Gray Wolves, Black-Tailed Deer, Pacific Chorus Frogs and Barnacles; Connelly Creek nature area service; 3/24/18

At its core, Explorers Club (EC) is about connection and our recent service work (Saturday, 3/24) exemplified this like few other outings. Let’s take a look at all that went on through the lens of our EC mottos.

As you may know, Explorers have been restoring habitat in Happy Valley Park for several years. Now, the good folks at Bellingham Parks have determined that we’ve brought that site to the point where it can hold its own for a while. Time to Widen the Circle by following Connelly Creek across Donovan Ave to begin work on the Connelly Creek nature area originally designed by high school students several decades ago. The trail through this area is a popular walking, jogging, dog walking spot. As we worked, several people called out to thank the Explorers for their service. How sweet to connect with community members in this way and to see today’s kids carrying on the work begun by today’s adults when they were young, all under the aegis of the joint effort of Bellingham Parks, the Nooksack Salmon Enhancement Association (NSEA) and, of course, Wild Whatcom. A web of connection across communities, across generations, between EC groups. 

The work feels familiar — uprooting Himalayan Blackberry, planting native trees and shrubs, spreading bark over invasive Reed Canarygrass. At Wild Whatcom, we believe that exposing Explorers to their natural environment through exploration and service builds a connection to the land that supports an ethic of protection as expressed in the motto, “Connect and Protect”. 

"If we want children to flourish, to become truly empowered, then let us allow them to love the earth before we ask them to save it."-David Sobel 

Doing this work persistently over several years conveys a sense of the deep, abiding need and nature of the effort. 

“Many Hands Make Light Work” is an old axiom we co-opted and, for our service outings, super charged by age-stacking the bodies attached to those hands. Four groups arrived, in age order — 12-13 year olds, then 10-11 year olds, 9-10 year olds and, you guessed it, 8-9 year olds. We encourage the older Explorers to coach their younger brethren, providing leadership experience, role modeling, caring and a different kind of fun and engagement. And, for good measure, the youngest group is our gender inclusive cohort, adding that dimension to the experience. Oh, and we got loads of work accomplished!

"If you go off into a far, far forest and get very quiet, you'll come to understand that you're connected with everything." – Alan Watts

The mud notwithstanding (or thanks to), we enjoyed several hours of besting blackberry bushes and giving back to the community. For information on your Explorer's next outing:

Barnacles, check here,

Pacific Chorus Frogs, here,

Black-Tailed Deer, here, and

Gray Wolves here.

Everyone! photos!

The Explorers Kick Off Service at Connelly Creek on the Weekend of 10/20 -10/22/17

The beginning of the Boys Explorers Club’s fourth year of service at the Connelly Creek Restoration Site marks an exciting new change in the way we approach service programmatically. With some careful scheduling from the EC Coordinators the Explorers will now have the opportunity to serve at both the BEC’s Connelly Creek site and the GEC’s Woodstock Farm site throughout their 2017-18 EC year. This intentional blending of the BEC and GEC through gender inclusive service outings aims to bring about more culture sharing between programs and relationship building between our participants.

Our first week of service at Connelly Creek brought eight BEC groups and two GEC groups to the site and affirmed for our mentors that this change will be a meaningful one. We have planted the seed and can’t wait to see what grows from it!

Service is a wonderful time to talk with the Explorers about our layers of connection and why we serve. In our closing meetings of each service outing we ask the Explorers whom they are serving when they engage in this work. Here is a list of what the Explorers said in response to this question this weekend:
The community at large for making the park a wonderful place to be and creating clean water for all, the salmon and the rest of the animal community that travel through the site, the trees and plants through diversity and balance of invasive vs. natives, the dirt and bugs that live in the soil we mulch, and ourselves through exercise, togetherness, and the great feelings that comes from giving to others when our cup overflows.

Service is also a time for our Explorers to engage in tiered-mentoring. Our elder groups are often paired with younger ones, which creates an opportunity for the elders to model work ethic, safe tool usage, and engage with youth that they often do not interact with in a leadership role. These mentoring opportunities allow the elders to pass along EC culture and share the exciting skills and outings that they have been on and that younger participants will get to do if they stick with the program. Many elder Explorers have reflected that these opportunities remind them of where they began and how far they have come. 

