State Highway 22 heads East from Salem.
The road quickly leaves the flat farmlands of the Willamette Valley in favor of
forested foothills of the rugged Cascade Mountains.
Miles into the forest, Hwy 22 pairs up
with a fast moving, cold, clear river. This is the North Santiam; a
wild, snow fed stream cascading out of the mountains ahead.
The Santiam has been carving at the
volcanic heart of the Cascades for millenniums. The result is a deep,
angular, imposing, rift in the earth noted on the maps as the
Santiam Canyon. The locals simply call it the "Canyon".
Thirty years ago, singer/guitarist
Jerry Wescott meandered
out of Southern California into the Canyon. He was enchanted by the Santiam River, the surrounding
Cascade Mountains and the fiercely independent residents who lived
there. He stayed.
Jerry soon became a local legend with his bluesy,
"John Fogarty" like voice and masterful riffs on guitar.
A few select, local musicians
with the same passion for music joined and became
Canyon Fever.
