Daredevils Club, Storm Wolves, and Barred Owls Help Clean Up Connelly Creek

Meeting at our new park and ride drop-off location the Daredevil’s Club were finally all present for their last service outing as a group. With plenty of sunshine to accompany us, we walked over to the service site to take inventory of what had been done by previous groups, what was left to do today, and how we would make the most of our time. We also talked about the importance of setting a good precedent for the younger groups, and leading by example and emphasizing safe tool usage, proper technique, and strong work ethic. At first it took the group a little while to get going, but after taking a quick snack break and drinking down some water the Daredevil’s kicked it into gear and got down to business.

As the Daredevil’s Club finished constructing a make-shift fence around a recently discovered bees nest the next group, the Storm Wolves, arrived. After taking some time to walk through the service site with the Daredevil’s Club the Storm Wolves had no hesitation and jumped right into cutting back the blackberries and digging up root balls. It was great to see these two groups get together after both groups found plenty of enjoyment discovering one another’s shelters during previous explorations this season. Each group continued developing the other’s shelter, one at Galbraith and the other at Clayton Beach, and created some pretty impressive structures despite having never met the other group (until now!). As the outing progressed the groups intermingled and found that they actually had quite a bit in common. Watching the Daredevil’s Club working alongside the Storm Wolves, the mentors took note of their maturity and impressive role modeling. Coming from a group that can sometimes get side-tracked with goofiness, these older Explorer’s really stepped up today and were very impressive.

While the Daredevil’s Club and Storm Wolves were making solid progress, everything was kicked up a notch when the Barred Owls showed up. After getting a demonstration on proper tool usage from the Storm Wolves they get right to work. Talk about a bunch of motivated Explorers! Half of the group took on the extensive bramble of Himalayan Blackberry that has been choking out a willow grove for years while the other half grabbed shovels, began digging up blackberry root balls, and clearing out an old drainage ditch. This by no means is easy work and the whole day the mentors never heard a peep of complaining out of any of the Explorers.

With lots of solid work getting done the service site began to transform. The once tall Reed Canary Grass lay flat, stomped down by Explorer’s feet. The ground churned from shovels digging up massive clumps of blackberry root. The willow grove once choked out by blackberry finally stretching out to absorb the sunshine that was previously getting all sucked up by the broad leaves on the climbing vines of blackberry. Despite not having any mulch today, the site has been prepped for the next group to get a thick layer of mulch down. Vast tunnels have been slashed through the massive blackberry bramble allowing the Explorers to divide and conquer the remaining patches the formidable thorny plant. Not only did these boys fill numerous garbage bags full of Himalayan Blackberry, but they did a great job of taking the next step towards really establishing the natural stability of the Connelly Creek service site.

With the Padden Creek Daylighting Project well underway downstream all of our hard work is suddenly taking on a new perspective. Not only are we working towards eradicating invasive species alongside Connelly Creek, creating natural habitat with native species,  and developing a self-sustaining native habitat, but we are creating a piece to the proverbial puzzle. With salmon able to swim up Padden Creek for the first time in in over a century the Explorers are creating an optimum habitat for them to return to Connelly Creek to spawn and continue their prolific and dynamic influence on our region. For now it may seem like hacking at blackberry and shoveling mulch, but the impact these boys are having on their community is one that will last for years to come. One of the Explorers on this outing actually mentioned this and said he dreams of one day being able to pull a salmon out of Connelly Creek with his hands. Now that is a vision we can all appreciate and thanks to all the hard work from the Daredevil’s Club, Storm Wolves, and Barred Owls that dream may one day become a reality. 

Make sure to check out the rest of the photos from our outing here!

Daredevils Club Flourish in the Forests of Galbraith

With gray and gloomy weather looming over head, the Daredevils Club met up at North Galbraith Trailhead to get back out on the land after taking a back from exploration to do some service on our previous outing. The thick cloud cover above brought with it a cozy feeling to the forest perfect for our earth skills focus; shelter building. Having a somewhat rough go of it on our first attempt at shelter building this season, the mentors thought it was important for these guys to get a top notch debris hut under their belts so we hit the trail and headed for a nice ravine off trail and away from the busier bike trails.

Cruising through the forest with four Explorers and two mentors felt like a breeze compared to most outings with up to twelve boys in a group. The small group size offers a tremendous opportunity for quick movement, efficient decision making, and some extremely rewarding and sincere interactions. A comradery has taken root this season amongst these boys and with it came the need to address what the future looks like for this group going forward. Taking time to sit down and discuss what we want to do took precedent at the beginning of the outing. After chatting and checking in it became apparent that these guys needed one final season to give the group a “clean death” as one could say. The mentors made a point to acknowledge that in death there is life and new beginnings. Despite an end for the Daredevils Club in sight this fine group of Explorers can embark on the transition from childhood into adolescence with intention, focus, and a greater understanding of what they will be facing in their bright futures. With the big picture stuff taken care of, it was time to get lost in the present and get to work on a shelter.

Hiking around in search of a good location to construct a shelter we sought outcroppings of deciduous trees amongst the vast conifers. Their many leaves offer an excellent source of debris for insulation while the blustery fall winds bring down fresh limbs to be harvested for Y-Sticks, a strong Backbone, and sturdy, straight ribs. Taking advantage of one of the mentors limbing saws, the boys harvested the basic structural components from a Big-Leaf Maple section that came down in our last storm. Carrying these materials away from the hazardous deciduous stand, where the very limbs that fall to provide great building materials can also pose a big risk in windy conditions, we settled on a flat area underneath a young grove of cedar trees. The mentors helped lead the charge on harvesting materials, interlocking the Y-Sticks with the Backbone, and getting a plentiful amount of ribs alternating down the backbone to finish out the structure. Everyone took a turn sawing through branches, seeing who could do it the fastest (while using intention and safety principles of course!), and bonding over the satisfaction of a little perspiration and making piles of sawdust. With the main structure in place, and everyone clear on the level of patience and intention required for structural integrity, we were left with a rock solid construction and just waiting for some latticework of hemlock branches and a thick layer of debris. Feeling confident with the debris hut, the mentors took some time to let the Explorers finish off the shelter while they focused on practicing some skills of their own like harvesting and carving spoons and making bow drill kits from freshly harvested Red Alder.

At this moment, the outing became one of the best either mentor can remember. Explorers were honing their shelter building skills for an upcoming overnight outing in debris huts, mentors were honing their personal earth skills, and the gloomy clouds comforted us like a cozy blanket while refraining from producing precipitation. The air was crisp, refreshing, and full of laughter and joy. Boys took breaks from raking up debris to chat with mentors about everything from what recipe they used to make their lunch to our society’s relationships with weapons and warfare. We even found some time to practice throwing rabbit sticks and spear like branches at a dead log and a quick attempt at starting a fire with a freshly carved bow drill kit. What more could you ask for from an outing? Explorers and mentors alike couldn’t believe it was already time for closing circle and the hike back to the parking lot. If only the outing could go on for the rest of the day and into the evening where many more laughs, conversations, and memories could be shared around a fire before cozying up for the night in our newly constructed debris huts… Oh wait, that’s next outing! After such an incredible day, one can’t help but get excited for all that’s in store for us on our next big adventure.