This remote region was settled by cattlemen like Pete French and my great-great aunt’s husband, David Lawson Shirk. (Two of my Crow family relations each married Shirks.) The area is still dominated by large cattle ranches and some hay farms. This may sound foreign to some of the blog readers that live back east but many of these eastern Oregon ranches span multiple sections. (A section of land is 640 acres.) 2,000 to 5,000 acre or larger ranches are not unusual. Some owners use a light plane to keep track of their livestock.
Advantages: Low population density. Excellent hunting and fishing. Well removed from Portland and other metropolitan regions. In the event of a fast-onset TEOTWAWKI, this region will probably be overlooked by California’s Golden Horde. (The portions of the Horde that swarm into Oregon will primarily follow Interstate 5 to the Willamette Valley.) Like the Rogue River region, the Steens Mountain region might be a good area to consider for someone who has strong business or family ties to Northern California.
Disadvantages: Isolation from commerce. (It is a long drive to Klamath Falls, Bend, or Redding for shopping!) Lack of diverse agriculture.(Not enough truck farming.) Colder winters and hotter summers than in western Oregon.
Downwind from Portland for most of the year. (Depending on the vagaries of the jet stream.)
Statistics (for Burns):
Average high temperature in August: 84.4.
Average low temperature in January: 14.5.
Growing season: (Fields, Oregon): 122 days.
Average snowfall in December: 12.5”.
Grid Up Retreat Potential: 3 (On a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 being the best)
Grid Down Retreat Potential: 5 (On a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 being the best)
Nuclear Scenario Retreat Potential: 6 (On a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 being the best)