The British soldiers lichen (Cladonia cristatella) grows in the Gorge, often on mossy boulders. The fruiting bodies are brilliant red, quite eye-catching when encountered. #Nativeplants

GOP: "We cut foreign aid, public broadcasting, & slashed government waste to help struggling Americans." Then, they cut Medicaid & SNAP. See how that works? Yet, @democrats.org's messaging has been weak on exposing this con; a FOX affiliate doing better. www.youtube.com/watch?v=CRJb...

Fujii Farms’ fruit stand will be closing in the next few days. They had local strawberries🍓 yesterday.

Wednesday, OHA announced 3 new COVID deaths in Oregon; the total is now 10,877. Hospitalizations are at 2.3 per 100,000 compared to the national average of 2.6. Novavax availability looks to be improving. There will be a vaccine finder launching in the next week or so ...

A Red Flag Warning is in effect for the eastern Gorge & Lower Columbia Basin due to dry conditions & high winds. forecast.weather.gov/showsigwx.ph...

Staff gentian (Gentiana sceptrum) is uncommon, growing in marshes at higher elevations of the Gorge & blooming in late summer. The flowers open only in bright midday sun. No Native American uses are noted. #Nativeplants

Multnomah Falls Lodge celebrated its 100th anniversary today: www.kptv.com/2025/09/23/c...

Manzanita (Arctostaphylos columbiana) grows in open areas of forest at low to mid elevations of the Gorge. It likes dry conditions. Native Americans ate the berries for food & took a decoction of the bark for diarrhea. The wood was used on fires at dances because it burns ... #Nativeplants

A Mormon metalmark nectars on rabbitbrush, Chrysothamnus viscidiflorus, one of the late-season bloomers in desert areas of the east Gorge. Native Americans used the flowers to make a yellow dye. The roots were used as chewing gum. A decoction of the plant was taken for colds ... #Nativeplants

Yesterday, OHA reported 3 new COVID deaths in Oregon; the total is now 10,874. Hospitalizations are at 2.2 per 100,000 as of 8/30, compared to a national average of 2.4. Wastewater levels are currently considered high, though the Portland metro area has sporadic detections. News on vaccines: ...

Corn lily (Veratrum viride) is a great subject for studying form, color, & tone in a photograph. The plants are beautiful, but contain a teratogenic toxin called cyclopamine. Sheep that graze them bear lambs with deformed heads. Despite the toxicity, Native Americans had many ... #Nativeplants

United Way of the Columbia Gorge has started a recovery fund for victims of the Rowena Fire. Make a tax-deductible donation at the link below. It may be possible to designate your donation to help Burdoin Fire victims, but this isn't clear at the moment. uwcg.ejoinme.org/RowenaFireRe...

A nice specimen of the fly agaric (Amanita muscaria) growing in the Gifford Pinchot National Forest. This iconic mushroom is unfortunately toxic, containing a host of interesting hallucinogenic & toxic ...

2 members of the Gorge Commission will be on OPB Think Out Loud today at noon. They will talk about rebuilding after the recent wildfires along with economic development & resource protection.

The new Medicare guide is out, & you would think @Democrats.org would be in front of the cameras telling everyone about important cost savings: the prescription drug price cap & negotiated bulk drug pricing, that were done in the Biden Administration. But instead, crickets.

September 10, OHA reported one new COVID death in Oregon; the total is now 10,871. Hospitalizations are at 2.4 per 100,000 as of 8/23 compared to a national average of 2.2. While most officials view the death trend as a victory, I view it as a failure because it represents ...

The zinnia bed is going gangbusters.

2 days ago, a hiker was found dead at Wiesendanger Falls, which is above Multnomah Falls. He was apparently lost, & possibly fell in an unfamiliar area. www.kptv.com/2025/09/10/b...

A caterpillar of the Oregon swallowtail (Papilio machaon oregonius) feeds on its host plant, dragon wormwood (Artemisia dracunculus) along the Deschutes River. It's a subspecies of the Old World swallowtail, a holarctic species complex & Oregon's state insect. The caterpillars...

Elephant's head (Pedicularis groenlandica) is a member of the lousewort family. It grows in moist subalpine meadows. While locally common, it is sensitive to trampling. Please avoid camping & walking near the plants. The name is obvious! Native Americans used ... #Nativeplants

It's not too late to get some late-season huckleberries. I got a quart yesterday. Picking activity has dropped after Labor Day. The upcoming week's weather will be cool & wet. This will likely be the last chance before the birds & bears have their fill.

The Oregon Board of Pharmacy is not allowing pharmacists to prescribe the new COVID vaccine until updated federal guidance is released (doctors can, however). Read the following carefully before going in to get a vaccine. Many cancelled appointments are being reported. www.oregon.gov/pharmacy/pag...

Current COVID vaccine availability at CVS Pharmacy by state, showing restrictions where they apply.

Bunchberry (Cornus canadensis) or Canadian dogwood, is in fruit now. They grow as a creeping plant in moist spruce-fir understory in the Gorge. Native Americans used the bark to treat body pain. A decoction of the plant was taken for coughs, fevers, & tuberculosis. #Nativeplants An eyewash ...

The Hood River Bridge will close for an hour on 9/11 at 10 am for lane striping. portofhoodriver.com

Today, OHA reported 10 new COVID deaths in Oregon; the total is now 10,870. The past 2 weeks had zero deaths, so this doesn't indicate an uptrend. Hospitalizations as of 8/9 are at 2.3 per 100,000, compared to the national average of 1.7. Statewide wastewater levels show ...

