Century-old Rager Ranger Station closing

Ochoco National Forest Supervisor Kate Klein announced plans earlier this year to close the more than century-old Rager Ranger Station on the Paulina Ranger District due to tight budgets — and that’s happening on Friday,

“The decision was primarily financially driven in light of current and expected budget reductions and is part of an effort to align the number of facilities on the forest with those budget forecasts,” Klein said, this week.

“Although the station will be closed, we will continue to have timber sales, grazing permits, recreation facilities, and fire suppression coverage, but those programs will be serviced from the forest’s Prineville office” Klein added.

There are currently four permanent employees stationed at the Rager Ranger Station, and they will be relocated to Prineville, where the rest of the Paulina Ranger District employees are located.

The Rager Ranger Station was established in 1908 and is the Forest Service’s most remote year-round ranger station, the agency said.

“The Ranger Station has been an important part of the Ochoco National Forest and community of Paulina for over 100 years,” the announcement said.

Decisions regarding the buildings and facilities at the Ranger Station are pending, and the forest is exploring different alternatives for their future use. The forest is also exploring opportunities to provide services such as map sales and firewood permit sales through the store in Paulina.