Warner Valley
Encyclopedia
The Warner Valley is located in south-central Oregon
, United States
. It is a remote valley at the northwestern corner of North America
’s Basin and Range Province. The valley is home to a chain of lakes and wetlands, known as Warner Lakes
. The Warner Valley was used by Native Americans for thousands of years before white explorers arrived in the 19th century. It is the site of Fort Warner
, built by the United States Army
in 1867. The fort was used as a supply depot and administrative headquarters during a protracted Army campaign against Northern Paiute bands in eastern Oregon and northern California
. Today, livestock ranching is the main commercial activity in the valley. The Warner Valley offers a number of recreational opportunities including hunting
, fishing
, bird watching, and wildlife
viewing.
; however, the north end of the valley extends about 10 miles (16.1 km) into Harney County
. The valley has two regions commonly referred to as the South Warner Valley and the North Warner Valley. The two areas transition between Crump Lake and Hart Lake at a point where the valley narrows to about five miles (8 km) in width.
Both sides of the South Warner Valley have steep cliffs rising from 1,000 to 2000 feet (609.6 m) above the valley floor. The eastern cliffs run the entire length of the valley, while the western wall turns into rolling hills at the north end of the valley. The Coyote Hills are the western boundary through the middle of the North Warner Valley with the Rabbit Hills bounding the northwest corner of the valley. From the hills, the ground slopes up to the crest of Abert Rim
. The eastern boundary of the valley is Hart Mountain
, a massive cliff face that rises 3600 feet (1,097.3 m) above the valley floor. Warner Peak is the highest point on Hart Mountain. The summit is 8065 feet (2,458.2 m) above sea level.
The valley floor is occupied by a chain of lakes, known collectively as Warner Lakes. The entire valley was once covered by a single vast lake; however, the water level gradually receded leaving a chain of lakes at the low spots with marsh
land between the lakes. There are numerous lakes in the Warner Lake chain. Starting at the south end of the valley, the largest of the Warner Lakes are Pelican Lake, Crump Lake, Hart Lake, Anderson Lake, Swamp Lake, Mugwump Lake, Flagstaff Lake, Upper Campbell Lake, Lower Campbell Lake, Stone Corral Lake, Turpin Lake, and Bluejoint Lake. Because the valley slopes away to the north, Crump Lake is 123 feet (37.5 m) higher in elevation than Bluejoint Lake.
that has undergone considerable erosion
. The Warner Valley was probably similar high plateau before massive faulting dropped the valley floor and uplifted the land around it forming high valley walls. The Warner Lakes formed in the valley bottom after the faulting stopped.
The Warner Valley is bounded by high escarpment
walls on the east and west. The main line of perpendicular displacement is along the foot of the cliffs to the east of the Warner Lakes. This scarp feature is known as Hart Mountain. The main cliff face of Hart Mountain towers 3600 feet (1,097.3 m) above the valley floor. It runs the length of the valley, eventually being lost in a series of smaller fault scarps at the north end of the valley. These smaller scarps generally run from the east side of the valley to the northwest. The south end is valley is more complex. In that area, the valley floor is bounded on three sides by perpendicular cliffs from 1,500 to 2000 feet (609.6 m) high, the result of numerous fault events. These cliffs expose hundreds of feet of Miocene
and Oligocene
lava flows and ignimbrite
s, which include Steens basalt and various andesite
, trachyandesite
, and tuff
flows. The mountain mass forming the western border of the South Warner Valley is a steep fault scarp. This cliff face rises over 2000 feet (609.6 m) above the valley floor.
Warner Valley is an alluvial basin containing numerous lakes, remnants of a single great lake that covered the valley floor up to a depth of 200 feet (61 m) during the Pleistocene
epoch. Today, steep cliffs rise above a chain of endorheic
lakes.
country of south-central Oregon. However, the high escarpments forming the western wall of the South Warner Valley tend to protect the southern part of the valley from the prevailing westerly winds. The absence of a high rim along much of the North Warner Valley increases the harshness of the fall and winter seasons at the north end of the valley.
Air movements brought about by the uneven temperatures in the valley and on the surrounding higher plateaus and mountains give rise to local winds. These winds are strongest at places where canyons, such as Deep Creek Canyon, open into the valley.
In the Warner Valley, frost
is common until late spring and begin again in early fall. As a result, the growing season in the valley is limited to about 100 days. The Warner Valley gets most of its rain in May and June, while the summer and fall months tend to be very dry. The winter snowfall in the valley bottom is generally very light; however, winter temperatures can get very cold. The higher plateau country above the valley usually gets several feet of snow and the higher peaks can get much more. In most years, the high peak have snow on them from early fall until mid-summer. This snowpack feeds the streams that drain into the valley.
s. These include lake, marsh, riparian, grasslands, sage steppe, dry forest, and rimrock
. They range in elevation from approximately 4500 feet (1,371.6 m) above sea level at the valley floor to over 8000 feet (2,438.4 m) at the summit of Warner Peak. Marsh grasses are common along the lake shores. In the riparian areas, wild rose
s, choke cherry, wild plum, cottonwood, and willow
are found. Beyond the wetlands, the valley becomes quite dry. Much of the North Warner Valley is semi-desert, where dwarf sagebrush
, greasewood
, and Western Juniper are the dominant vegetation
.
The valley’s wildlife includes common high desert mammal
species, resident birds, and migrant waterfowl
. There are forty-two mammal species that live in the Warner Valley-Hart Mountain area. These include pronghorn
, bighorn sheep
, elk
, mule deer
, cougar, bobcat
, and coyotes. Smaller mammals include Jackrabbits, ground squirrel
s, and chipmunks.
There are 239 species of birds that live in the area or migrate through the Warner Valley. Species that nest in the areas around Crump Lake and Hart Lake include American White Pelican
s, Double-crested Cormorant
s, Willet
s, Wilson's Phalarope
s, Canada Geese, Gadwall
s, Northern Shoveler
s, Black-crowned Night Heron
s, and numerous varieties of ducks and tern
s. In addition, Sandhill Crane
s, White-faced Ibis
, Great White Egret
s, and American Avocet
s are found in the marshes and along the lake shores. At the Warner Wetlands Area of Critical Environmental Concern, administered by the Bureau of Land Management, there are observation blinds where American Bittern
s, Black-necked Stilt
s, Cinnamon Teal
, Tundra Swans, Brewer's Blackbird
s, Western Meadowlark
s, swallow
s, and nighthawk
s are commonly seen.
