As Ochoco National Forest officials prepare to finalize a decision setting up an off-highway vehicle trail system, some participants in the process consider suing and complain that a recent meeting did not allow a full discussion of their concerns

Central Oregon LandWatch succeeded in getting the Oregon Land Use Board of Appeals to reject Deschutes County’s approval of an expansion of the Caldera Destination Resort near Sunriver. The County now has to reconsider.

Since this article was published, LandWatch submitted an official objection to the Ochoco Summit Trail System proposal. 

Walk down into the scenic lower Whychus Creek Canyon to Alder Springs and then on to the confluence of the creek with the thundering Deschutes River below a towering wedge of rimrock on this premier Central Oregon hike. 

This will be a beautiful hike with scenic views of Big Summit Prairie and stunning views of the Cascades. 

A new report shows the extreme rate at which we are losing natural areas to development in the American West.

The Upper Tumalo Reservoir is a beautiful natural area west of the rural community of Tumalo. Here, the sagebrush and juniper spotted high desert landscape gives way to the green foothills of the Cascades.

The Upper Tumalo Reservoir is a beautiful natural area west of the rural community of Tumalo. Here, the sagebrush and juniper spotted high desert landscape gives way to the green foothills of the Cascades.

For generations mule deer have come to Bend and surroundings this time of year to birth their young and to raise them for six months, until they are ready to travel the hundred miles or so to their wintering grounds east of here. Little do they know this is no longer safe for them. 

The Forest Service has proposed to build more than one hundred miles of motorized trails, covering approximately 165,000 acres in the Ochoco National Forest at a cost of $1.2 million. 

Building on momentum from community urban growth boundary discussions, Central Oregon LandWatch and The Tree Farm LLC successfully reached a settlement agreement on a proposed development west of Bend.

PB reported on the destruction of trails west and south of Bend by volunteer snowmobiling clubs. 

We see deer in Bend because we've built in their natural habitat, not because there is an abundance of them. Their numbers are in decline.