meeting that seem the most relevant right now:
*Gravel roads must be kept clear, with only cars parked along one side
of the road for emergency vehicles – 11 feet clearance required for fire
trucks and ambulances.
*Fire danger becomes high after only 3 days of dry weather.
*The meadow after all the snow melts is still going to be very wet and
there will be lots of mosquitoes, we were warned by locals.
*Local community emergency services are already overtaxed this time of
year and there are 2 major events going on in Skamania County this
coming weekend and the 4th of July week that brings many thousand folks
through this area.
*The north east end of Swift Reservoir (for people coming in from the
west) has a lot of work being done around the Swift Dam right now, so
huge cranes and other vehicles can be in the road and often end up
taking up more than their lane. Logging trucks are up there as well, and
need to be watched for. Also, from Woodland to Cougar, and places in
between, is a heavily advertised motorbiking thoroughfare – these bikes
are often going very fast and accidents up there area very frequent – we
need to be very careful on the roads.
*Complaints about dumpster diving and spare-changing are again the
biggest complaints. Locals are really quite upset about this, so please
be respectful when you are in the towns and head up to the site after
you fuel up and pick up the last things you need before coming H.O.M.E.
*The vibe on the land is really awesome, and even though folks have had
to be very patient while the snow melts, it is really loving and warm
onsite right now. Bulldozers have plowed the last of the road into the
lower part of Skookum Meadow as of June 20, and the next couple days are
supposed to be very warm so folks should be able to move onsite today
and tomorrow hopefully.
CAUTION: There are lots of deep snowdrifts up there, and many people
have been hiking in to set up spaces for camps and kitchens. One person
(at least) got stuck over his shoulders in a very deep snow drift and
luckily a couple others who were also lost / taking a "shortcut" found
this person and dug them out. Another two folks got frostbite and had to
be sent to the hospital a couple days ago. So if you see only one set of
footprints in snow off-trail... following those prints to be sure nobody
is stuck in 6-7 feet of snow would be really cool.
One baby had been born when I left the site on Monday June 20 and
another was going to be born that day!
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