Looking with Enthusiasm at 2026
Snow in Maupin and the river canyon on a recent morning. Photo courtesy of Gabor Gardonyi.
Bright beginnings for the New Year
It’s just four days until winter solstice, when the northern hemisphere once again begins tilting closer to the sun, the days lengthen, water and soil warm, and the good things happening underground eventually emerge into the light. It’s an annual occasion for renewed optimism and hope.
The Deschutes River Alliance had a productive and fulfilling 2025, and we have every intention of taking into 2026 the momentum we built this year. We believe this could be the year we finally get colder, cleaner water returned to the lower Deschutes River. Here’s a few of the things we’re planning to take over the course of the New Year:
Exciting Plans
Advocacy:
Over the past eighteen months, the DRA community coalesced around a campaign to convince policy-makers at the state level to take action that will return the lower Deschutes River to the conditions that made it a place so many Oregonians have grown to love. You responded. The Governor’s office has directed DEQ to examine all possible options to improve water quality. DEQ has indicated its willingness to meet with the DRA and its coalition partners sometime around the end of February. Looking forward to this meeting, we know we can rely on the thousands of our supporters who brought our issue to the attention of the Governor’s office. If it turns out DEQ needs to hear from the DRA community as the agency deliberates on the future of the Deschutes, we know we can count on you. The rules and policies to make the lower Deschutes everything it could and should be are already on the books–they simply need to be enforced. 2026 could well be the year that colder, cleaner water returns to the lower river. We’ll keep in touch so you can help the DRA do everything in its power to make this a reality.
Community:
Bringing positive change to the lower Deschutes can sometimes feel like a grind, but there’s strength, inspiration and motivation in numbers. The DRA hosts events that put like-minded and hearted people in the same room, to share stories of the river they love best, to strategize about ways to improve river conditions, and to simply re-charge the battery of inspiration by having a good time.
Coming up, the annual DRA auction and gathering (get tickets by clicking on the link) will take place on February 21st at the Redd, 831 S.E. Salmon Street, in Portland. 300 folks all spending a Saturday afternoon, connecting and re-connecting with one another, enjoying good food and drink, and contributing to the DRA’s mission just as the days get long and warm enough to consider your first trip to the river–the day has become an annual rite of passage for many who love the Deschutes. Be sure to get your tickets, and if you do that before year’s end, save $25.
The Trout Whisperer’s series will also continue–the first one of 2026, the fly tier’s edition–is slated for January 13th, at Steeplejack Brewing. This one’s coming up soon after the holidays, so don’t hesitate to get your tickets here.
Troutfest will be here sooner than you think. Hard to imagine looking out the window today, but a weekend of sun and celebration for the good fish and feelings the Deschutes brings is slated for May 29th to the 31st in Maupin.
Science:
In April, our three water quality-monitoring stations will be re-deployed at Warm Springs, near Maupin, and near the mouth of the Deschutes. Real-time access to this data will once again be available through the portal on our website. Our science team will also use this data to produce its annual water quality report.
In addition to this and the annual benthic macroinvertebrate report, our science program will expand its mission in 2026. Algae has proliferated in the lower river since operation of the Selective Water Withdrawal Tower started in late 2009. The DRA’s science team will conduct research in the lower Deschutes River of the myriad forms of this overabundant aquatic plant that will hopefully help inform future management decisions that could help reduce its troublesome proliferation.
The DRA staff and board are grateful for the support you’ve given us this year. It’s your gifts of both time and money that have allowed us to not only hope for, but anticipate the renewal of the lower Deschutes River in 2026. We have faith in the New Year, knowing you’re anticipating the same joyous outcome. If you can, make a contribution before the end of the year to help us fulfill our mission of colder, cleaner water for the lower Deschutes River.
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Everyone wants clean, healthy water in the Deschutes River. Oregonians cherish our clean and healthy waterways to provide drinking water, wildlife habitat and recreational activities. The lower Deschutes River is a federally designated Wild & Scenic River, and a national treasure. It must be protected for the environmental and economic health of Central Oregon. By working together we can return the lower Deschutes River to full health.
