Gorge landowner could face jail time

A Washougal landowner could face 30 days in jail for allegedly opening aerial rope slides on his 83-acre property in the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area in violation of a temporary injunction. Skamania County Prosecutor Peter Banks will ask a Skamania County Superior Court judge on Aug. 13 to uphold a previously suspended 30-day jail sentence for Washougal’s Derek Hoyte. Hoyte was sentenced in May to 30 days in jail and ordered to pay a $1,000 fine for previously violating the temporary injunction, which bars him from opening the zip lines to the public. At issue is whether the zip lines Hoyte wants to operate on his ranch violate a U.S. Forest Service conservation easement on the land, which is about six miles east of Washougal. The easement, which had been negotiated with a previous landowner, restricts the use of the land to agriculture...Columbian