We would like to thank Bellingham Parks and Rec and the Nooksack Salmon Enhancement Association for their partnership and for providing EC with the tools, guidance, and support necessary to do this restoration work. Mentors are carful each outing to remind our Explorers that the tools we work with on service projects are borrowed on the contingency that we use them with integrity. It’s also a great time to remind the Explorers that we represent our organization when we work and our actions reflect on it as a whole, which has lead to some powerful discussions regarding the concepts of social capital and intentional community building.

Kicking off our first weekend of service at Connelly Creek our goals were: to orient the GEC to site and the work that had been accomplished over the last three and a half years, revisit and share our culture of tool usage and safety, stomp down the Reed-Canary Grass in our restoration area and then mulch over the top, continue to dig up the Himalayan Blackberry roots near the back of the site and around the perimeter, and weed and mulch the cages where we had planted natives species the year previous which had become overgrown with a noxious weed called Morning Glory.

The Explorers put in a huge effort this weekend and should be proud of their work and collaboration. You will find a short recap from each group’s day below with links to photos of their work at the bottom of each section. Enjoy!

Friday, October 20^th - Townsend’s Chipmunks, Moon Snails, and the Pacific Chorus Frogs:

The Townsend’s Chipmunks (5^th-6^th Grade) arrived at the drop off location to find the Moon Snails (3^rd Grade) also being dropped off. With a look of confusion on both the groups’ faces the mentors gathered them all up and the Explorers introduced themselves by playing a silly game called All My Friends.

After the groups made the walk over to the site and unloaded the tools we circled up for an opening meeting. This was the perfect opportunity for TC to model leadership by explaining to the MS how to use the tools safely and sharing the history of their experience serving at the site. Once the group was oriented they gloved up and got to work on the cage in the middle of the site.

Carefully they worked together to unwind the Morning Glory covering the Red Osier Dogwood, Ninebark, and Red Alders that had been planted in years previous. Their work required a carful eye and persistence, and the Explorers did a great job of modeling our motto slow is fast and fast is slow. One major opportunity in the Explorers’ work at Connelly Creek is that their tasks are not always straightforward and require critical thought. The TC commented on how they had previously cleared the same area they were working on of blackberry and that had given the Morning Glory the opportunity to spread. As they worked together they found the specific tools that worked well for digging the Morning Glory roots and others that helped them unravel the bound vines around the plantings.

The groups paused from their work to greet to Pacific Chorus Frogs (4^th Grade) who they had heard coming from a ways away. Given these youngsters energy the mentors decided that it would be best if they stomped down the Reed Canary grass and shoveled mulch over the top, but not before going over tool safety first!

This proved to be a very useful discussion because after putting in a solid effort moving mulch the boys began to use the sharp Hori-Horis irresponsibly. It was an important moment to group up and talk about staying on task, using the right tool for the job, and respecting the parks tools.

Circling up at the end of the day the groups shared apples, words of the day, and thanks together. Our mentors would like to commend the Townsend’s Chipmunks for the leadership and care the showed the Moon Snails and to all three groups for kicking off service at Connelly Creek with a solid start!

For more pictures from the day please visit this photo album.

Saturday October 21^st – The Banana Slugs, Gray Wolves, Black-Tailed Deer, & Sculpins

The Gray Wolves (7^th Grade) and Banana Slugs (8^th-9^th Grade) arrived at the drop-off location curious as to why the BEC and GEC were at the same location. Circling up the mentors explained the a new change to service outings and front loaded that they were some of the eldest groups in the program and it would be important for them to engage as leaders when the Black-tailed Deer (4^th Grade) and Sculpins (3^rd Grade) groups arrived. It was their role to help the younger groups understand the plan for the day, help them stay on task as they worked, and connect with them as mentors.

It was fascinating watching the elder Explorers interact. The usually outgoing Gray Wolves were a bit introverted as they learned the names of the Banana Slugs and what school they attended. After walking over to the site the Gray Wolves gave the Banana Slugs a tour and the mentors oriented them to the plan for the day.

The Gray Wolves were slated to work with the Black-tailed Deer in the back of the site digging up blackberries and spreading mulch while the Banana Slugs would work with the Sculpins in the cages to continue where Friday’s groups had left off digging up the Morning Glory roots.

