Oregon Field Guide

Series / 35 Seasons

Oregon Field Guide is your destination for outdoor recreation, ecology, natural resource and travel stories from across Oregon and the Pacific Northwest.

Watch Latest: S36 E2

28m 44s

Gorge Logging History

9m 45s / TV-G

Despite its sheer cliffs, the Columbia River Gorge was home to a spider web of short railroads a century ago. They hauled out trees. Today, Don Nelsen, a passionate walking history-book-of-an-explorer bushwhacks off trail and finds hunks of that railroad history still lying in the forest on both the Oregon & Washington sides of the gorge.

Forest Seed Orchard

7m 55s / TV-G

We enjoy them for the beauty, recreation, and wilderness. But many of our forests begin life in seed orchards. The seeds grown in Bureau of Land Management seed orchards furnish timber companies, restoration projects, and landscapers across the world with stronger, faster growing trees as well as sustainable income for the state.

Shed Antler Hunting

5m 46s

In central Oregon there's an increasingly popular form of hunting that never kills animals. Kids and parents comb the ground in late winter searching for fallen antlers that deer naturally shed. Oregon Shed Hunters encourage responsible shed hunting in the hopes that the state leaves the sport unregulated.

Gearhart Elk Herd

10m 6s

For more than a decade, a herd of elk has been hanging out in and around the up-scale coastal town of Gearhart, browsing the golf course and even taking refreshing dips in the surf. But as the herd is growing, so are concerns about safety and property destruction. We talk to the locals and wildlife experts about why the elk come here, whether they're a nuisance or an opportunity.

Christmas Greens

6m 49s / TV-G

We track the "green" that noble fir boughs bring to our local economy as they are harvested from our national forests, fashioned into wreaths, garlands, and swags and then shipped all over the country.

Osprey Rebound

8m 59s

Some welders, a photographer, and a retired biologist have all had front row seats to watch birds that have found a way not only to live with, but thrive off of humans. Osprey, the original sea hawk, are doing fine these days. It wasn't always this way. Now osprey very much like what we build.

Snowcat Sculpting

6m 28s

Ever wonder how those cool terrain parks get the shapes that allow snowboarders to execute spectacular jumps and death-defying flips? They're the meticulous work of Mt. Bachelor's skilled team of snowcat operators. We ride along to see how it's done.

Queen Bees

8m 59s

In a multi-year experiment two beekeepers attempt to breed stronger bees, capable of surviving winter in Portland. Tim Wessels & Glen Andresen were tired of having to import bees from California and Hawaii to replenish their hives. We follow them for a year during which their colonies get slammed by a brutally cold winter.

Urban Youth & the Zen of Fly-fishing

8m 57s

U.S. Navy veteran Chad Brown deals with his PTSD through fly-fishing. Now he's bringing the art of fly-fishing to urban youth who lack access to nature and have their own issues to deal with.

Zombie Survival Camp

8m 12s

Some kids would rather play video games and battle zombies than play in nature. But "Trackers Earth" has crafted a way to teach kids essential outdoors skills while feeding their desire to battle zombies! Zombie Survival Camp is a fun role-playing camp that gives kids exposure to the natural world while teaching them how to avoid the hordes of flesh-eating zombies unleashed during the apocalypse.

Glide Wildflower Show

8m 51s

For nearly 50 years, residents of tiny Glide, Oregon (population 2,000, near Roseburg) have been collecting and showing their favorite wildflowers. We follow the collection, identification, display set-up, and show of Oregon's loveliest wildflowers.

Sandhill Cranes

8m 36s

One group of sandhill cranes skips the long migration to California and spends winter at Sauvie Island, near Portland. In summer, they head only to British Columbia, while other populations venture farther north to Alaska. This information was gleaned by researcher Gary Ivey after he put satellite trackers on the legs of cranes in Oregon and again in Alaska.

Tim Palmer: On Oregon's Rivers

6m 20s

Tim Palmer has written 22 guidebooks to nature, rivers, and wild places. We joined him for some paddling to get his thoughts on the river life and why Oregon has access to some of the best rivers in the west.

Sage Grouse

10m 41s

Sage grouse, a desert bird that depends on sagebrush, has been in decline. The US government may add it to the endangered species list. Ranchers fear the grouse could become their spotted owl, restricting use of western lands. A number of groups are adopting conservation measures in hopes it will be enough to stop the listing as endangered.

Wilderness Healing

7m 32s

An Oregon photographer who was just 8-years-old when the Wilderness Act passed celebrates 50 years of protecting public lands in a most personal way. Peter Marbach not only seeks out wilderness for his nature photography but he says it was vital to his own healing from emergency heart surgery. His favorite spot is an alpine meadow off tail and high above timberline on Mount Hood.

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