Stand Strong, Sisters!

 

by Pa Rock

Road Warrior

As climate change spreads across the United States and around the globe, it manifests itself in many tangible and measurable ways, and one of those ways is through the increased frequency and intensity of forest fires.  According to Google Search:

"Climate change has resulted in more frequent, intense, and larger US forest fires by creating warmer, drier, conditions that increase fuel activity and extend fire seasons.  Rising temperatures, earlier snowmelt, and more severe droughts, all linked to human-caused climate change, have been identified as dominant contributors to increased wildlife risk and activity, particularly in the Western US."

And it is the Western US that I am writing about today.

Sisters, Oregon, with a population of around 3,000, is one on the loveliest places in the generally lovely state of Oregon. It is just over 100 miles south and east of the state capital of Salem, and just over twenty miles north and west of the city of Bend which is located in the Oregon High Desert.  There is, however, nothing "desert" about Sisters.  It is surrounded by hills and large conifers, and the town, which was only founded in 1946 has obviously been designed to blend in with its beautiful natural environment.  While it is "touristy" to a point, the local population is still very "small town."

I stopped in Sisters twice on my most recent trip to Oregon, once heading west and the other time as I was returning home heading east, both times to buy gas and a drink for the road.  It was a Saturday evening when I came through on the westward trek, and traffic on the two lane road was heavy.  The man who filled my tank (still a common practice in Oregon although the law mandating that service has reportedly changed) was exceptionally friendly, told me quite a bit about the community - of which he was a native - and kept an eye on my car while I went inside to get a drink.

Coming back through town a week later, this time on a Sunday morning, I stopped at a gas station on the other side of the road and was greeted by a woman who filled the car tank while I went inside.  I asked about a restroom and thw woman working the cash register pointed m toward the back of the store.  It was locked with someone inside making use of the facilities, so I roamed around the store for a few minutes, not making a fuss, and  fixed an iced tea which I took to the counter to pay.  After paying, I left the drink at the counter and went back again to check on the restroom, and it was still busy.  About that time the cashier came back to where I was, apologized for the other customer, and unlocked the employee restroom for me.  It was a courtesy which took me by surprise and was much appreciated.

Sisters is a very friendly town.

Yesterday while listening to a national newscast I heard about a forest fire burning in central Oregon that was two miles from the town of Sisters.  It was called the "Flat Fire."   The fire had begun on Thursday, and by yesterday (Monday) it had already burned 22,000 acres and consumed just a few homes and buildings, but more that 4,000 homes were under some sort of evacuation orders.  It now looks as though firefighters were able to stop it from reaching Sisters, but still only about five percent of the fire is seen as contained.

This would be a great day for a long, hard, drenching rain in central Oregon.

Stand strong, Sisters.  Your little town is definitely worth the fight!