The two groups got to work and it wasn’t long after that the Black-Tailed Deer and Sculpins joined. These groups had also brought with them four Explorer Mentor Apprentice from the Red-Tailed Hawks group (7^th-8^th Grade). We were very happy to have them along because the leadership from the elders groups was lacking at times.

The mentors encouraged the Banana Slugs to reach out to the Sculpins through conversation and critiquing of their work. The Sculpins were shy around the elder girls and although they worked alongside each other most of them were hesitant to engage. The Banana Slugs did however do a much better job modeling safe tool usage, staying on task, and putting in effort then some of the Gray Wolves who needed to be reminded that that the Black-Tailed Deer were constantly watching what they did and mimicking their actions.

By the end of our day together five yards of mulch had been spread, many Blackberries had been dug up, the Morning Glory in the middle cage had been completely eradicated, and the Explorers were working harmoniously side by side.  Waving goodbye to the elder groups the younger groups finished their day in a frenzy of mulch moving directed by a few of our EMAs. Way to go crew!

For more pictures from the day please visit the photo album from the day.

Sunday October 22^nd – Branch Hoppers, Storm Wolves, & Pine Martens

The Storm Wolves and Branch Hoppers arrived at the service site impressed with the amount of work that had been done the following day. Circling up with the two groups we went over tool safety and talked about how to best support the younger Pine Martens who were slated to arrive in a half hour. It was these elder groups job for the day not only to work hard and serve the site to the best of their ability, but to also serve the younger group to the best of their ability.

With that the elder groups got to work and the Pine Martens joined in when they arrived. After a half hour or so the middle cage was mulched and sealed and the group split up with most getting to work on the blackberries in the back of the site. The rest opened up the front cage to repair the damage the deer had done and weed out the Reed-Canary Grass around the natives plantings.

This project turned out to be a lot of fun and called for some critical thought and problem solving as the boys tried to rewire the broken sections of fence, drive in repurposed posts, and dig a trench to level it out.

About halfway through our day our group had become quite spread out over the site, allowing those who were self-motivated to connect and engage in their own specific projects and the rest to squirrel out and disappear into the fringes of the site. Calling the group into a big circle the mentors explained what they had been witnessing and called for some refocusing for a strong finish to our day.

We reminded Explorers that with seven explorations per year and only two service outings our work at Connelly Creek was a chance to give back to the land that we have so much impact on. With that the groups refocused and the made a strong finish to the first weekend of service at the site.

Looking around the whole front half of the site had been mulched with the Reed Canary Grass stomped down and covered up, our front two cages were reinforced, weeded, and our native plantings were as best prepared as they could be to weather the coming winter, and a considerable amount of blackberries had been dug in the back of the site.

In our closing meeting we talked with the groups about our motto, our cup overflows, and what service meant personally to each of the Explorers. It was a very fruitful conversation and helped the Explorers recognize that we were able to give because we already had so much that filled our cups.

For more pictures from the day please visit this photo album.

The Red Tailed Eyas and Black Tailed Deer Spread Mulch!

For the second service outing of the Fall BEC season, the Red Tailed Eyas and the Black Tailed deer pooled their efforts to help heal Connelly Creek on what was likely the last warm, sunny day of 2016.

Moving mulch

We started the day as all service outings do with an opening circle and tool safety demonstration by the older group, in this case the Red Tailed Eyas.  We then took a tour of the site and got to see all the good work that the Pine Martens and Salamander Efts did the day before pulling up reed canary grass.  Our job for the day was clear; mulch, mulch, and more mulch! We set out to cover the newly exposed dirt with mulch in order to prevent the grass from sprouting again.

The warm sun that had broken through the fog earlier that morning warmed our bodies and gave us a focused energy.  Right off the bat both groups were working together well and we were moving mulch at a great pace.  After about an hour of some seriously good work, the tediousness of the task began to slowly chip away at our work ethic. As a group, we decided to take a break and play a huge game of squirrel tag with both groups out in the field.  

Sunshine and squirrel tag.

As the game wound down, we gathered around the backpacks for a quick snack and sip of water.  Suddenly, sauntering down the trail was a big buck! He certainly was not intimidated by us and we gave him the right of way as he made his way through the park.  We noticed his big set of antlers and thick, muscular neck and knew that these were signs that he was likely looking for a mate. 

