BY ANDY WALGAMOTT, NORTHWEST SPORTSMAN MAGAZINE
Oregon residents this afternoon are remembering a man who told beautiful stories of their state’s beloved great outdoors, a longtime TV journalist whose work covered everything from fishing and crabbing the Columbia, to exploring coastal estuaries, to old railroads and gardens, to wildlife photography.
Grant McOmie passed away this morning at age 73 following a short illness, according to Bill Monroe of The Oregonian, who posted that it was the “Saddest news possible for many of us.”
Tributes are pouring in for McOmie, who hosted “Grant’s Getaways” on Portland stations KGW and KATU and began his career back in 1981 and, along with his videographer Jeff Kastner, won myriad awards. He had a very distinctive voice that, even as it cracked with age, felt as true to the story as the scenes each episode brought to viewers.
“An avid angler and hunter, his outdoor reporting spanned the Northwest’s intriguing vistas well beyond those brought to the dinner table,” wrote Monroe in a brief news piece. “From Oregon’s high desert to Astoria’s bounty from the sea, McOmie mined the state’s backroads, finding compelling stories around every bend.”
One of McOmie’s last stories was about how the Missoula Floods carried granite boulders embedded in ice all the way from Montana to the Willamette Valley, and how that cataclysm of all cataclysms enriched the soils of the valley, setting it up for agriculture. Another was about the birding to be had at Ankeny National Wildlife Refuge between Salem and Albany, set aside as a place for geese to gather instead of in farmers’ fields.
Both shows aired earlier this month. In a fuller “Requiem for a heavyweight” piece posted this afternoon on The Guide’s Forecast, Monroe said McOmie had been working up until a few weeks ago.
On Ifish, members remembered him as “one of Oregon’s greatest treasures” and a “NW outdoors institution,” and saw his passing as a “a major loss to our outdoor community.”
Oregon US Senator Ron Wyden tweeted in part, “Very sorry to hear about the passing of Grant McOmie. Recreation and getting outdoors are in Oregonians’ DNA, and Grant played a huge role in informing viewers about our state’s many natural treasures.”
The Association of Northwest Steelheaders called McOmie “a true champion for the outdoors and a familiar voice to generations across the Pacific Northwest.”
“I was shocked to hear this news,” stated Buzz Ramsey online. “Grant will be missed by many, including me. RIP my friend.”
Per KGW, McOmie was a Pacific University graduate who majored in drama and English and whose graduate studies in communications-related fields took him to UW and the University of Portland. During his career he was honored with Oregon AP and Oregon Association of Broadcasters awards, as well as “numerous” Emmies, including 2023’s Best Informational and Instructional Content.
“In 2021, he was inducted into the Northwest Emmy Silver Circle to recognize his more-than 40-year commitment to the highest standards of journalism and his contributions to environmental and outdoor reporting,” the station noted.
Several years ago now, Eric Chambers, author of Tidal Grace: Family, Fishing and Faith on Yaquina Bay, pitched me on a story profiling McOmie. At the time living near Seattle, I wasn’t as familiar with McOmie as I would later come to be, but I was definitely down for it.
Sadly, it never came to pass, but Chambers nailed it when he wrote in his query that McOmie had “a very unique, iconic voice, which instantly puts one at ease and harkens to a better world.”
That’s what we should all strive for, not for the overly divisive idiocy and tripe that is today’s world.
In linking to a “Grant’s Getaways” episode with guide Jack Glass and some kiddos out for Sandy River winter steelhead, ODFW posted, “Thank you Grant McOmie for a lifetime of extolling the outdoors and taking us along on all of your adventures. It won’t be the same without your voice.”
Indeed. RIP, Mr. McOmie.
