Alevin, Barred Owls and Roosevelt Elk Calves Kick Off Spring Service

This invasive reed canary grass would be mulched by the end of today

The Alevin, Barred Owls, and Roosevelt Elk Calves met at our Connelly Creek Service Site for the first service outing of the spring 2017 season. As Explorers, we utilize, learn from, play in, and rely on the greater Whatcom County ecosystem for growth, fun, and health. We appreciate this opportunity to give back to the environment from which we receive so much. Service outings also give older groups a chance to help mentor younger groups. We would see today, however, that these roles were reversed!

On the hunt for the biggest blackberry root

After taking a look around our site, we formed a clear idea of what kind of tasks we would be doing today. Reed Canary grass (in keeping with its 'invasive' designation) will continue to sprout vigorously until the trees that we have planted are big enough to completely shade out the understory of our service site. Until then, we will continue to walk the grass down and mulch right on top of it. Many of us helped move mulch today.

Finishing off the mulch pile

While lots of work certainly got done today, some of us individually were challenged with staying motivated and on task. For some reason, these individuals tended to be boys from older groups. The mentors were not the only ones who noticed this; boys from both older and younger groups addressed this in their respective groups' closing circles. The older boys did some reflection and admitted that they were less on task than they could have been and appreciated the younger boys work ethic and resolve. The younger boys remarked at their closing circle that they felt that even though they were the younger group, they still had an opportunity to lead by example and remind the older boys what perseverance and focus look like.

In addition to spreading mulch, we continued to clear blackberries and dig up their huge roots. We were especially excited today because, after 3 and ½ years of service at this site, we finally beat the blackberries all the way back to the stream bank! Today we worked on clearing the last blackberries from the bank in preparation for some cribbing and mulching by other groups this spring. Cribbing is a way of reinforcing the stream bank so that until larger trees and native shrubs are established, the bank of the creek will not erode and fall into the stream.

Getting work done on the stream bank

By days end, we had successfully removed lots of blackberry roots from the stream bank and spread a whole pile of mulch over lots of reed canary grass near the back of our service site. Certainly good work that will be built upon by the rest of the BEC groups this season on their service outings!

To see the rest of the photos from the day, click here!

Branch Hoppers, Cave Dwellers and Short tailed Weasels encounter Connelly Creek!

A riparian zone is the interface between land and a river or stream.

"Riparian zones are significant in ecology, environmental management, and civil engineering because of their role in soil conservation, their habitat biodiversity, and the influence they have on fauna and aquatic ecosystems, including grassland, woodland, wetland or sub-surface features such as water tables." (Wikipedia)

Connelly Creek runs along Happy Valley Park as it ambles to join Padden Creek. The section of the park that borders the creek had been treated as a dump and allowed to degrade as Himalayan Blackberry bushes and Reed Canary Grass diminished the biodiversity of the area to almost nil. The result? The human impacts signified by these changes have diminished the creek’s ability to support migrating salmon.

Undaunted by the probability of getting seriously scratched, these Explorers have taken the motto Challenge by Choice to heart as they wrangle blackberry canes into a trash can. 

Enter Boys (and now, hurrah!, Girls) Explorers Club. Beginning several years ago, Explorers began removing trash and blackberries (ouch!) and stomping down canary grass and covering it with bark mulch. We’ve also planted native species, including Alders that will, in time, shade out the Canary Grass. It was sometimes discouraging work as the grass is very resilient and tended to return between our fall and spring (and spring and fall) work parties. The blackberries….well, I expect you know what it’s like dealing with Himalayan Blackberries!

Our Explorers connect with the land in a very real sense, which reinforces the importance of protecting all that nature provides us. (Motto: Connect and Protect)

But the Explorers persisted. And now the progress if readily apparent. The grass appears to be losing its grip and the boys who’ve done this for a few years point out the clear fence that

a few years ago we couldn’t even see amidst the blackberries.

Blackberries are delicious, but the plant is a non-native, invasive character that can change the habitat in unhealthy ways. And, they're tough to eradicate, thanks in part to their robust root structure. Here, Mentor Jedidiah "plays" a large Himalayan Blackberry root.

Amazingly, we’ve made it to the creek. On Sunday, we learned about “cribbing”. The word has a few very different meanings: for us, the focus is the creation of a barrier to prevent erosion into the creek. 

Split logs provided by Bellingham Parks to be used to create a barrier to
hold back the bark we spread to contain the Reed Canary Grass. Note the
engagement!

You can see the creek in this shot. Without the cribbing, the bank,
along with the bark we were about to spread, would wash into the
water, restricting oxygen need by migrating salmon.

Just about finished. This project makes it blindingly
obvious that all things are connected (motto). Disregard
for the encroaching berry and grass robbed this patch of
necessary biodiversity with associated harm to
salmon migration.

The boys were inconsistent in their focus on our task on Sunday, as if often the case. You can usually fire their interest, however, by reminding them what this place was like a few years ago. Like the rest of us, they are gratified by the positive impact they’re having through this important work.

Could it be that Jedidiah's "guitar" wasn't the biggest blackberry
root unearthed this day?

Notice the hard work on many different tasks in the photo gallery. 

The Short Tailed Weasels next meet on May 21 - Locust Beach.
The Cave Dwellers meet again this very soon; April 30 - Fragrance Lake
The Branch Hoppers will have to wait until June 3 - Yew St. Woods

Enjoy! See you on the trail.