In the valley’s riparian areas Dusky Flycatcher
s, Yellow Warbler
s, Orange-crowned Warbler
s, House Wren
s, and Spotted Towhee
s are common in the summer months. In the sage steppes and grasslands, summer residents include Horned Larks, Brewer's Sparrow
s, Vesper Sparrow
s, Common Raven
s, Sage Thrasher
s, Sage Sparrow
s, Black-throated Sparrow
s, and Greater Sage Grouse
. In the rimrock areas, there are Chukars, Rock Wren
s, Canyon Wren
s, Cliff Swallow
s, and Barn Swallow
s. The valley also hosts Mountain Chickadee
s, Cassin's Finch
es, Black-headed Grosbeak
s, Green-tailed Towhee
s, Yellow-rumped Warbler
s, MacGillivray's Warbler
s, Mountain Bluebird
s, White-headed Woodpecker
s, and Flammulated Owl
s. The larger birds include Great Horned Owl
s, Long-eared Owl
s, Prairie Falcon
s, Golden Eagle
s, and Bald Eagle
s.
s, some are estimated to be 12,000 years old. The Greaser Petroglyph Site
, in the South Warner Valley, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places
.
The first white explorer to enter the valley was probably John Work
, who headed a Hudson’s Bay Company trapping expedition in 1832. While it is not certain he visited the valley, he was in the area and left a description of a "valley of lakes" that correspond closely to the Warner Valley. The next explorer to arrive in the valley was Captain John C. Fremont
, who led a party through the valley in December 1843. Fremont named it Christmas Valley since his party spent Christmas Day camped near Hart Lake. However, early mapmakers mistakenly sited Christmas Valley at another location 60 miles (96.6 km) northwest of the Warner Valley, leaving the valley unnamed on early map.
In 1849, the valley was explored by Captain William Horace Warner, an Army topographical engineer
. On 26 September 1849, Warner was ambushed and killed by Indians just south of the Warner Valley. In 1864, Lieutenant Colonel C. S. Drew of the 1st Oregon Cavalry
visited the valley while on a long-range reconnaissance patrol. Drew named the valley in honor of Warner, who he believed had been killed there.
In 1865, the Army decided it needed a fort in the Warner Valley to facilitate the interdiction of Indian raiding parties passing through the area. Army scouts selected a site along Honey Creek on the west side of the Warner Lakes. In 1866, a detachment from Fort Boise
was sent to establish the fort. The soldiers arrived on the east side of the lakes in late summer. Unable to cross the chain of lakes and marshes, the soldier built a winter camp on the east side of the lakes. The camp was sited poorly and the men had a very difficult winter. In February 1867, General George Crook
visited the Warner Valley outpost. Crook directed that the camp be moved to the Honey Creek site west of the lakes. To get the Army’s wagons across the wetlands, Crook ordered the construction of a bridge across the narrow channel between Hart Lake and Crump Lake. Shortly after the bridge was begun a second detachment was sent ahead to build the new fort. The Stone Bridge
was completed that summer and the soldiers moved into the new camp, which was named Fort Warner. By 1869, the Indian raids in south-central Oregon had ended and a treaty had been signed. With no Indian raiders left in the area, Fort Warner was abandoned in 1874. While nothing remains of Fort Warner, the Stone Bridge the Army built to cross the Warner wetlands still exists. The bridge is now listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
In 1865, the United States Congress
authorized the construction of the Oregon Central Military Wagon Road
from Eugene, Oregon
to Fort Boise in Idaho
. Congress allowed the construction company to claim three sections of land for every mile of road built. As a result, road surveyors laid out a route designed to pass through as much well watered, desirable land as possible. The route of the military road came through the Warner Valley, crossing over the Warner Lakes at the Stone Bridge before passing south of Hart Mountain through what is today the Hart Mountain National Antelope Refuge
and heading east.
In reality, the Oregon Central Military Wagon Road was a venture designed to acquire public lands at little or no cost to the road company’s investors. Nevertheless, the construction company was able to secure thousands of acres of valuable grazing land in the Warner Valley. Legal disputes kept the ownership of these lands in question for decades, preventing settlers from claiming land grants for farms and ranches. Ownership was finally decided by the United States Supreme Court in a case known as the United States versus the California and Oregon Land Company. Eventually, the land passed into the hands of the Oregon Valley Land Company, which subdivided
it into lots and parcels. The property was sold in a nationally advertised auction held in Lakeview, Oregon
in 1909.
Settlement did not occur in the Warner Valley until the latter part of the 19th century. For example, the land occupied by Fort Warner was homesteaded by John H. Dent in 1889. The Plush, Oregon
post office was opened on 18 July 1888. Its first postmaster was David R. Jones. The Adel
post office was opened in 1896.
is the primary source of income in the Warner Valley. Most of the private land in the valley is used for cattle ranching. Crops are generally used for winter feed. Because of the short growing season, the valley’s principal crops are wild hay
, alfalfa
, clover
, and timothy-grass
. Grains such as wheat
, oats
, rye
, and barley
can also be grown in the Warner Valley. Three crops of alfalfa per season can be raised over much of the South Warner Valley, while the less favorable climate in the North Warner Valley makes one or two crops the norm.
Much of the valley is public lands, administered by the Bureau of Land Management
. These public lands offer numerous recreational opportunities including hunting, fishing, bird watching, wildlife viewing, boating
, and camping
. However, some of these activities are dependent on the water level of the Warner Lakes, which can fluctuate dramatically. Crappie
, smallmouth bass
, and bullhead catfish
are common in the lakes while trout
including Redband trout
are found in Twentymile Creek, Deep Creek, and Honey Creek. There are no developed campgrounds in the valley, however, dispersed camping is allowed on land administered by the Bureau of Land Management. There are public restrooms, sheltered picnic tables, and hiking trails at the Bureau of Land Management’s Warner Wetlands Interpretive Site at Hart Bar.
of Lake County. To reach the Warner Valley from Lakeview, travel north on U.S. Route 395
for five miles (8 km), then turn east on Oregon Route 140. This highway crosses the summit of the Warner Mountains
, passing the Warner Canyon Ski Area
on the way. Twenty-one miles from Lakeview, the road forks; the main highway continues east while County Road 3-13 departs to the northeast. Following the main highway leads to the small unincorporated community of Adel at the west edge of the South Warner Valley. It is located 11 miles (17.7 km) past the junction. Following County Road 3-13 leads to the North Warner Valley. The pavement ends at the small unincorporated community of Plush, 13 miles (20.9 km) from the junction. A gravel road continues to the headquarters of the Hart Mountain National Antelope Refuge, 19 miles (30.6 km) beyond Plush.
The Warner Valley is 135 miles (217.3 km) west of Winnemucca
, Nevada
. From Winnemucca, follow Highway 140 east. The highway descend Doherty Slide
approximately fifteen miles from South Warner Valley, then passes through Blizzard Gap entering the valley nine miles east of Adel.
Oregon°N date=December 2010°W
Oregon
Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It is a remote valley at the northwestern corner of North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
’s Basin and Range Province. The valley is home to a chain of lakes and wetlands, known as Warner Lakes
Warner Lakes
The Warner Lakes are a chain of shallow lakes and marshes in the Warner Valley of eastern Lake County, Oregon, United States. The lakes extend the length of the valley, covering approximately ....
. The Warner Valley was used by Native Americans for thousands of years before white explorers arrived in the 19th century. It is the site of Fort Warner
Camp Warner
Camp Warner was a United States Army outpost in south-central Oregon, United States. Camp Warner was located at two different sites approximately apart. The Army called both sites Camp Warner. However, the first site became known as Old Camp Warner. It was used as winter quarters in 1866–1867 and...
