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PNP comment: Thanks to Stan Meager for sending these to us. — Editor Liz Bowen 

PNP comment: It was so fun to see a great turnout for the Rodeo Dance tonight at Etna City Hall. I didn’t dance, but attended to take photos of the crowing of the 2013 Pleasure Park Rodeo Queen. It has been nearly a decade since a May Rodeo Dance was held up the long flight of stairs to the refurbished upstairs hall. So fun to see friends my age and several generations younger. Then the oldest prize went to Delta Christ, who organized many a square dance in the hall over the years. Nice, fun, social evening for all ages. Great band. P.S. can’t believe it has been 40 years, since I was crowned Pleasure Park Rodeo Queen, yep, it was May 1973 and it was a cold spring threatening rain on Rodeo day, not warm like this year.– Editor Liz Bowen

Delta Christ just keeps on dancing!

Kah’lena Hayes, left, is the new 2013 Scott Valley Pleasure Park Rodeo Queen  and will reign over the Etna Rodeo on Sunday, May 5th. Kah’lena is 16 years old, attends Golden Eagle Charter School and is the daughter of Annette and Doug Hayes of Yreka.

 First Princess is Kyliegh Kirkbride, who is 17 years old and attends Etna High School.  Second Princess is Machaela Bray, 15 years old and attends Etna High School.

The Band -

2013 Scott Valley Pleasure Park Association President Travis Earls with beautiful wife, Jessie.

Scott Valley Pleasure Park Rodeo Queen for 2013 is Kah’Lena Hayes from Yreka, she is 16 years old. Kah’Lena is a junior at Golden Eagle Charter School. She competes in Western and English horse shows, High School Rodeo and Barrel Racing. Kah’Lena’s parent are Annette and Doug Hayes.

First Princess is Kyliegh Kirkbride from Yreka. Kyliegh is 17 years old and is a junior at Yreka High School. She is a member of her local FFA chapter and competes in barrel racing. Kyleighs parents are Stacey Willison and Dustin Kirkbride.

Second Princess is Machaela Bray. Machaela is 15 years old and attends Etna High School as a sophomore. Michaela plays baseball, volleyball and likes to trail ride.

The 2013 Scott Valley Pleasure Park Rodeo Royalty will reign over the 66^th Annual May 5th Rodeo and the Old Time Rodeo the last Saturday in July in Etna.

          More Flood Tales         

Marge George, like the other people who survived the ’64 flood, has stories she cannot forget. Marge ran the Forks of Salmon Store, which, in those days, was located at the mouth of McNeal Creek barely up the South Fork from where it joins the North. All night long her family watched the rise of the creek, which is pronounced “crick” on the Salmon River.

        Read More →

          The 1,000 Year Flood         

With rain pelting down on the roof of a warm and cozy home, it was hard to imagine the anxiety the rain can cause – for most of us in the room. For 85 year-old Grant Hillman of Orleans, relentless December rains set the scene for the most dramatic three months of his life.

        Read More →

It has been so cold in Scott Valley this winter that two local residents are building this 31 foot diameter by 19 foot tall igloo at the Fort Jones (California) baseball field.  They are hoping for more snow in the next few days so they can finish their project.  Mel Fechter stopped and posed for these photos this afternoon.

Thank you to Mel Fechter for his beautiful photos of healthy salmon spawning in crystal clear Scott River. In the second photo, the female has dusted the gravel bottom in making and covering her nest of eggs called “redds”.

Check out Jefferson News Service article of huge return of chinook salmon at:

 http://jeffersonnewsservice.com/?p=874

Photos by Liz Bowen

After a pretty good rain storm and some hard night-freezes, the leaves are falling. But this is what Scott River looked like on Nov. 2, 2012. 

The video fish weir, put in by CA. Dept. of Fish and Game, is a straight-across line in the river. Those of us who have worked cattle, know that a much better design could be easily made that would encourage the salmon to find the narrow opening. If not an inverted V that easily would herd salmon to find the small eight-inch gap (that is the only way to make it up into Scott Valley — find the eight-inch gap to be counted by the submersed video camera), then it should be a diagonal up to the eight-inch gap. But, no, it is straight across.