Choke cherry (Prunus virginiana) grows in open slopes & open woods in low to mid elevations in the Gorge. It had a plethora of Native American uses. The fruit are both sour & bitter. The leaves & seeds when digested can produce cyanide, so they are toxic. (1) A death was ... #Nativeplants

After spending taxpayer money to create a wildfire risk map for Oregon & going through 2 revisions, the map is now dead due to disinformation & public opposition: oregoncapitalchronicle.com/2025/09/01/h...

Migraine tip: I saw a study that lithium might reduce dementia risk. I took a low dose of 1 mg a day, and my migraines worsened dramatically. After stopping, they went away. If you live an area with high lithium concentration in water & battle migraines, it might be worth trying distilled ...

Woodland skippers (Ochlodes sylvanoides) are widespread in OR/WA & fly now, summer to fall with a peak in August. They're less than an inch in wingspan & common in urban areas. If you see a quick darting, yellowish tan butterfly, it's likely this one. The larval food plants ...

Look for the bright red berries of mountain ash (Sorbus scopulina or S. sitchensis) along roadsides & open woods at higher elevations in the Gorge & Cascades. Native Americans gave an infusion of branches to children with bedwetting problems. An infusion of branch bark & roots...

Wednesday, OHA reported no new COVID deaths in Oregon; the total is 10,860. Hospitalizations are at 1.8 per 100,000 as of 8/2, compared to the national average of 1.3. Statewide, wastewater levels of the virus show a sustained increase.

Diver confirms human remains found in wreckage of a car pulled from the Columbia in March at Cascade Locks: katu.com/news/local/r...

Portland got rid of parking minimums & eliminated single-family zoning in a bid to increase affordable rentals. The result? An increase of only 275 units from 2011-2023. (Oregonian, 8/20/25, p. A14) I'm waiting to hear the next excuse about why the city isn't building units.

The Gorge Commission has released a statement for rebuilding after the Burdoin & Rowena fires. There are restrictions if a rebuild will be in a different location or is more than 10% larger or taller than the original structure. www.gorgecommission.org/images/uploa...

The Forest Service won’t let wildland firefighters use the same breathing equipment that protects urban firefighters. They are getting serious health issues at an early age from smoke exposure. Think Out Loud on OPB Radio today will cover this at noon & 8 pm. www.pbs.org/newshour/sho...

Insurance companies sue BNSF for causing Tunnel 5 Fire: www.kiro7.com/news/local/l...

Huckleberries are our region's elusively delicious iconic fruit. Now is the time to get some. How to pick them like a pro: 1. There are 12 species of huckleberries in the Pacific Northwest. They look like smaller cousins of the blueberry, which is what they are. They can be ...

A lot of these drugs are cancer chemotherapy. If you’re being treated, be sure to check this list & talk to your doctor.

Wednesday, OHA announced 4 new COVID deaths in Oregon; the total is now 10,860. There are mixed signs that a summer wave could be peaking. Walgreens showed fewer cases but a small sample of only 6. Wastewater levels show a sustained increase in Portland. Hospitalization ...

A recent rulemaking process from the Department of Land and Conservation Development could have limited what can be sold at farm stands, but an outsized public response to the potential rules put the process on an indefinite pause. www.newsinthegrove.com/oregon-ditch...

You might miss this rare plant in the Gorge or even step on it. It's the pine (or conifer) broomrape, Orobanche pinorum. It's a parasitic plant that grows in rocky soils & open forests below 7000 ft. It feeds on roots of the oceanspray shrub, Holodiscus discolor. No Native ... #Nativeplants

Yampah (Perideridia gairdneri) is uncommon in the Gorge. It grows in meadows & grasslands in scattered locations of the east Gorge & is a First Food of Native Americans. They ate the roots raw or cooked, & used the roots to draw inflammation from swellings or for sore throat... #Nativeplants

Kevin Gorman, Friends of the Gorge's executive director, is at it again with a screed trying to say the Rowena & Burdoin fires are good for the Gorge & blaming the people who lost their homes on not being properly prepared. Even one of their caretaker homes was lost, so they ...

August 6th, OHA reported 5 new COVID deaths in Oregon; the total is now 10,856. Hospitalizations as of 7/19 are at 1.3 per 100,000, with a cautionary blip to 2.2 in the incomplete data for the following week, compared to the national average of 1.0. This is corroborated by ...

I think the best way to improve colorectal cancer screening rates in younger people is to have public service announcements from younger celebrities who survived cancer by getting screened, along with a list of celebrities who died from this horrible & preventable illness ...

Correction: Yesterday's tweet misidentified a sunflower species. The photo on the left is common sunflower, Helianthus annuus. On the right is prairie sunflower, H. petiolaris. It's an introduced species growing in the Gorge, while the former is a native.

The fall webworm (Hyphantria cunea) is spinning nests on cottonwood & alder trees in the Gorge right now. They are especially noticeable along I-84 between Troutdale & Cascade Locks. The caterpillars turn into a night-flying moth ...

A rare find: Gray's broomrape (Aphyllon californicum ssp. grayanum) grows in sandy vernal pool areas of the east Gorge, blooming late July to early August. It requires a host plant, here the aster Symphyotrichum spathulatum or the grass Beckmannia syzigachne. #Nativeplants

Wednesday, OHA reported 3 new COVID deaths in Oregon, the total is now 10,851. Oregon hospitalizations are at 1.1 per 100,000 as of July 12, compared to the national average of 1.0. Wastewater virus levels are at a plateau over most of the state.