Pacific Northwest yetti
Expedition Medic
Old habits, that are good habits.
So the morning we left earlyish at 07:30. When I was getting ready I checked the BCN maps, on my phone and tablet. Across both platforms they were corrupted. No idea, why. They wouldn’t really be needed today. So I was not very worried about it. And I also knew where I was going. Not to mention the paper map, and google maps were good. The Garmin Oregon Topo was still there.
I had to delete all BCN files, and reinstall the apps and states. Working on the tablet now, but still no go on the phone. Trust but verify, those habits will save me on of these days and have before..
Tiny Towns, Two Lanes and Toxic Water:
Narrow shelf road, that climbs rather quickly. Next stop was the “ Red Boy Mine” I saw on the way in. But it’s on a blind corner so wanted to hit it on the way back down.
“Summary Information
(last updated on: 10/17/2012 9:50:10 AM)
The Red Boy Mine is one of over 100 mines in the Granite Creek Mining District, a complex of mines along Granite Creek and tributaries such as Clear, Olive, and Bull Run Creeks (see also ECSI #2131). A 1996 EPA Site Inspection (SI) found significant metals contamination of soil/sediment and surface water, highest in sediment ponds, with concentrations decreasing at downgradient locations. There were levated levels of arsenic, cadmium, copper, lead, barium, beryllium, mercury, and silver in most tailings piles, sediment ponds and at many downgradient locations. The Red Boy Mine was identified as being of particular concern due to a large volume of tailings and waste rock in the stream channel at Congo Gulch, and the condition of the water collection system and treatment wetlands, which allow variable amounts of mine water discharge to by-pass the system and enter Clear Creek via Congo Gulch. The tailings in Congo Gulch are over 25 feet thick in some areas and are eroding into the creek. Clear Creek is a critical habitat for Spring Chinook, Summer Steelhead, and other sensitive fish and aquatic species. The USFS provided for construction of treatment ponds and wetlands for the drainage from Red Boy and two other nearby mines, Due to design and maintenance problems, water from the Red Boy Mine often bypasses the system and leaks through waste rock, carrying arsenic, iron and other metal contaminants into Congo Gulch and Clear Creek. Recently DEQ has been working with the North Fork John Day Watershed Council, the Oregon Water Enhancement Board, the USFS, and other stakeholders to find funding and solutions to develop and implement plans to improve the quality of water, sediment, and anadromous fish runs in Clear Creek, Granite Creek, and the North Fork John Day River. Recent grant funding has been used to collect additional data to update mine conditions and wok on the improvement, upgrading and maintenance of the piping system.”
https://www.deq.state.or.us/Webdocs/Forms/Output/FPController.ashx?SourceIdType=11&SourceId=2467
So the morning we left earlyish at 07:30. When I was getting ready I checked the BCN maps, on my phone and tablet. Across both platforms they were corrupted. No idea, why. They wouldn’t really be needed today. So I was not very worried about it. And I also knew where I was going. Not to mention the paper map, and google maps were good. The Garmin Oregon Topo was still there.
I had to delete all BCN files, and reinstall the apps and states. Working on the tablet now, but still no go on the phone. Trust but verify, those habits will save me on of these days and have before..
Tiny Towns, Two Lanes and Toxic Water:
Narrow shelf road, that climbs rather quickly. Next stop was the “ Red Boy Mine” I saw on the way in. But it’s on a blind corner so wanted to hit it on the way back down.
“Summary Information
(last updated on: 10/17/2012 9:50:10 AM)
The Red Boy Mine is one of over 100 mines in the Granite Creek Mining District, a complex of mines along Granite Creek and tributaries such as Clear, Olive, and Bull Run Creeks (see also ECSI #2131). A 1996 EPA Site Inspection (SI) found significant metals contamination of soil/sediment and surface water, highest in sediment ponds, with concentrations decreasing at downgradient locations. There were levated levels of arsenic, cadmium, copper, lead, barium, beryllium, mercury, and silver in most tailings piles, sediment ponds and at many downgradient locations. The Red Boy Mine was identified as being of particular concern due to a large volume of tailings and waste rock in the stream channel at Congo Gulch, and the condition of the water collection system and treatment wetlands, which allow variable amounts of mine water discharge to by-pass the system and enter Clear Creek via Congo Gulch. The tailings in Congo Gulch are over 25 feet thick in some areas and are eroding into the creek. Clear Creek is a critical habitat for Spring Chinook, Summer Steelhead, and other sensitive fish and aquatic species. The USFS provided for construction of treatment ponds and wetlands for the drainage from Red Boy and two other nearby mines, Due to design and maintenance problems, water from the Red Boy Mine often bypasses the system and leaks through waste rock, carrying arsenic, iron and other metal contaminants into Congo Gulch and Clear Creek. Recently DEQ has been working with the North Fork John Day Watershed Council, the Oregon Water Enhancement Board, the USFS, and other stakeholders to find funding and solutions to develop and implement plans to improve the quality of water, sediment, and anadromous fish runs in Clear Creek, Granite Creek, and the North Fork John Day River. Recent grant funding has been used to collect additional data to update mine conditions and wok on the improvement, upgrading and maintenance of the piping system.”
https://www.deq.state.or.us/Webdocs/Forms/Output/FPController.ashx?SourceIdType=11&SourceId=2467
