Friends and Neighbors of the Deschutes Canyon Area (FANs)
Steelhead Falls Native Plant Restoration Project
Final Report, revised
September 30, 2015
Steelhead Falls on the middle Deschutes River is one of the crown jewels of Central Oregon. Thousands of people find their way there to picnic, camp, hike, fish, kayak and birdwatch. It is only one-half mile from the trailhead at the BLM campground to the falls; however, the trail continues on for miles. It’s a magical access to this part of the Deschutes River-Steelhead Falls Wilderness Study Area managed by the Prineville District of the Bureau of Land Management.
As a result of increasing recreational use and winter storms, the Steelhead Falls Trail had deteriorated. Washouts caused by storms, together with informal trails created by hikers, kayakers, and fishermen are a serious problem. Along with erosion, there has been a huge increase in invasive weeds at the trailhead and along the trail. Restoration with native plants was a good place to begin. With a $3,000 grant from the American Hiking Society’s National Trails Fund, FANs volunteers, under the direction of Marilynne Keyser, undertook a ten-month restoration project around the parking lot at the trailhead and along the trail to Steelhead Falls. Out of ten projects funded in 2014, the American Hiking Society honored FANs with the Galen Rowell Award for Outstanding Backcountry Project!
Accomplishments:
140 volunteers contributed 410 hours weeding, seeding and planting natives (winter/spring)
168 volunteers contributed 311 hours weeding and watering the plants weekly (summer)
One illegal campsite near the river cleaned up
One half-mile of trail weeded
One-half acre around the parking lot weeded; 100 bags of weeds
20 pounds of native bunchgrass seeds sown around trailhead and near the falls
280 Native shrubs planted, including the following:
Big Sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata)
Gray Rabbitbrush (Ericameria nauseosus)
Green Rabbit brush (Ericameria viscidiflorus)
1,240 Native bunchgrasses planted, including the following:
Bluebunch Wheatgrass (Pseudoroegneria spicata)
Bottlebrush Squirreltail (Elymus elymoides)
Idaho Fescue (Festuca idahoensis)
Prairie Junegrass (Koeleria macrantha)
Indian Ricegrass (Achnatherum hymenoides)
200 Native flowering plants, including the following:
Golden Currant (Ribes aureum)
Bush or Desert Oceanspray (Holodiscus microphyllus)
White-stem Globemallow (Sphaeralcea munroana)
Rock or Round-headed Buckwheat (Eriogonum sphaerocephalum)
Sulphur Buckwheat (Eriogonum umbellatum)
Desert Yellow Daisy or Linear-leaf Fleabane (Erigeron linearis)
Western Yarrow (Achillea millefolium)
Royal Penstemon (Penstemon speciosus)
Lowly Penstemon (Penstemon humilis)
Oregon Sunshine (Eriophyllum lanatum)
Purple Sage (Salvia dorrii)
Rockcress (Arabis divaricarpa)
Sand Lily (Leucocrinum montanum)
Our partners:
Deschutes Basin Native Plant Seedbank
Clearwater Native Plant Nursery
Winter Creek Restoration Nursery
Volunteer Connect, Central Oregon’s volunteer center
SOLVE IT Central Oregon
Heart of Oregon Youth Conservation Corps
Bureau of Land Management, Prineville District
Plans for the future:
The Steelhead Falls Trail is continuing to erode due to overuse and sandy soil conditions, along with the steepness of the canyon walls. FANs is working with the BLM to redesign the Steelhead Falls Trail, using hardscaping techniques to shore up the trail, improve access, and increase hiking safety.
Contact Information:
Friends and Neighbors of the Deschutes Canyon Area
[email protected]
P.O. Box 2127, Terrebonne, OR 97760
541-771-3267
Steelhead Falls Native Plant Restoration Project
Final Report, revised
September 30, 2015
Steelhead Falls on the middle Deschutes River is one of the crown jewels of Central Oregon. Thousands of people find their way there to picnic, camp, hike, fish, kayak and birdwatch. It is only one-half mile from the trailhead at the BLM campground to the falls; however, the trail continues on for miles. It’s a magical access to this part of the Deschutes River-Steelhead Falls Wilderness Study Area managed by the Prineville District of the Bureau of Land Management.
As a result of increasing recreational use and winter storms, the Steelhead Falls Trail had deteriorated. Washouts caused by storms, together with informal trails created by hikers, kayakers, and fishermen are a serious problem. Along with erosion, there has been a huge increase in invasive weeds at the trailhead and along the trail. Restoration with native plants was a good place to begin. With a $3,000 grant from the American Hiking Society’s National Trails Fund, FANs volunteers, under the direction of Marilynne Keyser, undertook a ten-month restoration project around the parking lot at the trailhead and along the trail to Steelhead Falls. Out of ten projects funded in 2014, the American Hiking Society honored FANs with the Galen Rowell Award for Outstanding Backcountry Project!
Accomplishments:
140 volunteers contributed 410 hours weeding, seeding and planting natives (winter/spring)
168 volunteers contributed 311 hours weeding and watering the plants weekly (summer)
One illegal campsite near the river cleaned up
One half-mile of trail weeded
One-half acre around the parking lot weeded; 100 bags of weeds
20 pounds of native bunchgrass seeds sown around trailhead and near the falls
280 Native shrubs planted, including the following:
Big Sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata)
Gray Rabbitbrush (Ericameria nauseosus)
Green Rabbit brush (Ericameria viscidiflorus)
1,240 Native bunchgrasses planted, including the following:
Bluebunch Wheatgrass (Pseudoroegneria spicata)
Bottlebrush Squirreltail (Elymus elymoides)
Idaho Fescue (Festuca idahoensis)
Prairie Junegrass (Koeleria macrantha)
Indian Ricegrass (Achnatherum hymenoides)
200 Native flowering plants, including the following:
Golden Currant (Ribes aureum)
Bush or Desert Oceanspray (Holodiscus microphyllus)
White-stem Globemallow (Sphaeralcea munroana)
Rock or Round-headed Buckwheat (Eriogonum sphaerocephalum)
Sulphur Buckwheat (Eriogonum umbellatum)
Desert Yellow Daisy or Linear-leaf Fleabane (Erigeron linearis)
Western Yarrow (Achillea millefolium)
Royal Penstemon (Penstemon speciosus)
Lowly Penstemon (Penstemon humilis)
Oregon Sunshine (Eriophyllum lanatum)
Purple Sage (Salvia dorrii)
Rockcress (Arabis divaricarpa)
Sand Lily (Leucocrinum montanum)
Our partners:
Deschutes Basin Native Plant Seedbank
Clearwater Native Plant Nursery
Winter Creek Restoration Nursery
Volunteer Connect, Central Oregon’s volunteer center
SOLVE IT Central Oregon
Heart of Oregon Youth Conservation Corps
Bureau of Land Management, Prineville District
Plans for the future:
The Steelhead Falls Trail is continuing to erode due to overuse and sandy soil conditions, along with the steepness of the canyon walls. FANs is working with the BLM to redesign the Steelhead Falls Trail, using hardscaping techniques to shore up the trail, improve access, and increase hiking safety.
Contact Information:
Friends and Neighbors of the Deschutes Canyon Area
[email protected]
P.O. Box 2127, Terrebonne, OR 97760
541-771-3267