, built by the United States Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
in 1867. The fort was used as a supply depot and administrative headquarters during a protracted Army campaign against Northern Paiute bands in eastern Oregon and northern California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
. Today, livestock ranching is the main commercial activity in the valley. The Warner Valley offers a number of recreational opportunities including hunting
Hunting
Hunting is the practice of pursuing any living thing, usually wildlife, for food, recreation, or trade. In present-day use, the term refers to lawful hunting, as distinguished from poaching, which is the killing, trapping or capture of the hunted species contrary to applicable law...
, fishing
Fishing
Fishing is the activity of trying to catch wild fish. Fish are normally caught in the wild. Techniques for catching fish include hand gathering, spearing, netting, angling and trapping....
, bird watching, and wildlife
Wildlife
Wildlife includes all non-domesticated plants, animals and other organisms. Domesticating wild plant and animal species for human benefit has occurred many times all over the planet, and has a major impact on the environment, both positive and negative....
viewing.
Geography
The Warner Valley is located in south-central Oregon. It is approximately 60 miles (96.6 km) long and 8 miles (12.9 km) wide. Most of the valley is in Lake CountyLake County, Oregon
Lake County is a county in the high desert south central region of the U.S. state of Oregon, so named for the many lakes found within its boundaries, including Lake Abert, Hart Lake Reservoir, and Goose Lake. While Lake is among Oregon's largest counties, it is sparsely populated with 7,895...
; however, the north end of the valley extends about 10 miles (16.1 km) into Harney County
Harney County, Oregon
-National protected areas:*Malheur National Forest *Malheur National Wildlife Refuge*Ochoco National Forest -Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 7,609 people, 3,036 households, and 2,094 families residing in the county. The population density was 1 people per square mile...
. The valley has two regions commonly referred to as the South Warner Valley and the North Warner Valley. The two areas transition between Crump Lake and Hart Lake at a point where the valley narrows to about five miles (8 km) in width.
Both sides of the South Warner Valley have steep cliffs rising from 1,000 to 2000 feet (609.6 m) above the valley floor. The eastern cliffs run the entire length of the valley, while the western wall turns into rolling hills at the north end of the valley. The Coyote Hills are the western boundary through the middle of the North Warner Valley with the Rabbit Hills bounding the northwest corner of the valley. From the hills, the ground slopes up to the crest of Abert Rim
Abert Rim
Abert Rim in Lake County, Oregon is one of the highest fault scarps in the United States. It rises 760 meters above the valley floor, finishing with an 250-meter sheer-sided basalt cap. It was formed during the Miocene epoch. At that time basaltic flood lavas covered much of eastern Oregon...
. The eastern boundary of the valley is Hart Mountain
Hart Mountain
Hart Mountain is a fault-block mountain, in Lake County, Oregon, USA. It lies about to the east of Lakeview.It is sometimes confused with a mountain range, but is more properly described as one mountain. The two highest peaks are Warner Peak and Hart Peak.The top of the mountain is part of the...
, a massive cliff face that rises 3600 feet (1,097.3 m) above the valley floor. Warner Peak is the highest point on Hart Mountain. The summit is 8065 feet (2,458.2 m) above sea level.
The valley floor is occupied by a chain of lakes, known collectively as Warner Lakes. The entire valley was once covered by a single vast lake; however, the water level gradually receded leaving a chain of lakes at the low spots with marsh
Marsh
In geography, a marsh, or morass, is a type of wetland that is subject to frequent or continuous flood. Typically the water is shallow and features grasses, rushes, reeds, typhas, sedges, other herbaceous plants, and moss....
land between the lakes. There are numerous lakes in the Warner Lake chain. Starting at the south end of the valley, the largest of the Warner Lakes are Pelican Lake, Crump Lake, Hart Lake, Anderson Lake, Swamp Lake, Mugwump Lake, Flagstaff Lake, Upper Campbell Lake, Lower Campbell Lake, Stone Corral Lake, Turpin Lake, and Bluejoint Lake. Because the valley slopes away to the north, Crump Lake is 123 feet (37.5 m) higher in elevation than Bluejoint Lake.
Geology
The country to the north and east of the Warner Valley is a high volcanic plateauVolcanic plateau
A volcanic plateau is a plateau produced by volcanic activity. There are two main types: lava plateaus and pyroclastic plateaus.-Lava plateau:...
that has undergone considerable erosion
Erosion
Erosion is when materials are removed from the surface and changed into something else. It only works by hydraulic actions and transport of solids in the natural environment, and leads to the deposition of these materials elsewhere...
. The Warner Valley was probably similar high plateau before massive faulting dropped the valley floor and uplifted the land around it forming high valley walls. The Warner Lakes formed in the valley bottom after the faulting stopped.
The Warner Valley is bounded by high escarpment
Escarpment
An escarpment is a steep slope or long cliff that occurs from erosion or faulting and separates two relatively level areas of differing elevations.-Description and variants:...
walls on the east and west. The main line of perpendicular displacement is along the foot of the cliffs to the east of the Warner Lakes. This scarp feature is known as Hart Mountain. The main cliff face of Hart Mountain towers 3600 feet (1,097.3 m) above the valley floor. It runs the length of the valley, eventually being lost in a series of smaller fault scarps at the north end of the valley. These smaller scarps generally run from the east side of the valley to the northwest. The south end is valley is more complex. In that area, the valley floor is bounded on three sides by perpendicular cliffs from 1,500 to 2000 feet (609.6 m) high, the result of numerous fault events. These cliffs expose hundreds of feet of Miocene
Miocene
The Miocene is a geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about . The Miocene was named by Sir Charles Lyell. Its name comes from the Greek words and and means "less recent" because it has 18% fewer modern sea invertebrates than the Pliocene. The Miocene follows the Oligocene...
and Oligocene
Oligocene
The Oligocene is a geologic epoch of the Paleogene Period and extends from about 34 million to 23 million years before the present . As with other older geologic periods, the rock beds that define the period are well identified but the exact dates of the start and end of the period are slightly...
lava flows and ignimbrite
Ignimbrite
An ignimbrite is the deposit of a pyroclastic density current, or pyroclastic flow, a hot suspension of particles and gases that flows rapidly from a volcano, driven by a greater density than the surrounding atmosphere....
s, which include Steens basalt and various andesite
Andesite
Andesite is an extrusive igneous, volcanic rock, of intermediate composition, with aphanitic to porphyritic texture. In a general sense, it is the intermediate type between basalt and dacite. The mineral assemblage is typically dominated by plagioclase plus pyroxene and/or hornblende. Magnetite,...
, trachyandesite
Trachyandesite
Trachyandesite is an extrusive igneous rock. It has little or no free quartz, but is dominated by alkali feldspar and sodic plagioclase along with one or more of the following mafic minerals: amphibole, biotite or pyroxene...
