Size: 17 acres
Location: Klickitat County, WA
Acquired: 2008
Transferred: Sold to Washington State Parks in 2010
The Klickitat Trail runs through this property that Dave and Christine Vernier generously donated along the Klickitat River. It is located 10 miles upriver from the town of Lyle and just northwest of the bridge at Pitt. The hillside is covered with oak woodlands, a haven for endangered Western gray squirrels. The property was purchased by Washington State Parks from Friends’ Land Trust in 2010.
Latest News
Keep updated on Friends' work, news stories, and the work happening in the Columbia Gorge.
An Interview with Gabe Sheoships, Friends’ New Executive Director
May 4, 2026
Get to know Gabe Sheoships, Friends' new executive director, through this conversation with Acting Public Engagement & Communications Director Melissa Gonzalez, exploring his connection to the Gorge, his background, and the person behind the role.
Gabe Sheoships. Photo by Alex Milan Tracy, Underscore News.
Friends of the Columbia Gorge Announces Gabe Sheoships as New Executive Director
April 7, 2026
PRESS RELEASE Sheoships is Cayuse and Walla Walla, an enrolled citizen of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation, and becomes the first enrolled member of a Gorge Treaty […]
Photo Courtesy of Larry McCombs.
Appeals court ruling sets stage for protection of western gray squirrel in Washington state
February 20, 2026
A decision by the Washington State Court of Appeals on February 9, 2026, adds significant momentum to efforts to protect the state-endangered western gray squirrel in Washington, particularly in Klickitat County. The appeals court decision also highlights the ongoing failures of the Washington Department of Natural Resources to comply with the law and propose critical habitat for this imperiled species, as required by state law.
