OCR Text |
Show DAILY HERALD TE REGION Cruise ship goes aground on the Columbia River PORTLAND. Ore. A 360. foot luxury sternwheel ship with more than 200 peopleon board ran Columbia R Divers were u determine whethe suffered any dam: said The Empress of the North 1 modern1 vessel modeled on river shipsof lowed on the snowpacked people traveled Yellowstone There were conflictingreports on the numberof people on board The ship's owner — the crew members The U.S. Coast Guard said office Oneoptionwas to havea tug boat dislodge thesternwheeler m the sandbar. have the ves>to Washougal andthen have thepassengers leave the ship there But officials wantto be sure the vessel will float if they remove it from the sandbar. he said They want to makesure if they pull it off. the vessel won't studies what shouldbe al- and snowcoach this winter during what many considered American West Steamboat Co noon as ol ed to deter mine when und howto remove them, said Lt. Mike Schutlts of the Multnomah County sheriff's as the National Park Service sandbar Schults said it could take hours for a decision to be made. said in a news release there were 180 passengers and 80 day after Becky Bohrer Anotheroption wouldbe to remove the passengers from the vessel fromits perch on the there were 227passengers and 30 crewmembers. Schults said wind and choppy water may have sent the vessel off course. The Empress of the North left Astoria, Ore., on Sundayfor a week-long cruise of the Columbia, said April Matson, spokes- womanfor American West Thevesselis built togive passengersaluxurious. leisurely ride as they tour the Columbia River. Accordingto the comipany Website. the vesselhas stateroomswithlarge river * BILLINGS, Mont. — More National Park by snowmobile and GrandTetonnational parks and the parkway connecting the two. A draft proposalis ex- a more normal and stable pectedthis fall, and agency Butthe traffic never approachedthe daily parkwide range of options — from a ban on snowmobiles in favor of snowcoachesto an increase in snowmobile rlumbers over whatis nowallowed. Currently, snowmobilesin Yellowstone mustbe part of snowy-weatherseason. limit of 720 snowmobiles. Some conservationists say that points to the growing popularity of mass-transit snowcoaches — atravel option they contend is more environmentally friendly than snowmobiles. “We have informedcon- Officials are looking at a wide meet park standards as being cleaner and quieter than the once-populartwo-stroke machines. There-are norestrictions portation that is not only the on snowcoaches under a temporary set of rules the park mara, of the Greater Yellow- expects to havein place one morewinter. : Thoserules took effect last stone Coalition, said Friday winter and were meant bythe park resources,” Amy Mc The winteruse debate — snowmobile vs. snowcoach — is beginning to heat up again shrouded the winter of 200304 and, business owners say kepttourists away The situation was looking up this winter: Park figures showthat 21,932 snowmobiles were in Yellowstone from Dec. 21 to March 12 Last winter, when poor snow conditionsalso curtailed the season, there were 18,364 snowmobiles. There were 2,491 snowcoaches in the:park this win- commercially guided trips and ter with 20,152 visitors, the sumers, and they're choosing to take the modeoftrans- most enjoyable to them but alsothe most protective of long-term plan was developed. Confusionarising from court battles over winter use winter roads of Yellowstone Park Serviceto provide area business ownersandtourists a measure ofcertainty while the and snowcoachesin the park. He said he doesn't know howthe Park Service could improve much onthe current rules, which he says have made for more enjoyable and educational snowmobile excursiohs. But he does have concerns with the park becoming “exclusive,” and leaving out snowmobile riders whohavetheir ownsleds. Snowcoach operator Arden Baileysaid he considers the current rules a “workable solution to a difficult and multifaceted problem.” “Personally, I think we ought figures show, Last season, tooffera range. of opportuni- there were 2,201 snowcoaches and 17,218 riders. Dec. 28 marked the peak day for snowmobiles, with ties in the park,”he