Interpretive Walks

As a part of our educational mission the Friends of the Metolius conducts a variety of interpretive walks in the Metolius Basin. Please check our 2008 calendar for details..

Metolius River Friends of the Forest Day

On Saturday, September 22nd the Friends joined with the National Forest Foundation, US Forest Service, and the Metolius River Forest Homeowners Association in hosting the Metolius River Friends of the Forest Day.

Approximately 60 - 70 enthusiastic volunteers participated in a morning of educational presentations, lunch and, most importantly, work including:

River trail restoration

Meadow restoration near the Allingham Bridge

Painting the viewing platform at the Camp Sherman Store

If you missed the opportunity to join us this year plans are underway for a similar event next year. There is no shortage of worthwhile projects.

Water Quality Monitoring

It's the water. Of all the features that combine to make the Metolius unique - the ponderosa and tamarack forest, the wildlife, the surrounding mountains, the region's history, the quiet - it is the spring fed clarity and beauty of the river itself that ultimately defines the region. Working to maintain the quality of the water is at the heart of the Friends' mission.

Water samples from locations ranging from Suttle Lake to the mouth of the Metolius are collected by an independent agency contracted by the Forest Service. Analysis of E.Coli, orthophosphate, and nitrate levels are performed and results shared with various groups including the Friends. Please check the tables and graphs from this testing over the last three years for four of the sites tested - Mouth of Lake Creek, Camp Sherman Store, Gorge Campground, and Lower Bridge Camp Ground.

CCC Shelters

The final touch was added to the CCC shelter restoration project in late May, 2008 with the installation of informational signs at Camp Sherman, Pine Rest, and Pioneer Ford campgrounds. The text, photos, and maps included in the signs provide historical background to CCC work in the Metolius Basin. Friends is proud to have contributed to this project.
The Civilian Conservation Corp was active in the Metolius Basin during the 1930s building trails, Forest Service campgrounds, and several picnic shelters. The shelters were reroofed in the 1980s, but by 2006 were in a general state of disrepair. In a joint venture with the Camp Sherman Historical Society, the Camp Sherman Community Association and the Forest Service, Friends of the Metolius has committed money and volunteer labor to restoring the fire places and stoves in the shelters and to rebuilding much of the shelter at Pioneer Ford Campground.

Pioneer Ford Picnic Shelter

March, 2006

September, 2006

Noxious Weed Abatement
Nonnative plants, including spotted knapweed, toadflax, ribbon grass, and yellow iris, have become a persistant problem in the Metolius Basin. Friends of the Metolius sponsers volunteer efforts to eliminate knapweed by pulling in affected areas and is teaming with private homeowners and the Forest Service to test methods for dealing with the growing problem of ribbon grass in the Metolius River.

Heritage Forest Demonstration Project

The Heritage Forest Demonstration Project is designed to provide visitors a first hand look at possible silvercultural treatment scenarios that will promote the perpetuation of open park-like stands of ponderosa pine within the Metolius Heritage Area.

    Friends of the Metolius has undertaken this demonstration project out of concern for the old-growth ponderosa pine forests of the area as well as the overall forest health and fire protection within the Metolius Basin. When completed, visitors to the project area will observe:
    • Eight small plots ranging 3 to 10 acres in size for a total of about 50 acres treated
    • Highly visible sites along Forest Road 1420 from the Four Corners junction at Camp Sherman Road 1216 & 1419 to Allingham junction Road 1217
    • Differing treatments including both commercial & non-commercial thinning, burning and mowing, as well as a "turn of the century forest" plot
    • Information about the project that include signs, tours and literature
    • Several untreated "before action" areas for comparison
View photos and information of the differing treatments and their effects over the last 5 years by clicking on the plot locations on the map.

Planning for the Heritage Forest Demonstration Project with the Deschutes National Forest is on going, and requires that the following regulations and laws be adhered to:

  • National Environmental Policy Act
  • Metolius Conservation Area standards and guidelines for the Metolius Heritage Area
  • Metolius Wild and Scenic River management standards
Implementation of the project began in the fall season of 2001 through the spring of 2002 and will continue as prescribed treatments are implemented.

Friends of the Metolius is funding over 60% of the project and therefore donations and partners are needed. Please consider joining the Friends in this and other important endeavors if you are not already a member

Friends 10 Year Review of Metolius Basin Land Management

In 1990 Forest Service adopted a Land and Resource Management Plan for the Deschutes National Forest that identified the Metolius Conservation Area. Since then, the Northwest Forest Plan (1995) and the plan for the Metolius Wild and Scenic River (1997) have modified or supplemented the 1990 work. At the ten-year anniversary, the Friends of the Metolius Board decided to undertake a major review of how well the intentions of these plans are being carried out for the lands and streams of the Metolius Basin.

The 10 Year Review was initiated with an analysis of three specific program elements:

Each of these areas have been long-standing concerns for observers of the Metolius Basin.

The density of young tree growth and the incidence of white fir suggests a problem with forest health. Informal camping along Jack, Lake and Canyon Creeks has impacted stream banks and nearby areas. Road densities are still way above the mileages set in the Forest Plan.

These conditions were reported to representatives of Senators Wyden and Smith on August 9, 2000 during a Friends sponsored forest tour. A month later, on September 9, a repeat of the tour was conducted for Deschutes National Forest Supervisor Leslie Weldon and Sisters District Ranger Bill Anthony.