Corvallis Gazette-Times from Corvallis, Oregon • 5

www.gazettetimes.com A5 Thursday, March 2, 2006, Corvallis Gazette-Times, Corvallis, Ore. At a glance In brief Whale watch week Teens show off starts March 25 ocean knowledge Creek Bridge, 6 miles south of Yachats; Big Creek Bridge; Cape Creek Bridge at Heceta Head Lighthouse Scenic Viewpoint; the Siuslaw River Bridge in Florence; The Coos Bav Spring whale watch week promises rare views of thousands of gray whales as they WHAT: Conde B. McCullough, a former Corvallis college professor, built hundreds of bridges in Oregon, including several scenic spans on the coast His bridges often include arctv es and concrete pillars and obelisks. ROAD TRIP: The Alsea Bay Historic Interpretive Center, on the southwest side of the Alsea Bay Bridge in Waldport, has exhibits on McCullough and his bridges. Hours are 9 a.m.

to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. mccullough bridges on the COAST: The Old Youngs Bay Bridge in Astoria; The Lewis and Clark River Bridge in Astoria; Wilson River Bridge at Tillamook; Depoe Bay Bridge; Rocky Creek Bridge at Otter Crest; Yaquina Bay Bridge in Newport; Cummins Creek Bridge at Cape Neptune Scenic viewpoint; Tenmile ilk-- McCullough (McCullough Builder Memorial) Bridge; and the Rogue River Bridge in Gold Beach MORE INFO: "Elegant Arches, Soaring Spans: C.B. McCullough, Oregon's Master Bridge Builder" by Robert W. Hadlow, was published in 2001 by the Oregon State University Press.

One of the interesting features of the Yaquina Bay Bridge is a pedestrian plaza with elaborate stairways leading to the bridge. Dridgoo: Linking beach communities ar 'V i. lit-. Sixteen high school teams, including squads from Corvallis and Crescent Valley high schools, will compete in a test of ocean knowledge during the annual Salmon Bowl competition at Oregon State University on Saturday. The event goes from 9 a.m.

to 4:30 p.m. in Burt Hall, Wilkinson Hall and the College of Oceanic and Atmospheric Sciences administrative building. Admission is free. The winning team at the Salmon Bowl gets a trip to a national competition of marine science in California this spring. Solve a (fictional) murder at Nye NEWPORT Get those detective skills ready for Nye Beach's "Murder which happens March 11 and 12 at the trendy Newport neighborhood.

Entrants should meet in the Visual Arts Center, 777 N.W. Beach Drive, at 11 a.m. Saturday, where they'll receive a package of information about suspects, clues and rules. The participation fee is Amateur sleuths can go to participating merchants at Nye Beach to get more clues. Murder suspect cast members also are available throughout the day for questioning.

Detectives must turn in entry forms by 6 p.m. Saturday. The culprit will be identified and "arrested," at 1 p.m; i i Continued from front page at Waldport, Florence, Reedsport and Coos Bay that eliminated ferry crossings along the coast and paved the way for tourism, Hadlow said. Before the bridges were built, beach communities were isolated from each other, and a trip up Oregon's coastline could take two to three days. The year after they were finished, tourism in the state jumped 72 percent, according to an exhibit on McCullough on the top floor of Apperson Hall at Oregon State pass by Oregon on their journey north from Mexico to Alaska.

Guided viewpoints, coordinated by the state Parks and Recreation Department's Whale Watching Spoken Here program, will be set up from March 25 to April 1. Sites in the Newport area where guides can educate visitors about whales from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. daily include: Don Davis City Kiosk, Yaquina Bay State Recreation Site, Yaquina Head Lighthouse, Cape Foulweather and the Devil's Punchbowl State Natural Area. For those who prefer a closer look, many charter boat operators in Newport, Depoe Bay and other locations offer whale-watching tours.

Help bless Newport's fleet NEWPORT The annual Blessing of the Fleet, a parade of fishing vessels, will occur at 1 p.m. March 18 in Yaquina Bay, near the Coast Guard station. Visitors can enjoy a view of the boats from nearly anywhere along the bay. Newport has observed the custom for more than 50 years, praying for their loved ones' protection at sea. A Lost Fisherman's memorial service will be at 3:30 p.m.

at Yaquina Bay State Park, The fisherman's memorial there is inscribed with 115 names. Local fisherman also will participate in survival suit races: in the bay at 9:30 a.m. A. i. ii .1 4--" vv A Fishing villages were trans- i 1 formed into destinations.