, and tuff
Tuff
Tuff is a type of rock consisting of consolidated volcanic ash ejected from vents during a volcanic eruption. Tuff is sometimes called tufa, particularly when used as construction material, although tufa also refers to a quite different rock. Rock that contains greater than 50% tuff is considered...
flows. The mountain mass forming the western border of the South Warner Valley is a steep fault scarp. This cliff face rises over 2000 feet (609.6 m) above the valley floor.
Warner Valley is an alluvial basin containing numerous lakes, remnants of a single great lake that covered the valley floor up to a depth of 200 feet (61 m) during the Pleistocene
Pleistocene
The Pleistocene is the epoch from 2,588,000 to 11,700 years BP that spans the world's recent period of repeated glaciations. The name pleistocene is derived from the Greek and ....
epoch. Today, steep cliffs rise above a chain of endorheic
Endorheic
An endorheic basin is a closed drainage basin that retains water and allows no outflow to other bodies of water such as rivers or oceans...
lakes.
Climate
The climate in the Warner Valley is typical of the high desertHigh Desert (Oregon)
The Oregon High Desert is a region of the U.S. state of Oregon, located east of the Cascade Range and south of the Blue Mountains, in the central and eastern parts of the state. Divided into a southern region and a northern region, the desert covers most of five Oregon counties and averages above...
country of south-central Oregon. However, the high escarpments forming the western wall of the South Warner Valley tend to protect the southern part of the valley from the prevailing westerly winds. The absence of a high rim along much of the North Warner Valley increases the harshness of the fall and winter seasons at the north end of the valley.
Air movements brought about by the uneven temperatures in the valley and on the surrounding higher plateaus and mountains give rise to local winds. These winds are strongest at places where canyons, such as Deep Creek Canyon, open into the valley.
In the Warner Valley, frost
Frost
Frost is the solid deposition of water vapor from saturated air. It is formed when solid surfaces are cooled to below the dew point of the adjacent air as well as below the freezing point of water. Frost crystals' size differ depending on time and water vapour available. Frost is also usually...
is common until late spring and begin again in early fall. As a result, the growing season in the valley is limited to about 100 days. The Warner Valley gets most of its rain in May and June, while the summer and fall months tend to be very dry. The winter snowfall in the valley bottom is generally very light; however, winter temperatures can get very cold. The higher plateau country above the valley usually gets several feet of snow and the higher peaks can get much more. In most years, the high peak have snow on them from early fall until mid-summer. This snowpack feeds the streams that drain into the valley.
Ecology
The Warner Valley provides a number of unique animal habitatHabitat
* Habitat , a place where a species lives and grows*Human habitat, a place where humans live, work or play** Space habitat, a space station intended as a permanent settlement...
s. These include lake, marsh, riparian, grasslands, sage steppe, dry forest, and rimrock
Rimrock
Rimrock is the sheer rock wall at the upper edge of a plateau, canyon, or geological uplift. It may refer to either the rock formation or to the rock itself. Rimrock may be composed of almost any stone—basalt, gneiss, granite, sandstone, etc.—and is frequently layered. Many times it...
. They range in elevation from approximately 4500 feet (1,371.6 m) above sea level at the valley floor to over 8000 feet (2,438.4 m) at the summit of Warner Peak. Marsh grasses are common along the lake shores. In the riparian areas, wild rose
Rosa acicularis
Rosa acicularis, also known as the prickly wild rose, the prickly rose, the bristly rose and the Arctic rose, is a species of wild rose with a Holarctic distribution in northern regions of Asia, Europe, and North America....
s, choke cherry, wild plum, cottonwood, and willow
Willow
Willows, sallows, and osiers form the genus Salix, around 400 species of deciduous trees and shrubs, found primarily on moist soils in cold and temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere...
are found. Beyond the wetlands, the valley becomes quite dry. Much of the North Warner Valley is semi-desert, where dwarf sagebrush
Artemisia arbuscula
Artemisia arbuscula is a species of sagebrush known by the common names little sagebrush, low sagebrush, or black sagebrush....
, greasewood
Greasewood
Greasewood, Sarcobatus, is a genus of one or two species of flowering plants. Traditionally it has been treated in the family Chenopodiaceae, but the APG II system, of 2003, places it in the family Sarcobataceae....
, and Western Juniper are the dominant vegetation
Vegetation
Vegetation is a general term for the plant life of a region; it refers to the ground cover provided by plants. It is a general term, without specific reference to particular taxa, life forms, structure, spatial extent, or any other specific botanical or geographic characteristics. It is broader...
.
The valley’s wildlife includes common high desert mammal
Mammal
Mammals are members of a class of air-breathing vertebrate animals characterised by the possession of endothermy, hair, three middle ear bones, and mammary glands functional in mothers with young...
species, resident birds, and migrant waterfowl
Waterfowl
Waterfowl are certain wildfowl of the order Anseriformes, especially members of the family Anatidae, which includes ducks, geese, and swans....
. There are forty-two mammal species that live in the Warner Valley-Hart Mountain area. These include pronghorn
Pronghorn
The pronghorn is a species of artiodactyl mammal endemic to interior western and central North America. Though not an antelope, it is often known colloquially in North America as the prong buck, pronghorn antelope, or simply antelope, as it closely resembles the true antelopes of the Old World and...
, bighorn sheep
Bighorn Sheep
The bighorn sheep is a species of sheep in North America named for its large horns. These horns can weigh up to , while the sheep themselves weigh up to . Recent genetic testing indicates that there are three distinct subspecies of Ovis canadensis, one of which is endangered: Ovis canadensis sierrae...
, elk
Elk
The Elk is the large deer, also called Cervus canadensis or wapiti, of North America and eastern Asia.Elk may also refer to:Other antlered mammals:...
, mule deer
Mule Deer
The mule deer is a deer indigenous to western North America. The Mule Deer gets its name from its large mule-like ears. There are believed to be several subspecies, including the black-tailed deer...
, cougar, bobcat
Bobcat
The bobcat is a North American mammal of the cat family Felidae, appearing during the Irvingtonian stage of around 1.8 million years ago . With twelve recognized subspecies, it ranges from southern Canada to northern Mexico, including most of the continental United States...
, and coyotes. Smaller mammals include Jackrabbits, ground squirrel
Ground squirrel
The ground squirrels are members of the squirrel family of rodents which generally live on or in the ground, rather than trees. The term is most often used for the medium-sized ground squirrels, as the larger ones are more commonly known as marmots or prairie dogs, while the smaller and less...
s, and chipmunks.