Boys Program Summer Camps and Trips registration is open.

Jumping Mice, Storm Wolves and GEC Swallowtails advance the restoration of Connelly Creek service site - 10/29/16

“What happens when we’re finished?” Great question from an Explorer during a service outing last weekend. There is a “Groundhog Day” element to this work. Each fall and spring, we uproot blackberry bushes and stomp down and cover the tall grasses. It was very prescient of that Explorer to pick his head up from the work to look at the big picture. The answer, which we do well to keep in mind, is that the work is finished when the ecology of the site is restored to balance, at which time it can manage its flora and fauna without our help. When that happens, there will be other important projects for the Explorers of tomorrow to tackle.

That’s a long way off, however. As noted in the BEC motto, "It's about the journey, not the destination". Fortunately, we have a plan, thanks to the leadership of Bellingham Parks, that involves removing invasive, non-native Himalayan Blackberries and shading out the sun loving invasive, non-native Reed Canary Grass. This fall, we’re continuing to wrestle the blackberries into submission (motto - Grasp the Nettle...err, blackberry) and covering the Canary Grass with bark mulch. We’re also planting native alders and plants such as Ninebark to provide the aforementioned shade. Thanks to the Nooksack Salmon Enhancement Assoc. for the use of their tools in this work.

Getting down to work.

A first for the Connelly Creek service project - the Swallowtails, a Girls Explorer's Club group, were one of three groups working last Saturday

Himalayan Blackberries produce delicious fruit....AND grow deep roots that are tough to dig out.

Gotta move that bark to cover the Reed Canary Grass

Last year, we planted native species and put a wire fence around them to keep out the deer. Unfortunately, it doesn't deter the blackberries. Two of the GEC Swallowtails spent most of the day cleaning up this important patch.

Here's that patch all cleaned up....nice work, girls.

Hard work and rain can't dampen their spirits...

New life

I don't think that's what we had in mind.

Just as important as restoring the habitat along the creek is Wild Whatcom’s interest in providing the space for your Explorers to practice, as David Brooks put it in The Road to Character, “…the virtues of people who are inclined to be useful but don’t need to prove anything to the world: humility, restraint, reticence, temperance, respect and soft self-discipline.” Given that both endeavors are bigger than any of us, the scene has undoubtedly been set; your Explorer’s mentors are ever grateful for the opportunity to work with these wonderful kids in this meaningful undertaking.

A thousand thanks to mentors Hannah and Lauren and all the Swallowtails for pitching in with grace and ardor. Let's see if we can do that some more!

Photos of wet kids doing good work! The Storm Wolves next gather on Sunday, November 20th, for an exploration at Racehorse Falls. Details here. Next up for the Jumping Mice is an exploration of Arroyo Park via North Chuckanut Mountain Trailhead on Sunday, December 4th. Their schedule page here. The Swallowtails' schedule shows that they continue with service on Saturday, November 19 at the GEC Service Site. 

Salamander Efts introduce the Pine Martens to Service with BEC

Bright fall colors are not just for leaves; slime molds too!

Exploring is what we do in BEC, and we are constantly grateful for the wild spaces that we get to play, romp, grow and learn in.  We are all earth keepers and we work hard to Leave No Trace while we are out in the woods.  But, try as we might, it is impossible for us to explore in these places without leaving some sort of an impact. So, through our service outings, we can give something back to these woods that we need so much and take so much from.  

Putting in some good work on the Reed Canary grass.

Last Saturday the Salamander Efts and the Pine Martens met at our BEC service site in Happy Valley Park on Connelly Creek.  Once per season, each BEC group gets to spend one of their outings working to further the restoration of our service site at Connelly Creek.  This gave the older group of the day, the Salamander Efts, a chance to share their knowledge of service work and this site with the younger group, the Pine Martens, who were having their first service outing ever.

Older boys get a chance to be leaders to some of the Pine Martens

Being that this was the first BEC service outing of the season, we had some "cleaning up" to do, namely removing the reed canary grass.  We have been battling this invasive grass at the site for a while now and it consistently proves itself to be a worthy adversary.  In light of this, we took extra care to remove the roots of each stalk of grass.

Connor (mentor) clearly approves of the work getting done today!

As we were working diligently to remove the grass, we were excited to find a couple different types of slime molds! These organisms were once thought to be in the Fungi kingdom, but it has since been discovered that these are not true fungi. Their bright colors were striking to behold and we appreciated seeing them active at our service site.

More slime mold colors!

Along with good work, our day also allowed us with some time for play in the form of a few games of Fire in the Forest out in the field in the middle of the park.  We got to stretch our legs and move our bodies during this welcome break from the relatively tedious work of pulling grass roots.

The boys enjoy a well earned break to rehydrate and nourish their bodies.

By the end of the day, we were able to get a lot done. In addition to pulling up reed canary grass, we freed some of the young native plants that we planted previously on the site from strangling vines including ivy and blackberry.  It was encouraging to see the Salamander Efts come into a leadership role not only by teaching the boys about tool safety and technique, but also by modeling teamwork and a good work ethic.  The progress that these boys made pulling grass laid the foundation for the rest of the service outings this season where other BEC groups will work to spread mulch over the areas where we pulled out the grass in an effort to eliminate it once and for all!

Freeing the cages from vines.

Lots of grass removed; look at all those bags of grass and roots!

Make sure to check out ALL of the photos from this outing by clicking here.