The bridges, Federal New Deal projects, also boosted the state's economy during the depression, Hadlow said. At the time, they cost a whopping $5.6 million, hired hundreds of men and boosted businesses by using native materials. The Yaquina Bay Bridge alone cost $1.3 million, employed 220 men during its construction, and includes 30,000 cubic yards of concrete and 3,100 tons of steel. Sunday and prizes will be awarded, Gazette-Times Laughter is the best medicine! Daily Comics. Mid- Valley Newspapers.

which started in 2004, should be finished this July or August. For now, the span is surrounded by temporary metal ladders and Locals remember the old Waldport bridge fondly, too, but because of deterioration from the salty coastal air and sinking supports, the original All Gifts fc4 In-Store Additional Select Cards 'i'. Discounts i i fldOff Alsea Bay Bridge was demolished. In its place is a $44 million modern span that will cele-, brate its 15th year this summer. A new method to protect concrete and steel structures from salty air will help preserve the rest of McCullough's creations for decades more.

"No other major crossings on the Oregon Coast will need to be replaced for at least a few generations," said Mike Rivers, of the state Parks and Recreation Department. Rivers oversees the Alsea (ghiloinatfi Pharmacy I IT i TJ 1 PHOTOS BY ANDY CRIPE CORVALLIS GAZETTE-TIMES Come in and see our new arrivals! ABOVE: Designed by Conde B. McCullough, the Yaquina Bay Bridge in Newport was completed in 1936 for a cost of $1,301,016. Amethyst Drops cay xusiunc muerpieuve wai-' ter in Waldport, which includes exhibits on bridges and McCullough. McCullough taught in Corvallis from 1916 to 1919.

When he became Oregon's official bridge engineer in 1919, he hired four of the five members of the 1919 graduating class in civil engineering. After McCullough died in 1946, the state named the Coos Bay Bridge after him. It is one of few bridges in the United States named after its ji i AVOW! LEFT: Visitor Services team leader Mike Rivers talks with visitors at the Bridge Interpretive center in Waldport recently. Check out the extreme quality and value. engineer, xiaiuuw som.

The Alsea Bay Historic Interpretive Center gets between 10,000 to 15,000 visitors per year, Rivers said. Like the new Alsea Bay Bridge, it was completed in 1991. SINCE 'Of all the bridges on the coast, that's my personal favorite It just dances across the Robert W. Hadlow, senior historian for the state Department of Transportation about the Newport bridge Michael's Jewelers 985 Your Fine Jewelry Store 425 SWThird Street Downtown Corvallis 753-4337 HfirmiTPr ivip unpparn nan ne contacted at kyle.odegardlee.net Boater dies Report: Replace State Hospital AS in Umpqua The Associated Press in the i rv. i Oregon Wine Tasting at participating Downtown businesses March 4th, 20064-7pm second option, saying about 93 percent of Oregon residents expected to need hospital-level care would have those services available within close proximity.

"The condition of mental health facilities at the state level are so much in need that we have to do something like this," Senate President Peter Courtney said. Courtney, who has been an advocate of mental health care reform, called the report a major breakthrough. "It takes -us down the path," he said. "We knew we had to do something new, bold and different but we didn't know what. Now we have something of a blueprint." The report contemplates an opening by 2011 for any of the three and recommends a choice be made by May.

By JOSEPH B. FRAZIER Associated Press writer PORTLAND A new report recommends replacing the 122-year-old Oregon State Hospital in Salem as part of an overhaul to make mental health care more available at the community level. The report released Wednesday was commissioned by Gov. Ted Kulongoski and the Legislature in 2005. longoski said the report "moves us closer toward improving Oregon's capacity to care for individuals with mental illness those who need hospital-level care, and those who don't." The report proposed three options, with cost estimates ranging from $297 million to $337 million: A 980-bed facility in the north Willamette Valley for all inpatients plus two non-hospital level, 16-bed secure residential facilities east of the Cascades.

Cost: million. One 620-bed facility in the north Willamette Valley region, one 360-bed facility south of Linn County west of the Cascades, and at least two non-hospital level, 16-bed secure residential centers east of the Cascades. Cost: million. One 600-bed facility located in the north Willamette Valley, one 320-bed facility south of Linn County west of the Cascades and one 60-bed forensic facility in Central Oregon. Cost: million.

KMD Architects of San Francisco, which wrote the proposal, recommended the Presented by the Downtown Corvallis Association (541)754-6624 SCOTTSBURG A Coos Bay man died Wednesday after water- filled a small boat that entered a section of rapids with-' out engine power, authorities said. William Frank Rucker, 72, was dead when anglers pulled him from the Umpqua River about five miles east of Scotts-burg, said the Douglas County Sheriffs Office. His son, Gary Rucker, 46, of Wilmington, N.C., survived. The Ruckers put their 12 'A-foot Olympian fiberglass boat in the water at the Scott Creek Ramp around 10:30 a.m. Wednesday.

They quickly experienced problems with the outboard motor, according to the sheriff office. "Rhapsody in the logo wine glass and ID bracelet are required for wine and beer tasting. Glasses and scrip may be purchased at: The Inkwell Home Store (234 SW 3rd Peak Sports (207 NW 2nd St.) Footwise (301 SW Madison) Sibling Revelry (145 NW 2nd St.) 1 CORVALLIS.