Sunshine and blue skies are keeping it rolling in the Gorge as deep winter feels more like early spring this week.

“Our community is being torn apart. People are terrified. This is not enough. Allowing ICE in our town is not okay. And it is not just our immigrant community.

More than 700 people filled The Dalles High School Auditorium for the 12th annual Dancing With the Gorge Stars, turning the high-energy dance competition into the largest single-night fundraiser in town. While Rachel Carter claimed the mirror ball trophy, the real victory belonged to the community, which raised thousands of dollars to support affordable live music, education, and outreach programs across the Mid-Columbia region.

Locals sound off about new leash and licensing laws that have come into effect in The Dalles. Fetching and swimming can be complicated when tethered. On the other paw, safety first?

At Monday night’s meeting, locals outraged by ICE’s lack of search warrants and concealment of identity as they pull people from local communities through force was on full display.

Mid-Columbia Community Action Council (MCCAC) and Washington Gorge Action Programs (WAGAP) are preparing for the 2026 Point-in-Time (PIT) Count, scheduled for January 28, with surveys being collected between Monday, January 26 and Friday, January 30.

The Dalles residents citing fear and disruption tied to immigration enforcement are expected to shape tonight’s City Council meeting, where leaders will consider a resolution acknowledging impacts and outlining community support actions.

From STEAM activities and storytimes to live music, crafts and teen gaming nights, The Dalles Public Library hosts a wide range of free January programs for all ages.

Firefighters were able to move one person to safety and quickly stem a fire that was threatening to take down a home in east The Dalles on Thursday Night, Jan. 8.

A special Sense of Place event welcomes The Volcano Listening Project to the stage at Columbia Center for the Arts in Hood River, on January 29. In two back-to-back shows, audiences will hear from an ensemble of internationally recognized musicians.

Wasco County Sheriff Lane Magill, Hood River County District Attorney Matthew Ellis and program staff described the Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion (LEAD) program as a voluntary alternative to jail for people involved in low-level, nonviolent “livability” crimes such as trespass, shoplifting and minor drug possession.

An exhibition of 11 Columbia Gorge artists is on display at Cathedral Ridge Winery through Feb. 12, with a Jan. 15 meet-the-artist event highlighting regional creativity from across the Gorge.

Sense of Place begins the new year with More Than A Fish: Stories of Salmon and Sovereignty in the Pacific Northwest with Dylan Hedden-Nicely. The conversation will take place at the Columbia Center for the Arts in Hood River, Oregon on January 21st. Doors open at 6:00 p.m., and the show begins at 7:00 p.m. A livestream option is available to all ticket holders. 

Students at Cascade Locks Elementary turned a jogathon into a smoocharama after exceeding their fundraising goal, prompting Principal Adrienne Acosta to keep her promise and kiss a goat during a school assembly.

A new dog control ordinance takes effect Jan. 7 in The Dalles, clarifying leash expectations, licensing rules and nuisance standards, with an initial focus on education rather than enforcement.

The Dalles Public Library will host a full slate of January programs, including winter reading, STEAM activities, crafts, storytimes and family events, with offerings for preschoolers through adults throughout the month.

The Dalles Public Library was transformed into a storybook kingdom Friday afternoon during its third annual Prince and Princess Tea Party, drawing families for an afternoon of crafts, dancing and imaginative play.

Kiwanis meetings are held every Thursday at noon at Spooky's, and visitors are welcome.

West First Street in The Dalles will close Jan. 13 for about seven weeks as crews upgrade the sanitary sewer main, restricting through traffic between Union Street and Webber Street.