"Defending Fall Creek"

"A bird calls high in a Douglas fir at the edge of an old clearcut. It’s the whistle of an owl calling to its mate. The owl sits on a branch, staring curiously down at the invaders in its forest in Fall Creek.

Josh Laughlin of Cascadia Wildlands carefully imitates the call to learn it and determine if this owl is an endangered northern spotted owl, a creature that could be further threatened if this patch of ancient forest is clearcut under the Western Oregon Plan Revisions (WOPR). The trees are marked with paint and flags. Bits of string tangled in the underbrush show where measurements were taken.

Laughlin says, “They want to turn this place into stumps and clearcuts. People go here to recreate, not to see clearcuts and stump-fields.” The 400-acre area is just a mile or so up the hill from swimming holes and fishing spots an hour from Eugene."

Camilla Mortensen reports for the Eugene Weekly June 11, 2009.