There are 239 species of birds that live in the area or migrate through the Warner Valley. Species that nest in the areas around Crump Lake and Hart Lake include American White Pelican
American White Pelican
The American White Pelican is a large aquatic bird from the order Pelecaniformes. It breeds in interior North America, moving south and to the coasts, as far as Central America, in winter....
s, Double-crested Cormorant
Double-crested Cormorant
The Double-crested Cormorant is a member of the cormorant family of seabirds. It occurs along inland waterways as well as in coastal areas, and is widely distributed across North America, from the Aleutian Islands in Alaska down to Florida and Mexico...
s, Willet
Willet
The Willet, Tringa semipalmata , is a large shorebird in the sandpiper family. It is a good-sized and stout scolopacid, the largest of the shanks...
s, Wilson's Phalarope
Wilson's Phalarope
The Wilson's Phalarope, Phalaropus tricolor, is a small wader. This bird, the largest of the phalaropes, breeds in the prairies of North America in western Canada and the western United States. It is migratory, wintering around the central Andes in South America. They are passage migrants through...
s, Canada Geese, Gadwall
Gadwall
The Gadwall is a common and widespread duck of the family Anatidae.- Description :The Gadwall is 46–56 cm long with a 78–90 cm wingspan. The male is slightly larger than the female, weighing on average 990 g against her 850 g...
s, Northern Shoveler
Northern Shoveler
The Northern Shoveler , Northern Shoveller in British English, sometimes known simply as the Shoveler, is a common and widespread duck. It breeds in northern areas of Europe and Asia and across most of North America, and is a rare vagrant to Australia...
s, Black-crowned Night Heron
Black-crowned Night Heron
The Black-crowned Night Heron commonly abbreviated to just Night Heron in Eurasia, is a medium-sized heron found throughout a large part of the world, except in the coldest regions and Australasia .-Description:Adults are...
s, and numerous varieties of ducks and tern
Tern
Terns are seabirds in the family Sternidae, previously considered a subfamily of the gull family Laridae . They form a lineage with the gulls and skimmers which in turn is related to skuas and auks...
s. In addition, Sandhill Crane
Sandhill Crane
The Sandhill Crane is a large crane of North America and extreme northeastern Siberia. The common name of this bird references habitat like that at the Platte River, on the edge of Nebraska's Sandhills in the American Midwest...
s, White-faced Ibis
White-faced Ibis
The White-faced Ibis is a wading bird in the ibis family Threskiornithidae.This species breeds colonially in marshes, usually nesting in bushes or low trees. Its breeding range extends from the western USA south through Mexico, as well as from southeastern Brazil and southeastern Bolivia south to...
, Great White Egret
Great Egret
The Great Egret , also known as the Great White Egret or Common Egret, White Heron, or Great White Heron, is a large, widely-distributed egret. Distributed across most of the tropical and warmer temperate regions of the world, in southern Europe it is rather localized...
s, and American Avocet
American Avocet
The American Avocet is a large wader in the avocet and stilt family, Recurvirostridae.This avocet has long, thin, gray legs, giving it its colloquial name, "blue shanks". The plumage is black and white on the back with white on the underbelly. The neck and head are cinnamon colored in the summer...
s are found in the marshes and along the lake shores. At the Warner Wetlands Area of Critical Environmental Concern, administered by the Bureau of Land Management, there are observation blinds where American Bittern
American Bittern
The American Bittern is a wading bird of the heron family Ardeidae. New evidence has led the American Ornithologists' Union to move the heron family into the order Pelecaniformes .-Description:...
s, Black-necked Stilt
Black-necked Stilt
The Black-necked Stilt is a locally abundant shorebird of American wetlands and coastlines. It is found from the coastal areas of California through much of the interior western United States and along the Gulf of Mexico as far east as Florida, then south through Central America and the Caribbean...
s, Cinnamon Teal
Cinnamon Teal
The Cinnamon Teal is a small, reddish dabbling duck found in marshes and ponds of western North and South America.thumb|left|Female Anas cyanoptera septentrionalium...
, Tundra Swans, Brewer's Blackbird
Brewer's Blackbird
The Brewer's Blackbird is a medium-sized New World blackbird, named after the ornithologist Thomas Mayo Brewer....
s, Western Meadowlark
Western Meadowlark
Not to be confused with Eastern MeadowlarkThe Western Meadowlark is a medium-sized icterid bird, about 8.5 in long. It nests on the ground in open country in western and central North America. It feeds mostly on insects, but also seeds and berries...
s, swallow
Swallow
The swallows and martins are a group of passerine birds in the family Hirundinidae which are characterised by their adaptation to aerial feeding...
s, and nighthawk
Nighthawk
A nighthawk is a nocturnal bird of the subfamily Chordeilinae, within the nightjar family, Caprimulgidae. Nighthawks are medium-sized New World birds, with long wings, short legs, and very short bills. They usually nest on the ground. They feed on flying insects. The Least Nighthawk, at and ,...
s are commonly seen.
In the valley’s riparian areas Dusky Flycatcher
Dusky Flycatcher
The American Dusky Flycatcher, or simply Dusky Flycatcher, is a small, insectivorous passerine of the tyrant flycatcher family....
s, Yellow Warbler
Yellow Warbler
Dendroica petechia is a New World warbler species or superspecies; the subspecies group around D. aestiva is increasingly treated as good species Dendroica aestiva again. The name for the entire cryptic species complex is Mangrove Warbler, and another group of subspecies is known as Golden Warbler...
s, Orange-crowned Warbler
Orange-crowned Warbler
The Orange-crowned Warbler is a small songbird of the New World warbler family.These birds are distinguished by their lack of wing bars, streaking on the underparts, strong face marking or bright colouring, resembling a fall Tennessee Warbler. The orange patch on the crown is usually not visible...
s, House Wren
House Wren
The House Wren, Troglodytes aedon, is a very small songbird of the wren family, Troglodytidae. It occurs from Canada to southernmost South America, and is thus the most widely distributed bird in the Americas. It occurs in most suburban areas in its range and it is the single most common wren...
s, and Spotted Towhee
Spotted Towhee
The Spotted Towhee is a large New World sparrow. The taxonomy of the towhees has been debated in recent decades, and formerly this bird and the Eastern Towhee were considered a single species, the Rufous-sided Towhee...
s are common in the summer months. In the sage steppes and grasslands, summer residents include Horned Larks, Brewer's Sparrow
Brewer's Sparrow
Brewer's Sparrow is a small, slim species of American sparrow in the family Emberizidae. This bird was named after the ornithologist Thomas Mayo Brewer.-Description and systematics:...
s, Vesper Sparrow
Vesper Sparrow
The Vesper Sparrow is a medium-sized American sparrow. It is the only member of the genus Pooecetes.Adults have light brown upperparts and light underparts, both with darker streaking. They have a white eye ring and a long dark brown tail which shows white outer feathers in flight.Their breeding...
s, Common Raven
Common Raven
The Common Raven , also known as the Northern Raven, is a large, all-black passerine bird. Found across the northern hemisphere, it is the most widely distributed of all corvids...
s, Sage Thrasher
Sage Thrasher
The Sage Thrasher is a medium-sized passerine bird from the family Mimidae, which also includes mockingbirds, tremblers and New World catbirds. It is the only member of the genus Oreoscoptes. This seems less close to the Caribbean thrashers, but rather to the mockingbirds instead .O...
s, Sage Sparrow
Sage Sparrow
The Sage Sparrow is a medium-sized sparrow of the western United States and northwestern Mexico.Sage Sparrows are indeed often tied to sagebrush habitats, although they can also be found in brushy stands of saltbush, chamise, and other low shrubs of the arid Interior West.The most widespread...
s, Black-throated Sparrow
Black-throated Sparrow
The Black-throated Sparrow is a small sparrow primarily found in the southwestern United States and Mexico. It is sometimes referred to as the Desert Sparrow, due to its preferred habitat of arid desert hillsides and scrub...
s, and Greater Sage Grouse
Sage Grouse
The Sage Grouse is the largest grouse in North America, where it is known as the Greater Sage-Grouse. Its range is sagebrush country in the western United States and southern Alberta and Saskatchewan, Canada. A population of smaller birds, known in the U.S. as Gunnison Sage-Grouse, were recently...
