It’s nearing that time of year where light jackets are traded in for wool coats and backyard parties are moved indoors. For many hikers and campers, the next few weeks also mark the end of great Fall camping weather. When the rain starts to increase and the temperatures drop below freezing in parts of the country, campers must transition to their winter camping gear or call it a year and wait for spring. So consider this your reminder to use the next couple of weekends to check out the fall colors, get some end of season fresh air and enjoy a fall camping trip. Just do so responsibly:

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A Canadian woman, identified as Taylor Mitchell, was attacked by coyotes last week while hiking the Cape Breton Highlands National Park in Nova Scotia. The 19 year old singer/songwriter from Toronto was hiking alone when she was attacked. Nearby hikers heard her screams and called police for help. The police arrived in time to shoot and wound one of the coyotes but both got away. Mitchell was taken to Halifax hospital but died later of her injuries.

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Don’t let the rain and fog keep you from enjoying the great outdoors this fall season. Though conditions are not as ideal as the summer months, the scenery and plant life are exceptional this time of year. While we don’t advocate that inexperienced hikers explore when conditions may be treacherous (slippery trails, rock slide potential, inclement weather), we do encourage people to take guided hikes with professionals who know the terrain well and can help guide you through trailways the safest way possible. Below are just a few guided hikes in the Northwest you can sign-up for.

Herman Creek Hike
October 28, 2009 | 8:30am – 5:30pm
A four mile round trip hike that takes you through the newly expanded Columbia Gorge Wilderness Area to Herman Camp. This is a great location to view old growth forests and learn about the 1902 Columbia Fire.
Cost: $9.00 (proceeds support campaigns to protect wildlands in Oregon)
Contact: Rob Klavins, rk@oregonwild.org

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Saturday, October 3 was opening day for deer hunters in Oregon. The ODFW has said that they are seeing a rise in the number of hunters and hunting licenses being requested this year which they are attributing to rising unemployment. ODFW officials believe that more men have the time to go hunting because they have been laid off or had hours cut. Though this is surely not a positive turn of events for most, it is benefiting the ODFW who sold 12,000 more hunting licenses this year than last.

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Did you know that reporting on your hunt in Oregon is mandatory? You didn’t? Well, most other hunters don’t either. Oregon requires hunters to contact the Department of Fish and Wildlife after a hunt to record their experience. The goal of this exercise is for the state to get a better gauge of the population year to year so that they can make assessments on the number of tags to issue the next year. However, most hunters neglect to do this. The reasons are twofold: 1.) Many hunters have never had to do this before and don’t know they should do it now and 2.) Though reporting is mandatory, there is no penalty for not doing so. The requirement gets chalked up to being somewhat of an idle threat.

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