said. Nashsaidvisitorstatistics would be among the factors plannerslook at as they de- 494 machines, park spokes- manAl Nashsaid; the busiest velop the long-term winter use plan. Information such days later. under the temporary rules dayfor snowcoaches was two as monitoring data collected Kent Swanson, who runs a snowmobile businessin West Yellowstone,believes like othersin that town, that there's room for snowmobiles would also factorin, he said. Conservationists and businessleaders would not speculate on the conclusion the Park Service would reach. view windows, wine racks, * color TVs,-DVD dhd CD players, and mini-bars. Ferry loss threatensnorthern B.C. coastal economy Local Businesses * Phone Numbers + Addresses * Maps PRINCE RUPERT,British Columbia — Before the Queen of the North ferry sank in Wright Sound on Wednesday, it was the “maindriver”of the www.heraldextra.com/yellowpages economyin isolated coastal communities with hundredsof residents,andits loss could be devastating.localofficialssi The ferry, carrying 101 pas- sengersand crew, hit a rock early Wednesdayand sank CharlotteIslands,it’s their only conduit to the mainland for 45 mph winds. Twopeople groceries, medical supplies, and goods andservices,” said Steve Smith, general managerofthe Crest Hotel in Prince Rupert aboutanhourlater, after those aboardtookto life rafts in choppyseas and bone-chilling andchairmanof a regional fer- are missing and presumed drowned, On Friday, attention began to turn to the impact of the sinking on the northern British Columbia coast. tip of Vancouver Island. told reporters his counterpart in wordthat the townis out of milk. “We're hoping there's going to be a quick resolvein terms of getting some replacement vessel here,” Briglio said. Alaska Gov. Frank Murkowskihasoffered to allow the state ferry Matanuska to stop in Prince Rupert onits Many communities lack roads and depended mainly SATURDAY ra ULA ee Acting MayorTonyBriglio Masset asked him to pass on the Townsandvillages there and in the QueenCharlotte Islands relied on the 409-foot ferry to provide much more thana scenicride for tourists on regular runs between Prince Rupert and Port Hardyat the northern Neelaa www.harmonsgrocery.com ry advisory committee. “A lot ofstuff movesonthe water.” planes and barges. “Forthe people on the Queen North, which covered a 280mile route. In Shearwater, Doug Sharkey, retired and a member ofthe local chamberof commerce,said 90 percentof the food for that part of the coast comesby ferry, as wellas all building materials and manufactured g For the immediate future, though, Sharkey said residents oftheisolated coastal communities are in no dangerof being withoutsupplies. “Ne lives here without a stockpile of food,” said Sharkey. The “biggestconcernis not what happens in the short term 499 passengers and 88 vehicles, but medium term,”said Trevor Jarvis, village administrator in Masset. “What's going to happenin the summer? We've had a couple of good tourism years herein Masset, and I'd hate to compared with 700 passengers see that drop.” regular weeily runs between onferryservice for food and general cargo. In most cases, theonlyalternatives are float and 115 for the Queen of the Ketchiki.n, Alaska, and Bellingham, Wash. The Matanuskacan carry POWERED BY POCKET CHANGE. 7) Navel Oran California, 4 lb. Bag Tested for Sweetness Fresh From-Ron Matic Citrus — = Breasts as Jennie-O q Frozen Spring Water Wester Family 24 Pack 5 Liter Bottles } WESTERNML earesouT0 RRC UCL eu eee ante ae Tale} PUR ae aesOMe eT Meee tT any ; Batteries M4 Duracell, Multi-Pack 8 Pack AA, AAA 4 Pack C, Dor 2 Pack 9 Volt wat bgt) HARMONS OREM 870 fe800 North Utah LRMRC Lene mem get il ee ce as Suen OR Re Cea eC Mama tse tet tie} ‘on opproved credit Reem Re ee eee t Monarch Honda Powerhouse 398 W. 800 N. 224-4070 www.monarchhonda.com Se Habla Espanol Ee HONDA. PERFORMANCE FIRST ties tueettsor8 ies osry pe oe ne Sarattenia dPkrf orgaWe aesPragEen a0 Peformance Fret” trademarks f Honda ator Co, Ut "Sis href Ca e208) O08 HI day. ‘ound during a sink.” Schults said. Divers were inspecting the hull to determine whether the ship is still floatable, he said. Yellowstone wintervisits up despite snowmobile debate |