. In the rimrock areas, there are Chukars, Rock Wren
Rock Wren
The Rock Wren is a small songbird of the wren family. It is the only species in the genus Salpinctes.The 12 cm long adults have grey-brown upperparts with small black and white spots and pale grey underparts with a light brown rump...
s, Canyon Wren
Canyon Wren
The Canyon Wren is a small North American wren, and is about 14.5 cm long. It ranges from far southern British Columbia and Montana south through much of Mexico to western Chiapas and east to Oklahoma and Texas...
s, Cliff Swallow
Cliff Swallow
The Cliff Swallow is a member of the passerine bird family Hirundinidae — the swallows and martins.It breeds in North America, and is migratory, wintering in western South America from Venezuela southwards to northeast Argentina...
s, and Barn Swallow
Barn Swallow
The Barn Swallow is the most widespread species of swallow in the world. It is a distinctive passerine bird with blue upperparts, a long, deeply forked tail and curved, pointed wings. It is found in Europe, Asia, Africa and the Americas...
s. The valley also hosts Mountain Chickadee
Mountain Chickadee
The Mountain Chickadee is a small songbird, a passerine bird in the tit family Paridae. Often, it is still placed in the genus Parus with most other tits, but mtDNA cytochrome b sequence data and morphology suggest that separating Poecile more adequately expresses these birds' relationships...
s, Cassin's Finch
Cassin's Finch
Cassin's Finch is a bird in the finch family Fringillidae. This species and the other "American rosefinches" are usually placed in the rosefinch genus Carpodacus, but they likely belong in a distinct genus Burrica....
es, Black-headed Grosbeak
Black-headed Grosbeak
The Black-headed Grosbeak, Pheucticus melanocephalus, is a medium-size seed-eating bird in the same family as the Northern Cardinal, the Cardinalidae. It is sometimes considered conspecific with the Rose-breasted Grosbeak, P...
s, Green-tailed Towhee
Green-tailed Towhee
The Green-tailed Towhee, Pipilo chlorurus, is the smallest towhee, but is still one of the larger members of the "American sparrow" family Emberizidae....
s, Yellow-rumped Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Four closely related North American bird forms—the eastern Myrtle Warbler , its western counterpart, Audubon's Warbler , the northwest Mexican Black-fronted Warbler , and the Guatemalan Goldman's Warbler —are periodically lumped as the Yellow-rumped Warbler .-Classification:Since...
s, MacGillivray's Warbler
MacGillivray's Warbler
The MacGillivray's Warbler, Oporornis tolmiei, is a small species of New World warbler. Like all members of the genus Oporornis, these birds are sluggish and heavy warblers with short tails, preferring to spend most of their time on, or near the ground, except when singing.The MacGillivray's...
s, Mountain Bluebird
Mountain Bluebird
The Mountain Bluebird is a medium-sized bird weighing about 2-5 ounces, with a length from 15–20 cm . They have light underbellies and black eyes. Adult males have thin bills are bright turquoise-blue and somewhat lighter beneath. Adult females have duller blue wings and tail, grey breast,...
s, White-headed Woodpecker
White-headed Woodpecker
The White-headed Woodpecker is a non-migratory woodpecker that resides in pine forests of the mountains of western North America. It has a black body and white head. It has white primary feathers that form a crescent in flight...
s, and Flammulated Owl
Flammulated Owl
The Flammulated Owl is a small, nocturnal owl approximately 15 cm long with a 36 cm wingspan. Males and females can be distinguished by their weight. Females are larger, ranging from 62-65 grams and males are smaller ranging from 50-52 grams. The owl gets the name flammulated from the flame...
s. The larger birds include Great Horned Owl
Great Horned Owl
The Great Horned Owl, , also known as the Tiger Owl, is a large owl native to the Americas. It is an adaptable bird with a vast range and is the most widely distributed true owl in the Americas.-Description:...
s, Long-eared Owl
Long-eared Owl
The Long-eared Owl - Asio otus is a species of owl which breeds in Europe, Asia, and North America. This species is a part of the larger grouping of owls known as typical owls, family Strigidae, which contains most species of owl...
s, Prairie Falcon
Prairie Falcon
The Prairie Falcon is a medium-sized falcon of western North America.It is about the size of a Peregrine Falcon or a crow, with an average length of 40 cm , wingspan of 1 metre , and weight of 720 g...
s, Golden Eagle
Golden Eagle
The Golden Eagle is one of the best known birds of prey in the Northern Hemisphere. Like all eagles, it belongs to the family Accipitridae. Once widespread across the Holarctic, it has disappeared from many of the more heavily populated areas...
s, and Bald Eagle
Bald Eagle
The Bald Eagle is a bird of prey found in North America. It is the national bird and symbol of the United States of America. This sea eagle has two known sub-species and forms a species pair with the White-tailed Eagle...
s.
History
Native Americans used the Warner Valley for thousands of years before the first white explorers arrived. The valley has scores of petroglyphPetroglyph
Petroglyphs are pictogram and logogram images created by removing part of a rock surface by incising, picking, carving, and abrading. Outside North America, scholars often use terms such as "carving", "engraving", or other descriptions of the technique to refer to such images...
s, some are estimated to be 12,000 years old. The Greaser Petroglyph Site
Greaser Petroglyph Site
The Greaser Petroglyph Site is located on land owned by the Bureau of Land Management in eastern Lake County, Oregon. The designs were scraped into a basalt boulder by Native Americans perhaps 12,000 years ago. No one knows the meaning of the designs...
, in the South Warner Valley, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
.
The first white explorer to enter the valley was probably John Work
John Work
John Work was a chief factor of the Hudson's Bay Company and head of one of the original founding families in Victoria, British Columbia. Work joined the Hudson’s Bay Company in 1814 and served in many capacities until his death in 1861, ultimately becoming a member of the company’s Board of...
, who headed a Hudson’s Bay Company trapping expedition in 1832. While it is not certain he visited the valley, he was in the area and left a description of a "valley of lakes" that correspond closely to the Warner Valley. The next explorer to arrive in the valley was Captain John C. Fremont
John C. Frémont
John Charles Frémont , was an American military officer, explorer, and the first candidate of the anti-slavery Republican Party for the office of President of the United States. During the 1840s, that era's penny press accorded Frémont the sobriquet The Pathfinder...
