Community
Rebuilt ramps, renewed hope: Talent carves out comeback for city skate park
Talent unveiled its renovated skate park on Saturday, Oct. 11, during the town’s inaugural skate competition.
October 15, 2025
Talent unveiled its renovated skate park on Saturday, Oct. 11, during the town’s inaugural skate competition.
Time is getting short to see and experience Crater Lake up close. The Cleetwood Cove Trail, which provides the only access to the lake, is open but will be closing for up to three years for reconstruction.
KS Wild celebrates its annual dinner event Saturday, Sept. 27, at the Historic Ashland Armory, 208 Oak St. A second “Groundtruthing the Last Chance timber sale” field trip is scheduled for Oct. 8.
A crowd of riders — some local and some from as far as the Bay Area and Northern Washington — came out to Mount Ashland on Saturday to celebrate the debut of Mt. A-Line, a 1-mile, machine-built jump trail boasting 50 jumps, a 40-foot gap and a beginner-friendly track. The project is being hailed as a potential game-changer for Ashland’s outdoor tourism.
As the sun rose over Lithia Park on Sept. 14, families gathered to welcome weary runners crossing the finish line of the Pine to Palm 100 — a legendary 100-mile ultramarathon ending its final chapter. Among them was Tim Smith, an Ashland pharmacist who ran to honor his late daughter, pushing through pain, grief, and 25,000 feet of elevation.
From 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 20, Rogue Valley Mountain Bike Association will host an opening party, barbecue, and ribbon cutting for “their most significant trail to date,” according to President Ryan Hawk. The association — funded by donors and fueled by volunteers — creates, maintains and supports hundreds of mountain bike trails from Grants Pass to Ashland.
Loss of access to a pair of popular Ashland watershed trails for a half-year ended up lasting less than three weeks after public outcry and the realization a temporary pedestrian bridge could be installed in a former creek-crossing site without undergoing a time-consuming permitting process resulted in opening of a temporary bridge on Aug. 8, just 19 days after the July 21 trail closure.
Despite an expected loss of $750,000 over the next two years, the Siskiyou Mountain Club is devising ways to continue its mission of maintaining and improving public lands in Southern Oregon and far Northern California.
There’s something new at the Mt. Ashland Ski Area but, it doesn’t involve skiing.
A 16-person crew has taken on trail improvement work in the Fremont-Winema National Forest’s Mountain Lakes Wilderness.
The Ashland City Council and Parks & Recreation Commission will hold a joint business meeting on Tuesday, Oct. 21, to discuss the city’s parks and open spaces plan, staffing changes and financial outlook.
Thousands in Portland and across the Pacific Northwest are expected to take part in the national “No Kings 2.0” protests Saturday. This is the third national protest against President Donald Trump this year.
Editor’s note: We regret to report that Ashland.news city reporter Morgan Rothborne has resigned from the staff after a bit more than two years with us, as she continues to work on recovery from a head injury in June, as detailed in this first-person report.
Frances Oyung: Because Bear Creek is the most urbanized watershed in the Rogue basin, many people are unaware that running through their towns and along the interstate we still have important habitat for native fish.
Herbert Rothschild: In 2024, Democrats had the same problem with Hispanic voters that they did with other moderate-to-low income voters. There’s a general perception out there that the Democratic Party abandoned its traditional championing of the working class.
Brad Hicks, former Medford/Jackson County Chamber CEO formally announced his bid for the Oregon State Senate on Thursday, Oct. 16 in Medford.
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