50@50 – Sisters, OR
Central Oregon is know for its rugged beauty, lush forests, teeming rivers and recreational activities. For a hiker like me, a trip to central Oregon is as awe inspiring as a child’s first glimpse of Cinderella’s castle. This area is only about three hours drive from Portland and about five hours from Spokane. The culture here is one of ruggedness and reverence. Ancient and dormant volcanoes dominate the horizon, and the plateaus and lowlands between the mountains are littered with volcanic debris. The churning rivers are the arteries of this dry climate.
Like many towns in the Northwest, Sisters Oregon was settled late in the 19th century, fueled by logging and ranching, and a bit of farming. Settlers brought pioneer spirit and skills; today this town of 1800 (surrounding area of 12,000) people hosts the largest outdoor quilt show in the world. Thousands of fiber artists attend this annual event each July, transforming this town into a forest of color. Traditional quilts to contemporary fabric landscapes line the street; more needles can be found here than in a hospital! The attendees like many artisan group, exhibit their own language and form of interaction. Even though many come from far away, their rapport with each other is instantaneous – a subculture within a culture.
So the question begs: if landscape directly influences the culture of a place, then what about all the people who come from other places? The migration and settling of America was both an individual and similarly shared experience across many places. As early settlers passed down stories and skills, aspects of the subculture were passed on while individual experiences and heritage today result in unique artistic expression, within the unexpressed boundaries of the subculture. Ultimately, the culture is about human interaction and expression with this place.
One could hike every week and not finish the plethora of trails. One of my favorites is along the Metolius River. The path is easy and the experience serene, almost as if I am in a movie set that could disappear at any moment, but it doesn’t. This is a fisherman’s paradise. A few miles west of Sisters, Hwy 14 North leads to Camp Sherman, a popular family resort.
One can hike from there, but I drove a few miles further to Fish Hatchery Falls, complete with picnic tables. Hiking three miles on the eastern bank, (with a detour around private land), we crossed the Lower Bridge and hiked back along the western bank in less than three hours. One doesn’t of fall color in pine forests, but the under-story bushes and decaying flowers and grasses glistened with the colors of fire in the sun, under their dark green canopy.