, who led a party through the valley in December 1843. Fremont named it Christmas Valley since his party spent Christmas Day camped near Hart Lake. However, early mapmakers mistakenly sited Christmas Valley at another location 60 miles (96.6 km) northwest of the Warner Valley, leaving the valley unnamed on early map.
In 1849, the valley was explored by Captain William Horace Warner, an Army topographical engineer
United States Army Corps of Engineers
The United States Army Corps of Engineers is a federal agency and a major Army command made up of some 38,000 civilian and military personnel, making it the world's largest public engineering, design and construction management agency...
. On 26 September 1849, Warner was ambushed and killed by Indians just south of the Warner Valley. In 1864, Lieutenant Colonel C. S. Drew of the 1st Oregon Cavalry
1st Oregon Cavalry
The First Regiment, Oregon Cavalry was a regiment in the volunteer Union army that participated in the American Civil War. With many men recruited from California, the regiment primarily served to protect the state of Oregon and surrounding territories in the Pacific Coast Theater of the American...
visited the valley while on a long-range reconnaissance patrol. Drew named the valley in honor of Warner, who he believed had been killed there.
In 1865, the Army decided it needed a fort in the Warner Valley to facilitate the interdiction of Indian raiding parties passing through the area. Army scouts selected a site along Honey Creek on the west side of the Warner Lakes. In 1866, a detachment from Fort Boise
Fort Boise
Fort Boise refers to two different locations in southwestern Idaho. The first was a Hudson's Bay Company trading post near the Snake River on the Oregon border, dating from the era when Idaho was part of the fur company's Columbia District. After several rebuilds, it was ultimately abandoned in...
was sent to establish the fort. The soldiers arrived on the east side of the lakes in late summer. Unable to cross the chain of lakes and marshes, the soldier built a winter camp on the east side of the lakes. The camp was sited poorly and the men had a very difficult winter. In February 1867, General George Crook
George Crook
George R. Crook was a career United States Army officer, most noted for his distinguished service during the American Civil War and the Indian Wars.-Early life:...
visited the Warner Valley outpost. Crook directed that the camp be moved to the Honey Creek site west of the lakes. To get the Army’s wagons across the wetlands, Crook ordered the construction of a bridge across the narrow channel between Hart Lake and Crump Lake. Shortly after the bridge was begun a second detachment was sent ahead to build the new fort. The Stone Bridge
Stone Bridge and the Oregon Central Military Wagon Road
The Stone Bridge is a causeway built by the United States Army in 1867. It crosses the marshy channel that connects Hart Lake and Crump Lake in a remote area of Lake County in eastern Oregon, United States. It was later incorporated into the Oregon Central Military Wagon Road which was completed...
was completed that summer and the soldiers moved into the new camp, which was named Fort Warner. By 1869, the Indian raids in south-central Oregon had ended and a treaty had been signed. With no Indian raiders left in the area, Fort Warner was abandoned in 1874. While nothing remains of Fort Warner, the Stone Bridge the Army built to cross the Warner wetlands still exists. The bridge is now listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
In 1865, the United States Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
authorized the construction of the Oregon Central Military Wagon Road
Stone Bridge and the Oregon Central Military Wagon Road
The Stone Bridge is a causeway built by the United States Army in 1867. It crosses the marshy channel that connects Hart Lake and Crump Lake in a remote area of Lake County in eastern Oregon, United States. It was later incorporated into the Oregon Central Military Wagon Road which was completed...
from Eugene, Oregon
Eugene, Oregon
Eugene is the second largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon and the seat of Lane County. It is located at the south end of the Willamette Valley, at the confluence of the McKenzie and Willamette rivers, about east of the Oregon Coast.As of the 2010 U.S...
to Fort Boise in Idaho
Idaho
Idaho is a state in the Rocky Mountain area of the United States. The state's largest city and capital is Boise. Residents are called "Idahoans". Idaho was admitted to the Union on July 3, 1890, as the 43rd state....
. Congress allowed the construction company to claim three sections of land for every mile of road built. As a result, road surveyors laid out a route designed to pass through as much well watered, desirable land as possible. The route of the military road came through the Warner Valley, crossing over the Warner Lakes at the Stone Bridge before passing south of Hart Mountain through what is today the Hart Mountain National Antelope Refuge
Hart Mountain National Antelope Refuge
Hart Mountain National Antelope Refuge is a National Wildlife Refuge on Hart Mountain in southeastern Oregon, which protects more than and more than 300 species of wildlife, including pronghorn antelope, bighorn sheep, mule deer, sage grouse, and redband trout...
and heading east.
In reality, the Oregon Central Military Wagon Road was a venture designed to acquire public lands at little or no cost to the road company’s investors. Nevertheless, the construction company was able to secure thousands of acres of valuable grazing land in the Warner Valley. Legal disputes kept the ownership of these lands in question for decades, preventing settlers from claiming land grants for farms and ranches. Ownership was finally decided by the United States Supreme Court in a case known as the United States versus the California and Oregon Land Company. Eventually, the land passed into the hands of the Oregon Valley Land Company, which subdivided
Subdivision (land)
Subdivision is the act of dividing land into pieces that are easier to sell or otherwise develop, usually via a plat. The former single piece as a whole is then known in the United States as a subdivision...
it into lots and parcels. The property was sold in a nationally advertised auction held in Lakeview, Oregon
Lakeview, Oregon
Lakeview is a city in Lake County, Oregon, United States. The population was 2,294 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Lake County. Although it is an incorporated city, the municipal government refers to the community as "The Town of Lakeview", and bills itself as "Tallest Town in Oregon"...
in 1909.
Settlement did not occur in the Warner Valley until the latter part of the 19th century. For example, the land occupied by Fort Warner was homesteaded by John H. Dent in 1889. The Plush, Oregon
Plush, Oregon
Plush is an unincorporated rural community in the Warner Valley of Lake County, Oregon, United States.The one notable attraction in the area is a hot spring located on the Hart Mountain National Antelope Refuge. Hart Mountain hosts many protected big game animals including the pronghorn antelope...
post office was opened on 18 July 1888. Its first postmaster was David R. Jones. The Adel
Adel, Oregon
Adel is an unincorporated community in southeastern Lake County, Oregon, United States. It consists largely of a cafe and gas station, amid a community of loosely scattered ranches...
post office was opened in 1896.
Human activity
Today, agricultureAgriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
is the primary source of income in the Warner Valley. Most of the private land in the valley is used for cattle ranching. Crops are generally used for winter feed. Because of the short growing season, the valley’s principal crops are wild hay
Hay
Hay is grass, legumes or other herbaceous plants that have been cut, dried, and stored for use as animal fodder, particularly for grazing livestock such as cattle, horses, goats, and sheep. Hay is also fed to pets such as rabbits and guinea pigs...
, alfalfa
Alfalfa
Alfalfa is a flowering plant in the pea family Fabaceae cultivated as an important forage crop in the US, Canada, Argentina, France, Australia, the Middle East, South Africa, and many other countries. It is known as lucerne in the UK, France, Australia, South Africa and New Zealand, and known as...
