The Cave Dwellers and Gray Wolf Pups Introduce the Sculpin to Service at Connelly Creek

It was the last Sunday in October and a low fog had settled close to the earth. This kept the air cool and wet as we gathered together for a BEC service outing at Connelly Creek.  We warmed our bodies with a walk down to our site at Happy Valley Park and shortly after our arrival the fog lifted and the sun came out. We were grateful to have a dry day that was the perfect temperature for rolling up our sleeves and getting to work healing the land at our service site.

A foggy opening circle

Service outings with the BEC provide a unique opportunity to work alongside other BEC groups of different ages.  The Sculpin are having their first season together in BEC this fall and as such this was their first service outing.  The Cave Dwellers and the Gray Wolf Pups were tasked with introducing the younger Sculpin to our site and leading by example by showing us safe tool usage and a good work ethic.  This is a great way for the younger boys to learn valuable skills from the older ones, but also a great opportunity for the older boys to take on some responsibility and begin to practice some of their own mentoring skills.  

Younger and older boys sharing a circle

With so many hands available, we were able to get some good work done on a number of different fronts at the site.  As always, there were blackberries that needed to be cleared and their roots dug up. We also began to free a willow tree from the hold of tall reed canary grass, along with tenacious blackberry vines and ivy. 

Getting those big blackberry roots up and out!

The never ending blackberry battle

Working to liberate a willow tree that was being suffocated by grasses and vines

Creating a new blackberry-free zone

Many hands make light work

A mentor takes a lesson on root removal from some of the Sculpin

In order to give our minds and hands a break from the sometimes tedious and sometimes frustrating work of habitat restoration, we moved into the field to play a couple of rounds of Fire in the Forest, a favorite BEC game.  It was fun to get to play this game with such a large group!

Enjoying a break

Taking a break from work for some play

Much of our work today was in preparation for the installation of large 'cages' where we would later lay down mulch and plant some native plants.  The wire fence that encloses this area keeps deer and other animals from disturbing the growth of the young native plants that we plant at the site.  

While the service outings are certainly different in structure from our exploration outings, we still end every outing in BEC with a circle of thanks where we strive to maintain an Attitude of Gratitude.  It was great to share and listen to what we were each thankful for.  Many of us expressed gratitude for the wild places that we have here in Bellingham and the opportunities for play and exploration that these places provide.  In that spirit of thanks, it felt good to have an opportunity to give back to the land through the restoration of our service site.

Be sure to look at the rest of the pictures from the day in our photo album here!