We believe it is a poor design — on purpose. We believe too many are laying their eggs below the weir, in the middle of the river, and will be washed out by fast-moving flows this winter.

But chinook salmon are making it through the weir. On Nov. 4, 2012 more than 4,306 has been counted for the season.

The day I was there, at least six chinook that had made it through the eight-inch gap and were swimming around above the weir.

– Editor Liz Bowen

 Fish weir that obstructs the entire river, except for an eight-inch gap on the far side.

On the far side of the river is the passage tunnel for the salmon to swim through. Last year, it was on the near side of the river.

 Chinook salmon.

Above is just below the DFG video fish weir.

Below is a mile or more above the fish weir in the canyon.

 Yep, there are lots of trees that need to be harvested. The trees are 800 times the NATURAL amount, but Greenies have stopped timber harvesting in the Klamath National Forest to the point that only 4 percent of the total acreage is allowed to have timber harvests. And when a Timber Harvest Plan is ready to go, the Greenies sue the Forest Service.

 It had been raining with a few sprinkles still falling.

Took this photo near Etna from Hwy 3.  It is shooting North East. Yep, many fields are dry from being harvested or no irrigation water. The front is alfalfa, which will stay green longer, because the roots are deeper.

After a threat of autumn sprinkles, the temperature warmed to the 70s on Saturday, Oct. 27, 2012 as sharp shooters and friends gathered. This is the beginning of the drive up East Moffett Creek. Nice autumn colors from the cottonwood trees.

Yep, this is our camp in an open field near tiny Moffett Creek.

Scott Valley Protect Our Water Turkey Shoot

10-27-12 Winners

Mike March, Scott Valley, won the Grand Prize of dinner for six from the Dirty Driller Barbecue in Fort Jones.

A BIG THANK YOU goes out to Julie McQuoid for donating the Dirty Driller Barbecue! 

There were many classes shooting at a “running deer” on a cable, 25 yard, 50 yard, 100 yard and 200 yard targets. There was varmint target and hunter shoots. Pistols and muzzle loader classes were also on tap. In all classes (events), the FIRST PLACE or closest to the bull’s eye on the target won a frozen turkey or ham or bacon or salami or cheese. Some shooters went home with their arms full of prizes!

Tied for the most first place wins were:

Gary Tickner and Trenten Hayden

Second highest: Cody Weldon

Third highest: Mike March

Fourth highest: Ken Berryhill

Fifth highest: Tony Rae

Sixth highest: Cliff West

Seventh highest: Mike Lyon

Eighth highest: Chad McWilliams

Ninth highest: Dana Simpson

Tenth highest: Steve Walters

Eleventh highest: Mike LaMarr

Twelfth highest: Mike Martin

Thirteenth highest: Jared Miller

Youth $25 Gift Certificate winner: Bryce Leach

NON-SHOOTERS participated (gambled) by rolling dice or purchasing a circle to be shot at with a shot gun (and the circle with the most pellet holes wins).

Dice winners:

Jared Miller won salami

Steve Walters won ham

Bryce Leach won ham

Sally LeVesque  won salami

Cookie Hunt won bacon and the turkey

Brody Spallino won cheese and the carrot cake

Jim McFadden triumphed by winning the coveted Cherry Pie

Shotgun spatter-board winners were:

Trenten Hayden won the frozen turkey

Tom Pease won the bacon

Elaine Dolcini won ham

Liz Bowen won salami

Scott Valley POW President Tom Pease welcomed the shooters and friends.

Cody Weldon gets ready to shoot.

Shooting at the Running Deer.

Ginny and Kathy take the class signups.

Joyce Landi is cutting up the onions for the chili and hotdogs.

Marellon Baird takes the signups for the non-shooters Dice games.

Chris O’Neil (red shirt)  calls the order of the next class of shooters.

Ranch owner, Mike Cramer, hosted the event with his wife, Pauline, (below). Mike ran the Running Deer Shoot. Pauline organized and purchased all the prizes, food, porta-potties and other extra important details.

Sarah Hayden takes aim at the Running Deer with her pistol.

