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.

28m 59s

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.

Smith Rock Video Postcard

4m 26s

Climbers, ultra runners, and hikers revel in the first weekend after Smith Rock State Park reopens, some finding that weeks of being cooped up from Covid-19 quarantine has made scaling sheer walls of rock even more relevant as a way to face down fear.

Alvord Desert Gliders

6m 38s

Glider pilots enjoy the thrill and beauty of soaring above the Alvord desert. Once a year a group of 20-30 pilots gather for a week of soaring above the playa, but their method of getting airborne is unique. Using the 18-mile long playa as their runway, these gliders forgo the traditional airplane tow and opt instead for a tow cable hitched to a car in one of the most remote corners of Oregon.

John Day River Paddleboarding

12m 35s

Adventurous stand-up paddleboarders embark on a multi-day journey down the John Day River. When everything has to fit on your board, how do you pack? How are rapids negotiated while standing up? What's it like to experience four days of raw geologic splendor in the John Day canyon? "SupPaul" Paul Clark shows us why "Adventure SUP" is a great new way to get down the river.

The Ship Report

8m 4s / TV-G

A simple broadcast of the comings and goings of ships passing Astoriahas evolved into the most popular show on KMUN. Joanne Rideout provides the voice of passion that aims to illuminate the sometimes invisible world of mariners.

Hydrofoiling

7m 47s

Columbia River Gorge wind sports have continued to evolve since wind surfing became popular in the 1980s. Hydrofoiling became the rage after the American team raced their new hydrofoil vessel across the finish line in the 2013 America's Cup. Today, there are hydrofoils all over the Gorge. Hood River's experts show us the excitement and skill of this innovative new sport.

Mudbone Grown

10m 50s

When Shantae Johnson and Arthur Shavers embarked on their “Mudbone Grown” enterprise in 2015, they were doing more than building a 19-acre farm from scratch, they were changing the narrative of what it means to be a Black farmer in Oregon, where exclusion was literally written into the state constitution.

Tufted Puffins

8m 31s

For decades, bird lovers have traveled from all over the country to Cannon Beach's Haystack Rock, because it's one of the last places they can see the iconic tufted puffins in the lower 48. But the bird's population has plummeted in recent years, and now scientists and puffin lovers alike are scrambling to figure out what's happening with these charming seabirds.

Buzz Holmstrom

8m 17s

Oregon river legend, Haldene "Buzz" Holmstrom, was the first person to run the entire length of the Green and Colorado rivers, including through the Grand Canyon. He died mysteriously from a gunshot while rafting the grand Ronde. River guide and author Vince Welch retired from commercial river running to write the story of Buzz's life.

Tribal Land Transfer

7m 10s

Native Americans on Oregon’s north coast were pushed out of their ancestral home by white settlers more than a century ago. But a local land trust recently decided it’s not too late to give some of that land back. In a historic land transfer, members of the Clatsop-Nehalem Confederated Tribes were reunited with 18 acres of their homeland in Seaside.

Wallowa Mule Packer

6m 51s

A high country pack trip with mules in the Wallowas. Oregon Field Guide photographer Michael Bendixen found one man who offers travelers a different way to travel in the backcountry, and his pack mules are part of a long Oregon tradition.

Klickitat Canyon Photo Essay

1m 42s

Scenes from the newly created Klickitat Canyon Conservation Area. Shot on land set aside by the Columbia Land Trust. Oregon Field Guide photographer Brandon Swanson brings you a photo essay from Washington’s stunning Klickitat Canyon. Filmed in fall 2020.

Lavender Farming

6m 57s

Not only is lavender one of the loveliest and most fragrant flowers, it’s also one of the most useful. In August, lavender on Oregon’s farms is in the height of its purple glory. And with Mount Hood crowning the horizon, Lavender Valley Farm in Parkdale is especially scenic.

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