, clover
Clover
Clover , or trefoil, is a genus of about 300 species of plants in the leguminous pea family Fabaceae. The genus has a cosmopolitan distribution; the highest diversity is found in the temperate Northern Hemisphere, but many species also occur in South America and Africa, including at high altitudes...
, and timothy-grass
Timothy-grass
Timothy-grass , is an abundant perennial grass native to most of Europe except for the Mediterranean region. It grows to 50–150 cm tall, with leaves up to 45 cm long and 1 cm broad. The flowerhead is 7–15 cm long and 8–10 mm broad, with densely packed spikelets...
. Grains such as wheat
Wheat
Wheat is a cereal grain, originally from the Levant region of the Near East, but now cultivated worldwide. In 2007 world production of wheat was 607 million tons, making it the third most-produced cereal after maize and rice...
, oats
OATS
OATS - Open Source Assistive Technology Software - is a source code repository or "forge" for assistive technology software. It was launched in 2006 with the goal to provide a one-stop “shop” for end users, clinicians and open-source developers to promote and develop open source assistive...
, rye
Rye
Rye is a grass grown extensively as a grain and as a forage crop. It is a member of the wheat tribe and is closely related to barley and wheat. Rye grain is used for flour, rye bread, rye beer, some whiskeys, some vodkas, and animal fodder...
, and barley
Barley
Barley is a major cereal grain, a member of the grass family. It serves as a major animal fodder, as a base malt for beer and certain distilled beverages, and as a component of various health foods...
can also be grown in the Warner Valley. Three crops of alfalfa per season can be raised over much of the South Warner Valley, while the less favorable climate in the North Warner Valley makes one or two crops the norm.
Much of the valley is public lands, administered by the Bureau of Land Management
Bureau of Land Management
The Bureau of Land Management is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior which administers America's public lands, totaling approximately , or one-eighth of the landmass of the country. The BLM also manages of subsurface mineral estate underlying federal, state and private...
. These public lands offer numerous recreational opportunities including hunting, fishing, bird watching, wildlife viewing, boating
Boating
Boating is the leisurely activity of travelling by boat, or the recreational use of a boat whether powerboats, sailboats, or man-powered vessels , focused on the travel itself, as well as sports activities, such as fishing or water skiing...
, and camping
Camping
Camping is an outdoor recreational activity. The participants leave urban areas, their home region, or civilization and enjoy nature while spending one or several nights outdoors, usually at a campsite. Camping may involve the use of a tent, caravan, motorhome, cabin, a primitive structure, or no...
. However, some of these activities are dependent on the water level of the Warner Lakes, which can fluctuate dramatically. Crappie
Crappie
Crappie is a genus of freshwater fish in the sunfish family of order Perciformes. The type species is P. annularis, the white crappie...
, smallmouth bass
Smallmouth bass
The smallmouth bass is a species of freshwater fish in the sunfish family of the order Perciformes. It is the type species of its genus...
, and bullhead catfish
Bullhead catfish
Ameiurus is a genus of catfishes in the family Ictaluridae. It contains the three common types of bullhead catfish found in waters of the United States, the black bullhead , the brown bullhead , and the yellow bullhead , as well as other species, such as the white catfish Ameiurus is a genus of...
are common in the lakes while trout
Trout
Trout is the name for a number of species of freshwater and saltwater fish belonging to the Salmoninae subfamily of the family Salmonidae. Salmon belong to the same family as trout. Most salmon species spend almost all their lives in salt water...
including Redband trout
Redband trout
Redband trout is a fish name that may be a synonym for the rainbow trout, Oncorhynchus mykiss, but is also used more narrowly for inland subspecies with well-defined geographical distributions in the United States...
are found in Twentymile Creek, Deep Creek, and Honey Creek. There are no developed campgrounds in the valley, however, dispersed camping is allowed on land administered by the Bureau of Land Management. There are public restrooms, sheltered picnic tables, and hiking trails at the Bureau of Land Management’s Warner Wetlands Interpretive Site at Hart Bar.
Communities
- Adel, OregonAdel, OregonAdel is an unincorporated community in southeastern Lake County, Oregon, United States. It consists largely of a cafe and gas station, amid a community of loosely scattered ranches...
is an unincorporated community in the South Warner Valley.
- Plush, OregonPlush, OregonPlush is an unincorporated rural community in the Warner Valley of Lake County, Oregon, United States.The one notable attraction in the area is a hot spring located on the Hart Mountain National Antelope Refuge. Hart Mountain hosts many protected big game animals including the pronghorn antelope...
is an unincorporated community in the North Warner Valley.
Location
There are no incorporated towns in Warner Valley. The nearest town is Lakeview, the county seatCounty seat
A county seat is an administrative center, or seat of government, for a county or civil parish. The term is primarily used in the United States....
of Lake County. To reach the Warner Valley from Lakeview, travel north on U.S. Route 395
U.S. Route 395
U.S. Route 395 is a U.S. Route in the western United States. The southern terminus of the route is in the Mojave Desert at Interstate 15 near Hesperia. The northern terminus is at the Canadian border near Laurier, where the road becomes Highway 395 upon entering British Columbia. At one time, the...
for five miles (8 km), then turn east on Oregon Route 140. This highway crosses the summit of the Warner Mountains
Warner Mountains
The Warner Mountains are an 85-mile-long mountain range running north-south through northeastern California and extending into southern Oregon in the United States...
, passing the Warner Canyon Ski Area
Warner Canyon
Warner Canyon is a ski area in the U.S. state of Oregon, in a region known as Southern Oregon. The ski area was previously within the Fremont National Forest, on land now owned by Lake County.It is located northeast of Lakeview, a driving distance of...
on the way. Twenty-one miles from Lakeview, the road forks; the main highway continues east while County Road 3-13 departs to the northeast. Following the main highway leads to the small unincorporated community of Adel at the west edge of the South Warner Valley. It is located 11 miles (17.7 km) past the junction. Following County Road 3-13 leads to the North Warner Valley. The pavement ends at the small unincorporated community of Plush, 13 miles (20.9 km) from the junction. A gravel road continues to the headquarters of the Hart Mountain National Antelope Refuge, 19 miles (30.6 km) beyond Plush.
The Warner Valley is 135 miles (217.3 km) west of Winnemucca
Winnemucca, Nevada
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 7,174 people, 2,736 households, and 1,824 families residing in the city. The population density was 867.5 people per square mile . There were 3,280 housing units at an average density of 396.6 per square mile...
, Nevada
Nevada
Nevada is a state in the western, mountain west, and southwestern regions of the United States. With an area of and a population of about 2.7 million, it is the 7th-largest and 35th-most populous state. Over two-thirds of Nevada's people live in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, which contains its...
. From Winnemucca, follow Highway 140 east. The highway descend Doherty Slide
Doherty Slide
The Dougherty Slide is a prominent dissected rim of volcanic origin located in southeastern Oregon in the United States. It is located in rural Lake County, just north of the Nevada border...
approximately fifteen miles from South Warner Valley, then passes through Blizzard Gap entering the valley nine miles east of Adel.
External links
Oregon°N date=December 2010°W