By Bob Spiwak
The community has been saddened by the death last week of Bob Sitts after a fall that sent him to Three Rivers Hospital in Brewster, where he succumbed.
Bob and his wife, Mary Ann, an incredible artist, moved to the upper valley in the 1970s and had a ranch favoring their mules and horses. Bob had been ill for some time prior to his accident. The pair came from Monroe, and it was a delight to listen to the manifold tales of his experiences over the years.
Up the road a few miles on the way to Harts Pass, passage was recently impaired by a severe rockslide at infamous Dead Horse Point. As my years increased, so did acrophobia to the extent I gave up driving there. As long-gone Winthrop Mayor Warren Badger stated, “If you go over the edge don’t worry: you’ll starve to death before you hit bottom.” Equipment was sent up to the clear the road to enable the unknown number of stranded people stuck there to come back down the hill.
At the Harts Pass gauge, the depth of snow was 17 inches, down 3 inches from the week previous. The snow/water content was at 3.8 inches, almost 3 inches above the average for the date, Nov. 8. Following the snowfall there was rain, which accounts for the wet numbers.
There was another slide in the valley, this one just at the junction of West Boesel and the Weeman Bridge. Specifics are unclear, but Internet service was shut down after the slide damaged the cable that went from the highway up to the repeater antenna atop the first bench of Grizzly Mountain.
Rumor mill fodder follows: as such. The Yakama Nation is going to upgrade (no pun) the potholed Dripping Spring Road, the only vehicular way to get to the trails at the Big Valley Ranch. For the Nation to get involved in a project such as that suggests to some that another salmon habitat area will be constructed. Again it’s rumor only, but hopeful, because that access road has long been a shock absorber-buster and has a drop-off that could be deadly in the winter. Who periodically plows the road is something of a mystery, although Jerry Sloan, who lived adjacent to the road, did it on occasions, as I remember.
There will be a power outage on Wednesday (Nov. 11) from 5:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. as the Okanogan County Public Utility District makes powerline repairs. This will be followed by another shut down from 10:30 p.m. Thursday to 4:20 a.m. Friday. Temperatures are predicted to be at freezing or below, so get the firewood in and the batteries checked.
The power outrage will not affect plans for a simple flag ceremony at the Mazama Store at 11 a.m. on Wednesday, which is Veterans Day. As noted previously, it is to commemorate the end of World War I and honor the veterans of all the wars from all the services. All are invited, not only vets, and the show will be brief and will go regardless of weather.
Another reminder: On Saturday (Nov. 14), the Mazama Community Club will host its annual meeting and fall potluck beginning at 5:30 p.m. Bring some kind of dish to share. The club will provide coffee, tea and cocoa. Call 996-2755 for more information.