Roy Hall Jr. and Trenten Hayden get ready.

Pat Swanson gives Jim McFadden the Cherry Pie he won in the Dice Roll Game.

Nope, no trouble with the law! Cal-Fire Law Enforcement Officer, Monte Whipple, stopped by and visited with friends during the Turkey Shoot. It was a very peaceful day. Everyone treats firearms with great respect. There is only one shooter at a time. It is quite safe.

 Waiting for your turn.

Headed home after a long day at the 2nd Annual Scott Valley POW Turkey Shoot.

Elizabeth Emken, middle, speaks with Ann Ohlund (right) and Tammy Pecis (left) during one of her three Meet & Greets in Siskiyou County. 

California Senator Doug LaMalfa is no stranger to Siskiyou County. He and his staff have traveled to Siskiyou many time during the past two years, Doug has served as our representative.

But rarely does a California candidate for the U.S. Senate venture so far north, but Republican candidate Elizabeth Emken did on Oct. 2, 2012.

Doug LaMalfa, who is now running for the U.S. House of Representatives, accompanied Elizabeth Emken to Siskiyou, where they were treated to a helicopter ride over the Klamath dams. Yes, the well-maintained and functioning hydro-electric dams the majority of Siskiyou citizens are trying to save. Greenies and corrupt federal and state agencies want the dams out, without even following their own protocol and regulations (EIS-EIR and CEQA have not been followed.)

Residents on COPCO lake (one of the dams slated for the ridiculous removal creates the lake) held a luncheon for Candidate Emken, where she learned first-hand the truths about NO honest government over-sight in Siskiyou.

At 5 p.m. and again at 7 p.m. Doug LaMalfa spoke and introduced Elizabeth Emken to a crowd of up to 50 enthusiastic folks.

Elizabeth Emken is a bright star ready to fly. She is down-to-earth and has developed skills and talents needed to SAVE America.

Together, Doug LaMalfa as our Congressman and Elizabeth Emken as our U.S. Senator they will be a powerful force for a GOOD change in government.

Please join me in voting for Doug LaMalfa and Elizabeth Emken.

PNP comment: This photography blog is amazing. Fabulous photos and the series of the cow moose trying to protect her newborn calf from the wolf pack is incredible. Wolves are vicious killers and their numbers must be tightly managed. This blog and photos are well worth the click. — Editor Liz Bowen

Alaska Photography Blog.com and article by Patrick J. Endres

I joined my friend and colleague Hugh Rose for a one-day professional photography permit in Denali National Park on Thursday. Historically, (that is over the last 15 years) whenever Hugh and I join up in the park, we encounter something special to photograph, and this short trip rivals all previous ones.

When exiting the park about 8pm, after a very slim day of photography, we stumbled upon a cow moose defending her calf from a lone wolf. Her success at chasing off the wolf was quickly challenged when 5 more of the pack showed up, and absolute organized chaos broke out as the pack strategically lunged at the one week old moose calf. Back-lit in a small tundra pond, the cow moose charged, stomped and splashed. Water was flying everywhere as the wolves attacked them from all angles. It was a real-time spectacle of nature unfolding before our eyes. The calf sought protection under the mom’s belly, as she chased off the pack with her deadly hoofs. But the wolves were cunning and relentless and over time they dragged the calf away from the mother. It was amazing how many times, after thinking the calf was surely dead, it got back up again once the mother fended off the attack. Besides frantically photographing and cheering on the cow moose in her vigilant defense, the odds of survival were obviously slim, and in the end, the wolves were successful in the kill.

It was a scene of mixed emotion, adrenalin and lots of shutter clicks. I’ve heard of similar predator-prey encounters from colleagues over the years, but I’ve never had the chance to see one myself. After nearly 30 years of visiting the park, I guess my turn finally emerged. Below are a few frames from the attack scene, which lasted about 10 minutes (from the time the wolf pack surrounded the moose until they killed the calf and dragged it to the tundra).

Photo from Alaska Photography Blog.com

http://www.alaskaphotographyblog.com/2010/06/wolf-pack-kills-moose-calf/