Just before the buck appeared.

As we refocused our intention on the mulch, some of us (including some from the Black Tailed Deer, the younger group!) came into leadership roles and helped us to maintain intention in our work by leading by example and encouraging fellow explorers to give their best.  

Somehow, one of us got partially buried in the mulch pile!

While we were spreading mulch we came across a salamander that had made the mulch pile his home during the last few days.  This was a Northwestern Salamander and we all got to look at it up close.  We were glad that we got to move him to a safe area closer to the creek and away from all of the shovels and boots!

A Northwestern Salamander

We noticed our energy waning toward the end of the outing, but we still had a good bit of the mulch pile left to move.  So we challenged ourselves and set a goal of moving the rest of the mulch in the remaining time that we had together.  It was all hands on deck in an effort to meet our goal and, just before we had to leave, we ended up getting all of the mulch spread! Today the Black Tailed Deer and the Red Tailed Eyas put in some great work, played some fun games and got to have some cool animal encounters as well. 

Be sure to check out the rest of the pictures from this outing here.

The Vespula Veterans, Black-Tailed Deer, & Short-Tailed Weasels join for Service at Connelly Creek

Sipping coffee the mentors waited in the morning sun for the Vespula Veterans who would be the first of three groups to arrive for a full day of service. The mentors would like to the thank parents for their flexibility with our new drop-off and pick-up location. After getting feedback from parents, it sounds like the new location has a much better flow and was not too far out of the way. This location change came up with each of the three groups and led to great discussions about what it takes working within a community. The mentors highlighted the connection of their decision to move the drop-off location, based on the feedback of the neighborhood and our EC motto collaborate and compromise. It is important that we as mentors Walk our Talk as live our EC Mottos the same as we ask we ask the Explorers to do on our outings.

Once they had gathered the Vespulas Veterans walked over to the site and circled up for an opening meeting. As elders in their community the Vespula’s had been scheduled to work with two of our youngest Explorer groups; the Black-Tailed Deer and the Short-Tailed Weasels. Above the physical component of serving the land their primary focus for the day was to help guide and mentor the younger boys. After seven years in the program the Vespula’s transmission of culture and leadership is a vital presence in the Boys Explorers Club.

Having three years under their belt at the service site the Vespulas had a pretty good idea of what needed to be done and what the site should look like. Although the site was experiencing significant saturation it continues to look healthier and healthier each time we return.

As the two younger groups arrived and started their opening meetings the Vespula’s worked hard to weed our native plantings and caged Alders of Reed-Canary Grass. Reestablishing the stick rings marking each native sapling the boys did excellent prep on the site and set up the younger groups for success. Once the site was ready they got digging and immediately hit an underground nest. The group immediately thought the nest was Bald-Faced Hornets, but it turned out to be a type of ground-nesting bee. Thankfully no one was stung. This resulted in the perfect opportunity for the Vespula’s to gain some leadership skills.

The Vespulas brainstormed a plan for the bee nest while the Black-Tailed Deer and Short-Tailed Weasels were simultaneously reviewing a few key service points before joining them in the work. One important topic mentors cover in each of our service meetings is the question, “for whom and why are we serving?” This question helps bring the Explorer’s focus and remember why it is a gift and opportunity to be able to serve. 

It was also important for us to cover our EC Motto, A Tool vs. Weapon. Using our tools with intention on our service outings holds two important meanings in our Boys EC culture. First it is our commitment to use our restoration equipment as tools not weapons and to recognize that we each are personally responsible in controlling this difference. Secondly it means understanding how to use the tools and how to care for them. In our case recognizing that our partnership with the Nooksack Salmon Enhancement and Bellingham Park & Rec is what provides us with the resources and guidance needed for the project. Maintaining our tools with a high level of care is part of maintaining a healthy partnership.

After a tool demo the Explorers spread out over the site working in tandem with the Vespula’s. One group worked to limb the dead branches of a crowded stand of Willows in order to build an earthen fence to establish a wide radius around the bee’s nest. Once this group was finished they moved to the back of the site to duplicate their technique and enforce the park boundary line.

The second group worked to remove Blackberry roots and stalks from the southern corner of the site. Digging Blackberries out of the ground is hard labor and the boys did excellent work being diligent to unearth the entire root system. By the end of the day the boys had hauled out a large pile of roots and clippings. Comparing scratches and scraps the boys seemed quite satisfied as they worked.

