Agent of the Wild
November Newsletter 2026
BLM Forest | Douglas County, Oregon
I invite you to take a walk with me. I can show you something unique here in southern Oregon—a window into a world of small forests. One of them public and one of them private. In these spaces, walking a mature forest casts a different shadow when you know it is slated to be repurposed. Facts like that change how you see it, how you experience it, and what stays with you when you leave.
You stop looking at the landscape as what is and start contemplating it as what was. Every tree becomes a unit of history; every clearing a calculation. How will this affect the animals? Will this change the conditions of the surrounding area? Will there be less water? No matter what, change is on the way, and it can really make a person see things that can often seem hidden.
A few months ago, a friend of mine named Patrick contacted me about a recent Bureau of Land Management timber sale. The proposed harvest would affect the forest surrounding his property, as well as land near mine. They're going to hit the area around his home hard, and the changes will likely affect its value.
I recently walked one of those sections of forest with my camera, hoping to capture what it looked like before its next chapter began. Much of the mature timber is heading toward harvest, but a small pocket of old growth remains—a sanctuary of trees that have stood long enough to watch the world change around them.
I remember those trees being old when I visited them as a child.
It didn’t seem much different now. An older forest has a different feeling to it, and there is no question the old growth there had molded to the land.
Small Forests:
Old-Growth Trees, Logging & Land Stewardship in Oregon
Red Poison Oak Leaves | Douglas County, Oregon
I stopped and saw something familiar—where the light did something specific to this older forest. Not unlike a spotlight in a concert, it caught my attention as though I was about to see someone step onto the stage. The sun was shining on old growth while the shadow was being cast on a large oak tree right in front of me; it was as though that part of the tree was being framed. Then there was the bright red leaves shining from the poison oak that had climbed over 30 feet up the tree to reach that wonderful, life-giving sun.
It was as though that moment had a cinematic part in a movie telling the story of the forest. The scene unfolded before me as a perfect balance of shadow, light, and hazard. The oak, the fir, and the vine don’t care about the plans from the logging industry. They are living in the moment, just like me.
I captured it with a cinematic flare. My 65mm f2 got to show off some rendering for the ages. The weight of what is being lost can weigh on our minds, but there are other forests, other places that change. A forest can thrive hundreds of years later where there was once a field. There are other forests, and I carried that thought with me when I walked, legs burning, to a private forest of 56 acres on Hoover Hill Road—a curated forest, cared for, lived in, appreciated, and respectfully used.
Birds Eye View of Hoover Butte | Douglas County, Oregon
My breath was heavy as I walked up the slopes of the land surrounding Hoover Butte. I had planned a trip to walk the property before listing it. I have known the owner for almost 20 years now, and his place sits just under Hoover Butte. The peak is a landmark for people traveling Highway 42 and a wonderful place to view the valleys of the Umpqua. I stopped and admired the view where the owner, Richard Chasm, said, “I think this would be a great place to put a house. The land here could support a home and has a spring nearby.” I agreed as I heard the sound of a woodpecker in the distance.
As I stared into the distance, I got a clear view of Mt. Scott in Glide, OR, and the top of Dodson near Dicksonville. The mountains in the distance were not the only thing garnering my attention; I hadn’t realized I was taking in the view from underneath the canopy of a natural forest, one old enough to tell the story of a generation.
We are all, in some way, stewards of these spaces. Whether it’s our tax dollars funding BLM, our mortgage payment procuring ownership, or the sweat from our brow as we tend the land. I stopped for a moment and simply listened while I was thinking about how the value of Patrick’s property will be affected by the logging and how the property I was currently standing on would hold its value because of the attention it has been given over the past 70 years. Richard's family has owned the property for over half a century. I looked at the great view one last time as I heard the calls from the animals and the whisper of the wind winding through the trees. I thought, “The world is one of change and adaptation; whether it’s tending the land to preserve it or managing the forest for the harvest, we are inevitably part of the process.”
Hoover Butte View | Douglas County, Oregon
As I walked down the roads on Richard's land, I found myself taking in the diversity of the forest, the age of the trees, and thinking of that cinematic moment regarding the red poison oak lit up by the early morning’s yellow sun. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but poison oak is anything but beautiful; it’s divisive, depending on who you talk to. So who am I kidding? There is no world where things don’t change—including forests. We need logging; we need lumber. I know this for a fact, because we need lumber to build more housing. We need the jobs created by logging, and we also need stewards of the land like Richard that curate a landscape to benefit all the creatures. I can see both sides of the coin.
Patrick has long been a conservationist, and he loves the trees surrounding his land. It is sad to see so much of it go. I'm sure they could have been more conservative with their logging practices for that piece of ground. It could preserve private value and produce value at the same time.
Richard Chasm’s land is being passed on, and just maybe someone’s new beginning will start in a home built from the forest that’s being harvested.
Explore The Forest:
Learn More About Douglas Fir Trees
Learn More About Native Tree Species in Oregon
For our forest-loving folks out there: The wise seek wisdom from those who have stood the longest.
Take the Leap: Let me list your land and show the world what makes it truly special. The same eye for detail will be used when listing your property. Don’t forget to recommend me to a friend and I will help them tell their home’s story too.
Warm Regards,
Dan Amos | Agent of the Wild
