The Hood River glacier. (Hood River, Or.) 1889-1933, 1922-07-27

milky from melting glaciers, Mr..
Fredricy, fishing at pools sighted from
his automobile, landed 16 trout, rang
ing from nine to IA inches long.
The development of the scenic at
fractions of the east side OF Mount
Hood will be complete by no means
with the mere opening of the Mount
Hood Loop Highway. The mere trav-
Yelling through this section in an auto
mobile will not give the motoIist any
comprehensive idea of all the glories
there. Development will but be started
with the construction of the road.
Numerous trails must be cut and lat
eral roads built. The first lateral
highway scheduled is the six-mile link
from the new road just within the
bounds of the national forest to Coop
ers Spur and Cloud Cap Inn. 1t will
eliminate the old toll road to the mile
high hostelry, which already has a
national reputation, and provide free
throughfare to the Legion campsite,
the members of which, with the sup
port of local and Portland citizens,
have decided to make a permanent
feature of Oregon summertime life.
1t will develop other mountain resorts.
Indeed. 'The Homestead, new re.
sort built by j. 0. Hannum and on the
line of the new lateral, has already
been opened. In a word, the new
Loop Highway and the Coopers Spur
lateral are going to bring to Mount
Hood as much popularity as is today
enjoyed by Mount Rainier with its
wonderful Paradise Valley and Para
disc Inn. Not only will the new high
ways populariZe summer mountain
climbs but will tend TO attract citizens
from afar for the stimulating sports of
the winter months. Skiing on the
higher snowfelds during midsummer
is contemplated, and this recreation
and snowshoeing in the winter days
will be made convenient for the rugged
sportsmen. Mr.. Hannum contemplates
making his hostelTy an all-year resort.
He has already hegun the removal of
old treessand logs in order to provide
his wintertime visitors with a natural
toboggan mile long.
Up the East Fork and on in Elk,
Brook and Horeethief meadows city
dwelIers will avail themselves of the
summer campsites to be plated and
leased for nominal sum by the Fores-
try Service. A tie-in road with Wasco
Wapanitia country. Eventually the
Mount Hood Loop Highway will mean
as much to The Dalles as to Hood Riv-
er.
And the new road will not be all
scenic and aesthetic by any means. 1t
will have a utiitarian value. No one
fails to admit that the 23-mile link of
the new highway up through Hood
River Valley and locally called the |
Valley Trunk, will be primarily mar
ket route for the apple district. 1t |
will revolutionize traffic between the |
Upper and Lower Hood River Valleys, |
eliminating old grades that were i'm |
possible in the winter months and that |
made two separate and distinct COM
munities of the apple section. But it1
will do more than this. 1t will bring
about the development Of acres of
homesteads of the remote Upper Val
ley.
The motorist through eastern and
central Oregon has been struck with
the lonely deserted homestead shack of
some settler far off in the bleak, un-
watered desert land. The east side of
the more remote Upper Valley pre-
sents these deserted homestead shacks
log huts with doors sagging and win
dows gone. Deep SHOWS have caved in
the roofs of barns. Here and there |
some forest burnshas left only stone |
chimney to mark the struggles of a |
homesteader. These settlers, how
ever, still hold their places, and the |
coming of the new road is bringing |
them back with plans for land clear
ing. The deep volcanic ASH soil of this
district has no superior for luxuriant |
hay yield The quality of potatoes |
grown here is declared the equal of
those far. famed tubers produced in De-
schutes county. The streams of the
district are unlimited and every home
stead tract has available irrigation at
a minimum of expense. Upper Valley
strawberries are second to none. A
few hardy homesteaders are today
prospering from their dairy herds. De-
spite the hardship of hauling their but
ter fat long distances over bad roads,
they are sending an ever increasing
volume of cream to the Hood River
Creamery. This cooperative institu
tion, with its eye on this development
is now planning a new home, with fa-
ciities to take care of greater cream
deliveries. Who knows? The Hood
River country may one day be as
famed for its dairying as for its APP
piles. At least the stage is being set
for Hood River Valley development
in new line the next few years. The
of this vast area of willow
brush land, which may be cleared at
moderate expense, is now attracting
the serious attention Of many local
The Mount Hood Loop Highway, If
plans carry according to schedule, will
be open around the entire mountain
next year. The Forestry Service con-
tractors at the present time are maxi
ing better progress than those engaged
on the 23-mile valley trunk, which is
being built on a $3.50 basis by the
county and state. Ranchers and orch
ardists are expressing impatience at
the delays of the three valley contrac-
tors. Detours have been a source Of
annoyance throughout the summer,
and fears are expressed that apple
hauling will be interfered with this
fall unless some haste is soon evil
fenced. Surfacing crews. however.
give the assurance, will
follow Immediately on the heels of
grading crews and the state and c0un-
.y are preparing to connect with the
forestry road with a completely rocked
and graveled grade.
II is anticipated that the q miles in
he National Forest will be graded and
graveled almost the full length this
ALL A large rock crusher has already ,
been set up between Sand canyon and
he steel bridge across the East Fork /
md batteries Of trucks will soon have
he new grade surfaced. A bridge
lver White river is scheduled for COM
lletion in the early summer of 1923. !
md By this time next year the Mount
Hood Loop Highway. a magnificent /.
Implement Of the internationally /.
AIMED Columbia River Highway. viii