During service days it has become habit for us not to call lunch break and for the boys to self-regulate this need. One of the benefits of this is that it allows boys from all ages and all groups to mingle amongst one another. It is rare for middle and high school aged boys to share experiences and mentoring/mentee relationships with eight and nine year olds boys. It is powerful sight to witness.

Calling a halt to our service work the mentors gathered the entire crew into a circle and we sang Happy Birthday to one of our fellow Explorers while his dad passed out popsicles for everyone! The mentors would like to thank Carol and Bill Hawk for providing some much needed refreshment in the heat of the day.

Breaking off from the group the Vespula Veterans gathered their packs for a closing meeting. This was a perfect moment to debrief the one-on-one interactions that they had with the younger groups. In the end a powerful lesson was learned; the younger boys are always observing our elders behavior and the Vespula’s sustained awareness of this is needed as they make decisions and discuss topics in their presence. Vespulas and Vespula Parent’s don’t forget that our next outing is an overnight campout at Baker Lake. Click this link to be directed to the Equipment List for the overnight.

Waving goodbye to the Vespulas, the Black-Tailed Deer and Short-Tailed Weasels made one last effort to spread a large pile of mulch over our work site area before joining in their own closing circles. In both circles the boys gave thanks for: the ability to serve with a lot of new people, for the opportunity to use loppers and shovels and build fences, for the amazingly sunny weather, for water and food to nourish us, and for the ability to help restore the land. 

The mentors would like to thanks over volunteer for the day Hal Wershow for coming out and modeling a strong example of what it means to be a healthy and caring male in the world. We would also like to thank the boys for their efforts and ability to work together.

For more pictures from the outing please visit the Black-Tailed Deer, Short-Tailed Weasels, & Vespula Veterans joint photo album from the day.

Service outing with the Salamander Efts and Black Tailed Deer

Exploring is what we do in BEC, and the majority of that exploration is off-trail. Exploring off-trail allows a deeper connection to our natural habitat as we share space with all kinds of forest dwellers.  Magical fungi, towering Douglas firs, loud Douglas squirrels and inconspicuous owls are just a few of the beings that we come to know through our romping. Even though we do our best to Leave No Trace, we undoubtedly have an impact on the forested areas that afford us fun, peacefulness, and learning opportunities. Our service outings allow us to give back to the Earth that gives us so much. 

This was a combined outing; the older Salamander Efts took a leadership role and oriented the first season Black Tailed Deer to our service site. In our opening circle, the Salamander Efts demonstrated how to safely use clippers, loppers, shovels, and rakes. We understood the risks that these tools had, but recognized that being intentional with them would allow us to get lots of work done at our service site.

The first of two tasks was clearing blackberries and removing their frustrating root wads. We became skilled at using loppers and clippers to remove the big vines and then used the shovels to dig up their roots. We had fun trying to see who could dig up the largest root.

The second task was to mulch the newly cleared areas so that no Reed Canary grass would sprout in the blackberries absence.  We learned that Reed Canary grass is an invasive species that grows especially well in streamside habitats. The fast growing grass chokes out slower growing native vegetation such as Nootka Rose and baby Western Red Cedar. The mulch we laid will stop the growth of this grass and allow our newly planted native plants to grow into maturity and shade out the invasive grass on their own. We discussed that we are helping this land heal itself; just get it started and the forest will begin to thrive again.

As we cleaned up our tools and took off our gloves, we recognized the need for play, so the Black Tailed Deer got to play a few rounds of Deer Oh Deer. Even after a day of manual labor, playing games allowed us to tap into unknown energy reserves as we raced around the field trying to avoid becoming a cougar snack.

Of course this is BEC, and the day wouldn’t have been complete without a lesson form the land. This lesson came in the form of an uninhabited paper wasps nest. We got to examine the papery structure of the outside and look at the perfect honeycomb pattern on the inside where the larvae hatch. In deciding whether or not to take this treasure home with us, we decided that since this nest came from this forest, we needed its nutrients to remain in this forest so that they could nurture the plants and animals that live in and near Connelly Creek. Together we separated the nest and spread it about the service site.

To see more photos from the day, click here.