Oneonta Gorge with a side of Horsetail

[Badknee]

After posting about my trash cleanup, Mayhem pointed out that a TR was in order for the hike itself. Not wanting to deprive a fellow PH'r, I'll give my best accounting of another great hike in the Gorge.
Oneonta Gorge
Got up early on Sunday and made a decision to head back into Oneonta Gorge. With the hot weather I knew the crowds would be following, but an early start let me have Oneonta to myself. I anticipated cold water but once I hit the creek I was pretty comfortable. I have a waterproof backpack so the stretch of deep water was no problem. As of Sunday it came up to my chest. I've always loved this unique spot but I've never been able to get the pictures I've wanted.

My trip out also included some trash clean up but you can read about that here:http://www.portlandhikers.org/forum/vie ... =7&t=15949
As I was making my way out, I came across these two, but decided against removing them (the little white things are doing that).

Wasn't so concerned about what they were, but rather how they got there. Sitting on the side up on the wall of the gorge. Not sure if they were dropped by a raptor or fell from somewhere above? All theories are welcome.

Horsetail Creek
After dumping my haul from Oneonta, I headed up to Horsetail Creek via the Russ Jolley. Picture opportunities abound in this canyon. No big waterfalls but that's ok. I found some great cascades and little slides. I think I could return here hundreds of times and always find something new.

All in all a fun day and I'm sure I'll return many times.

Jeff

[Splintercat]

Thanks, Jeff -- brave hiking (wading) in chest-deep water! My pack isn't quite that waterproof..! But worth the pics - very nice!

Not sure what to make of the cadavers... are they squirrels? Maybe a Satanic altar (this is Portlandia, after all...)

Tom

[Badknee]

Thanks Tom and great to meet you a few weeks back at Upper McCord. Hope that movie is coming along! I'm not sure what those two creatures were. No tails left but the front teeth were big and a bit hooked. Too big to be squirrels. Maybe someone's dog picked them up. As far as the water height, you could easily carry a pack above your head. It's only chest height for a short stretch, maybe 15 or 20 yards. Pretty refreshing even with air temps in the sixties back there in the mornings.

Jeff

[Splintercat]

I guess it's still "refreshing" after 15-20 yards... probably take at least 30 yards before hypothermia starts to kick in... I spent a good 45 minute standing in Eagle Creek a few weeks ago (just above the knee), and my legs were numb stumps for a good while! Probably not the brightest idea to get that cold, but the photos were going pretty well, so what's a couple of appendages..?

I'm going to run your dual corpses past a friend who is a wildlife biologist -- I'm pretty sure she'll be able to ID them. If they're native, then it's interesting that they're even there... and if they're pets, well then it's just creepy!

Tom

[Splintercat]

Okay, so I checked with one of the resident scientists at the office, and here's what she said:
_________________

Ooh, I love this sort of thing. Okay, here goes:

• The teeth say rodent. Not too many options for big critters there: beaver, nutria (non-native), marmot, muskrat.

• First impression was nutria, mainly due to size and seemingly white whiskers. Beaver don’t have white whiskers. But – can’t tell for sure if they are really white. HOWEVER: nutria teeth are bright orange. So I’m going to rule nutria out.

• The back feet don’t look webbed (beaver and nutria), but that could reflect decay. The location does suggest an aquatic critter, but it was up on a big rock…
• Although the rock sounds like it might have been artificially placed…

• The ears don’t seem to be set back far enough for a muskrat, although muskrat can have white whiskers. Maybe not set far back enough for a beaver, either.

• Looking at the shape of the head and ear placement, and also the fact that the feet don’t look webbed…
_________________

So, after some back and forth on the location (which I described as "on a rock shelf within Oneonta Gorge"), we came to the conclusion that IF they got there naturally, they're most likely beaver... despite what appear to be white whiskers and lack of webbing on the back feet. Our thinking is that IF they got there naturally, it was during winter or spring, during heavy runoff, and it might have been a couple of juveniles that were swept over the falls from upstream... or migrated upstream from the river, and somehow got trapped in the gorge, and sought out the shelf as a respite.

She thought it very strange that the two were located on the shelf, together. So, another possibility is that somebody found them (already dead, but in less decomposed state) and put them there.

Very strange, Jeff! Always like a good mystery..!

Tom

[Stevefromdodge]

I find it really odd that two were found together like that. Tells me someone put them there, so we have to throw the location out as evidence.

If I'd found these on an eastern prairie my guess would be yellow bellied marmot. I don't think they live this far west though and can't imagine why someone would carry in a dead marmot.

[TJ_T]

Oh man. I remember wading through the water near the log jam when it was chest high.. with my bag of thousands of uninsured photography equipment held over my head. Here's a shot of my friend Dustin coming back out. He's a lot taller than me too...

[Badknee]

TJ - Wow that's high! The water isn't anywhere near that right now. It's just a 15 to 30 yard stretch near the back of the gorge. Great pic! I carry everything in a dry backpack when I do this kind of stuff now. Well worth the $75 or $100 for the protection.

Tom - Thanks for your input and please thank your friend for the information. Got an episode of CSI going on here.

Steve - It was really weird seeing them together and up on that shelf. Had to be placed there. Just another reason not to drink straight from the creek!

[mayhem]

Bammm it is!! There might have been a few reports in the area but this TR you decided to do is a real winner!!

I'm glad you TRd it up

[raven]

Could the animals have been mountain beaver who perhaps fell in from above/ Mountain beaver are quite distinct from beaver and are cold sensitive. May have been named for their fur, not their habits:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mountain_b ... stribution.