place for a grand public overlook similar to much-loved
Chanticleer and Crown Points on the Oregon side.
In 1987, Russell extended to TPL a no-interest loan
to buy the Rim View lots for later conveyance to the U.S.
Forest Service—an early transaction in what would
become a lasting partnership. Unfortunately, several lots
had already been sold by then, and one had been developed. She would return to Cape Horn again and again,
frustrated that this single house precluded the kind of
public use the location deserved. And she would come
back one last time in the days before her death to celebrate a particularly gratifying victory for public access.
A POWERFUL PARTNERSHIP
FOR CONSERVATION
Many more protection efforts followed. East of Lyle,
Washington, Russell purchased land for the sole purpose of creating a public path, now known as the
Cherry Orchard Trail. When the effort to open the
Mosier Tunnels on the Historic Columbia River
Highway to pedestrians and nonmotorized vehicles hit
a funding snafu, the Russells quietly donated $500,000.
Her actions occasionally sparked controversy. Some
gorge residents resented a Portlander working for federal
protection and public ownership of the gorge’s most
prized scenic lands. It was not uncommon to see a pickup
truck sporting a bumper sticker that read “Save the Gorge
from Nancy Russell.” Once someone appeared at her door
and verbally threatened her. Another time, after testifying
at a hearing in Washington’s Skamania County, she discovered that someone had punctured three of her car’s tires.
Aubrey remembers his mother spending most of his
teen years lecturing, lobbying, testifying, and fundraising. “She was impassioned and consumed by it, but in
the best way possible,” he says. “There were moments
when I thought she was nuts, but she was determined
in her belief that the gorge was worthy of some sort of
national protection. It was inspiring.”
Authorized by Congress in November 1986, the
Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area Act designated more than 292,000 acres as federally regulated
land. The legislation prohibited development in certain
areas and established regulations that would discourage
sprawl and encourage protection of scenic properties.
Over the following years, under Russell’s leadership,
GARY HAYES
Facing: One of 77 waterfalls on the Oregon side of the gorge, Horsetail
Falls is a popular stop along the historic Columbia River Highway.
Above: Nancy Russell leads a hike at Coyote Wall in Columbia Gorge in
1998. Working with Russell, TPL added the land to the national scenic
area the following year.
WHAT IS THE COLUMBIA GORGE
NATIONAL SCENIC AREA?
The 1986 Columbia River Gorge National Scenic
Area Act created a protected area unlike any other
in the nation. It designated three types of land in
the gorge: special management areas, containing
the most sensitive resources; general management
areas, rural lands historically used for farming, logging, and cattle grazing; and 13 urban areas for
existing cities and towns.
The act mandated protection and enhancement
of scenic, cultural, natural, and recreational resources
and encouraged growth consistent with protecting
and enhancing those resources. Unlike in a national
park, nearly half of the land in the scenic area is in
private ownership. Any new development or change
in land usage, however, must be approved within
the framework of the Scenic Area Management Plan.
The scenic area is managed in partnership by
the counties traversed by the gorge, the states of
Oregon and Washington, the U.S. Forest Service,
affected Native American tribes, and the 13-member
Columbia River Gorge Commission, made up of
state, county, and Forest Service representatives.
Among its other roles, the commission serves as an
appeals board for land use decisions.
For more information, see the commission website at www.gorgecommission.org.
