Zach Urness

Statesman Journal

Legislation to expand the Oregon Caves National Monument by more than nine times has passed. It needs President Obama's signature to become reality.

The expansion of the monument east of Cave Junction — along with a slew of other public lands bills — hitched a ride on National Defense Authorization Act, which passed the U.S. Senate on Friday.

If signed into law as expected, the Oregon Caves would expand by 4,070 acres and the River Styx – the underground river running through the marble caves – would become the nation's first subterranean stream protected by the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act.

The U.S. House passed NDAA last week, 300 to 119.

"It would literally put the Oregon Caves on the map — or at least make them more noticeable to tourists, since right now it's quite small and people traveling from the redwoods to Crater Lake often miss it," Rob Smith, Northwest regional director for the National Parks Conservation Association, told the Statesman Journal in July. "This expansion would make it a full-service destination."

Negotiations between Senate and House leaders last week resulted in a multiple public lands bills being attached to NDAA.

All totaled, over 1 million acres of public land is expected to be protected, including 245,000 acres of wilderness, seven new national park sites, the expansion of nine national park sites and the extension of 15 National Heritage Areas.

The idea of expanding the 488-acre Oregon Caves has been around since 1939 and has been a priority of Oregon Rep. Peter DeFazio for more than 20 years.

The bill transfers management of 4,070 acres from the U.S. Forest Service to the National Park Service. It provides increased protection for the Cave Creek watershed from cattle grazing and prioritizes thinning overgrown forests to reduce the threat of wildfires at a monument home to The Chateau, a six-story lodge that opened in 1934 and is a National Historic Landmark.

Advocates say NPS management could create a more cohesive system of the trails that wind over nearby Mount Elijah and down to Bigelow Lakes, located in a subalpine meadow home to 120 plant species and wildflowers.

"Rather than just coming to see the caves and leaving, it gives people the opportunity to stay longer to camp, hike or stay at the historic lodge," said DeFazio, who negotiated getting the Oregon Caves bill into the public lands package. "It will attract more visitors. It's a big positive for Josephine County."

Also included in the package is the REFI Act, into the National Defense Authorization Act.

The REFI (refinancing) Act would allow West Coast commercial anglers to refinance the terms on what's left of a $36 million loan authorized by Congress in 2000.

Zach Urness has been an outdoors writer, photographer and videographer in Oregon for six years. He is the author of the book "Hiking Southern Oregon" and can be reached at zurness@StatesmanJournal.com or (503) 399-6801. Find him on Facebook at Zach's Oregon Outdoors or @ZachsORoutdoors on Twitter.