaloza (Eisenhower) 5:33.88, Sammi Jo Blodgett (Wapato) 5:34.97, Allie McGree (La Salle) 5:40.85, Kirsten Sheffield (Eisenhower) 5:42.80.
3200 — Audrey Urlacher (West Valley) 10:59.55, Berenice Penaloza (Eisenhower) 11:22.31, Sammi Jo Blodgett (Wapato) 11:51.99, Hannah Kaluzny (Davis) 11:58.44, Siena Noe (La Salle) 12:03.62, Margret Parobek (West Valley) 12:14.96, Karisma Martinez (Selah) 12:38.26, Allie McGree (La Salle) 12:44.5.
100 hurdles — Samantha Brewer (Klickitat) 16.43, Lena Mitchell (Selah) 16.62, Helen Petersen (Prosser) 17.15, Justine Benner (Naches Valley) 17.25, Lena Mueller (Lyle-Wishram) 17.40, Ariana Saavedra (Toppenish) 17.49, Katherine Bravo (Eisenhower) 17.59, Hadli Farrand (Ellensburg) 17.76. Hand timed: Benner 16.4.
300 hurdles — Haley Curtis (West Valley) 45.64, Katherine Bravo (Eisenhower) 47.19, Helen Petersen (Prosser) 47.89, Liz Vogt (Trout Lake-Glenwood) 48.84, Hadli Farrand (Ellensburg) 48.99, Lena Mitchell (Selah) 50.01, Leticia Campos (Wapato) 50.12, Ariana Saavedra (Toppenish) 50.64.
4×100 — West Valley (Cluff, Jaeger, Curtis, Hausken) 50.31, Eisenhower 50.41, Toppenish 51.15, Prosser 51.21, Selah 52.19, Davis 52.98, Highland 53.0, Naches Valley 53.0.
4×200 — West Valley (Curtis, Burns, Nell, Jaeger) 1:43.91, Eisenhower 1:49.32, Prosser 1:49.42, Toppenish 1:49.8, La Salle 1:50.9, Davis 1:52.16, Highland 1:52.9, Selah 1:53.0.
4×400 — West Valley (Packard, Jaeger, Nell, Burns) 3:59.60, Eisenhower 4:08.53, Ellensburg 4:18.15, Prosser 4:21.24, La Salle 4:28.31, Davis 4:28.53, Riverside Christian 4:29.77, Highland 4:30.8.
Shot — Jessica Bush (Eisenhower) 41-9 1/2, Annie Martinez (East Valley) 39-0 1/2, Sadie Shattuck (Goldendale) 36-9, Kelsie Taylor (Naches Valley) 35-9, Kaitlin Quirk (Ellensburg) 34-8 1/2, Tamara Jones (Prosser) 33-5, Zee Houston (Davis) 33-3, Charice McConville (Klickitat) 32-5 1/2.
Discus — Jessica Bush (Eisenhower) 127-5, Charice McConville (Klickitat) 111-3, Holly Seely (Ellensburg) 106-6, Jessica Farris (Naches Valley) 105-11, Ewieona Williams (Eisenhower) 104-11, Carrie Johnston (Eisenhower) 101-3, Jamie White (Prosser) 100-0, Courtney Hernandez (Selah) 99-11.
Javelin — Kelsie Taylor (Naches Valley) 124-3, Quianna Winkfield (West Valley) 117-5, Zoe Lindner (Klickitat) 115-6, Jessica Farris (Naches Valley) 109-9, Lara Parsons (Klickitat) 107-10, Yadira Valencia (Grandview) 107-8, Janell Dufault (La Salle) 107-4, Madelyn Sattler (Selah) 101-7.
High jump — Samantha Brewer (Klickitat) 5-2, Justine Benner (Naches Valley) 5-1, Blythe Monoian (Toppenish) 4-10, Alicia Cikauskas (Selah) 4-10, Raini Weaver (Davis) 4-10, Torri Creasy (West Valley) 4-10, Jaden Gjestrum (West Valley) 4-10, Kelcie Russell (Ellensburg) 4-10.
Long jump — Lindsay Burns (West Valley) 17-1 1/2, Beth Klingele (Eisenhower) 16-5 3/4, Justine Benner (Naches Valley) 16-5, Delaney Romero (Naches Valley) 16-2, Veronica Sanchez (Selah) 16-1 1/2, Liz Vogt (Trout Lake-Glenwood) 16-0 1/2, Bethany Imperial (Riverside Christian) 16-0, Lizzie Blanchard (Eisenhower) 15-11 3/4.
Triple jump — Kelli Wilson (Prosser) 35-3 1/2, Lindsay Burns (West Valley) 34-6 1/2, Samantha Brewer (Klickitat) 33-10 1/2, Claire Boutillier (Naches Valley) 33-9, Kelly Snyder (Naches Valley) 33-8, Erin Smith (Selah) 33-7 3/4, Bethany Imperial (Riverside Christian) 33-1 1/2, Lizzie Blanchard (Eisenhower) 32-10 1/4.
Pole vault — Katie Herndon (Sunnyside) 9-3, Colleen Newell (La Salle) 9-0, Maria Suarez (Eisenhower) 9-0, McKenzie Zoller (Trout Lake-Glenwood) 9-0, Madison Moore (Prosser) 8-6, Kaylie DeWitte (Ellensburg) 8-6, Sabrina Galaviz (Toppenish) 8-0, Brianna Mares (Eisenhower) 8-0.
