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The Nugget
POSTAL CUSTOMER PRE-SORTED STANDARD ECRWSS U.S. POSTAGE PAID Sisters, OR Permit No. 15
News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
Vol. XLVII No. 33
www.NuggetNews.com
Wednesday, August 14, 2024
Doctor shortage causing pain
Fish for breakfast...
By Bill Bartlett Correspondent
PHOTO BY CRAIG RULLMAN
Flyfishermen are not the only ones out on the Metolius River — and Mergansers are not into catch and release.
Oregon Capital Chronicle
With climate change driving hotter, drier summers across the West, the intensity of recent fire seasons is outpacing workers’ ability to track and analyze fires with the traditional methods. “There simply aren’t enough boots on the ground, or eyes in pairs of binoculars
Shooting incident leads to arrest A 23-year-old Sisters man allegedly fired a pistol repeatedly as he rode his bike home from a Sisters bar in the wee hours of Friday, August 9. The escapade landed him in jail facing charges of unlawful use of a weapon, unlawful possession of a firearm, reckless
Inside...
By Bill Bartlett Correspondent
to cover the base and the extent of what we’ve been dealing with, and that’s been true across the western U.S. and across the world,” said Sarvesh Garimella, the chief scientist and chief technical officer at weather app MyRadar. But government agencies and private sector companies See WILDFIRE on page 9
endangering, and driving under the influence of intoxicants. According to the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office, deputies were dispatched to reports of a shooting complaint in the area of West Felicity Lane See SHOOTING on page 17
Letters/Weather ............... 2 Meetings .......................... 3
See SHORTAGE on page 13
Trail plan raises wildlife concerns
Wildfire experts are turning to AI By Paige Gross
It seems that nearly everybody in Sisters Country knows somebody first- or second-hand who has had delays in getting medical care. Most often, the anecdotes go, it’s a patient waiting for a joint repair or replacement. The shortage of orthopedic surgeons is at near crisis levels, nationally and locally. The largest provider of such services is The Center in Bend, well-known to folks in Sisters. In a letter to patients, The Center said: “Thank you for entrusting your care to The Center. Our community is facing
A series of wildlife images captured by a trail camera on a proposed downhill mountain bike trail near Sisters is remarkable in clarity. Moreover, against high odds, the same camera caught a pair of cougars, a black bear, and numerous mule deer. The camera is the property of Adam Bronstein, a local wildlife and wilderness advocate with the newly formed group Wild Ecosystems Alliance, one of a number of opponents to the Forest Service’s proposed trail activities on 21 existing and future trails across the District, including new trail construction, the addition of existing routes, and existing system trail realignment and abandonment. Proposed trail actions in the Sisters Trail Additions and Replacement project (STAR) would provide a variety of user experiences unavailable on the existing trails. Overall, about 54 miles of new non-motorized trail are proposed to
Bunkhouse Chronicle ........ 5 Sisters Salutes ..................7
PHOTO PROVIDED
A trail cam captured considerable wildlife activity at a spot where a proposed downhill mountain bike trail might go. be added to the Sisters trail system and 8 miles removed for a net addition of about 46 miles. Currently, there are about 392 miles of non-motorized system trails on the Sisters Ranger District. Trails proposed for this project were derived from a larger list initially created by various trail user groups and vetted by Forest Service specialists. New trail construction includes the construction of a route that does not currently exist. According to the Forest Service, new trail construction is considered when the Announcements...............10 Entertainment .................12
proposed trail would provide a unique user experience not already available in the greater trail system, potentially reduce user conflict, and/or provide trail system connectivity. This project proposes 4 new trails totaling 16 miles. The proposal, introduced in July 2023, included a public comment period that ended September 23, 2023. A decision is expected to be reached next April with implementation slated to begin next June. See TRAIL on page 14
Crossword ....................... 17 Classifieds.................. 18-19