Joe Puryear climbing even higher
April 26, 2010 by Scott Sandsberry
YAKIMA, Wash. — If you happen to be stopping by the Bonair Winery to taste the latest vintages and find yourself chatting with the proprietors, Shirley and Gail Puryear, feel free to ask about how their son Joe is doing. Get ready for an earful.
Because in Joe Puryear’s world — which is quite far, figuratively and geographically, from his parents’ oenological realm — he is becoming quite the big deal indeed.
Puryear and his climbing partner, David Gottlieb, have been nailing one climbing “first” after another in the Himalayas, climbing never-before climbed peaks in the world’s most prestigious climbing area. He’s also working on another book (his first book, “Alaska Climbing,” is pretty much the go-to guidebook on climbing in our biggest state) which, presumably, will detail some of these Himalayan adventures.
I heard about Puryear’s latest exploits from Marty Lentsch, co-founder of the Yakima Climbing Club, board member of Central Washington Mountain Rescue and — as of last fall, president of the Washington Mountain Rescue Association. (So, yes, congratulations are in order here as well.)
Lentsch is in the early stages of figuring out how to bring Joe Puryear to Yakima for a photographic presentation of his latest climbing feats, possibly at a fairly decent-sized venue — say, The Seasons or perhaps the Living Center’s Meyer Auditorium. Check the Herald-Republic or right here at Out There for the event date; I’ll post it as soon as I know.
– Scott Sandsberry
Nearly 30,000 springers past McNary
April 26, 2010 by Scott Sandsberry
YAKIMA, Wash. –It’s Monday, less than a week before the Yakima River spring chinook fishery gets under way this Saturday, and the numbers are continuing to get better. Nearly 30,000 spring chinook have already made their way through McNary Dam, and the numbers pouring daily through Bonneville have dipped below 3,600 just once since April 13.
Here’s the latest where-the-springers-are-now update for those anglers who just can’t wait. With only 85 of them counted at Prosser through last Thursday, fishing on the Yakima might not be really for the first few days of the season, but one thing is sure: Those fish are coming.
| Date | Bonneville | The Dalles | John Day | McNary | Prosser |
| April 19 | 7,814 | 4,278 | 5,927 | 1,380 | 9 |
| April 20 | 9,054 | 2,851 | 4,597 | 1,821 | 12 |
| April 21 | 11,741 | 4,240 | 3,691 | 5,495 | 16 |
| April 22 | 7,441 | 8,316 | 4,396 | 3,658 | 15 |
| April 23 | 6,658 | 6,043 | 6,464 | 2,913 | NA |
| April 24 | 5,819 | 6,285 | 5,921 | 3,670 | NA |
| April 25 | 7,353 | 5,680 | 5,827 | 4,826 | NA |
| Season Total | 95,515 | 61,251 | 49,457 | 28,431 | 85 |
The daily numbers below, representing each day’s total counts (adults and jacks) at each dam, were gathered from the Corps of Engineers Fish Passage Center’s seven-day counts and the University of Washington’s Columbia River DART (Data Access in Real Time) site, from which the Prosser counts are provided as a courtesy of the Yakima Klickitat Fisheries Project.
– Scott Sandsberry
Saint Martin’s sweeps CWU
April 26, 2010 by YH-R Sports
ELLENSBURG, Wash. — Central Washington fell behind early on Sunday and couldn’t catch up, losing 12-7 and 4-3 to Saint Martin’s in a GNAC baseball doubleheader.
Saint Martin’s went ahead 3-0 before Central had its first turn at bat. Central would have to wait until a fourth-inning double steal and an RBI groundout by Sean Murphy to score their first two runs of the day.
Saint Martin’s responded with two runs in the fifth inning and three more in the sixth. CWU countered with runs in the sixth, seventh and eighth, before Saint Martin’s delivered the knockout blow in the eighth with three more runs before adding another in the ninth.
Central Washington’s Kevin Walkenhauer, a West Valley graduate, hit a two-run homer in the bottom of the ninth for the final margin.
Saint Martin’s Travis Jones had seven RBI in Game 1.
In the second game, Saint Martin’s (17-23, 12-11 GNAC) scored twice in the third inning, before CWU (11-31, 5-19) responded with an RBI single from Evan Churlin.
Game 1
Saint Martin’s 300 023 031 — 12 13 3
Central Wash. 000 201 112 — 7 10 1
Mitchell, LaDue, Wilson and Abbott; Warne, Reed, Wakefield, Brown and Evans.
CWU highlights: Kevin Schneider 3-5, 2b, RBI; Ricky McKinney 2-5; Kevin Walkenhauer HR, 2 RBI; Kris Henderson HR; Sean Murphy RBI.
Game 2
Saint Martin’s 002 002 0 — 4 9 0
Central Wash. 000 102 0 — 3 9 3
Douglas, Saltvick and Abbott; Hammons and Evans.
CWU highlights: Evan Churlin 2-3, RBI; Chance Plutt, 2-4, 2b; Ricky McKinney RBI; Marcus Evans RBI.
Riddle wins Late Model opener
April 26, 2010 by YH-R Sports
YAKIMA, Wash. — Owen Riddle picked up right where he left off last season.
Riddle, the 2009 Late Model champion, won the first race of Yakima Speedway’s Super Late Model Challenge series opener on Saturday.
Riddle, who set the fastest time in qualifying but started sixth because of an inverted grid, battled for second place with J.C. Wofford for 49 laps before passing Erick Hargraves for the lead on lap 61.
In other classifications, Richard Peters (Sportsman), Josh Parmentier (Hornets), Joe Roberts (Youth Hornets) and Donnie Stevens (Bump to Pass) all won their respective main events.
More detailed results were not available.
