Next stewards meeting is CANCELED . Work Party CANCELED. Meetings canceled until further notice.
Park Use Off the Charts
The COVID Pandemic has created a huge increase in park usage. There are 10 dogs in front of me, mine is with me and there are three more behind me off leash. There are about 50 cars parked at the "K" and 25 at the Holly roundabout every two hours, on sunny days. On New Years Eve, a sunny day, there were 300 cars between 9AM and 2 PM parked at access points to the park. Please stay on trails. We are lucky to have such a nice place to get away from daily stresses. Thanks for bagging your dogs poo. Those of you leaving it bagged but on the trails are helping a bit but not much. Dog poo contains undigested proteins that are sniffed out and eaten by coyotes, birds and racoons among others.
Un-authorized Un-permitted Stream Work
Several state agencies are seeking the identity of the culprits that plugged Culvert 5 on Old Loop Parkway between KSS and Deer Fern Trails. Just kidding, that is an internet trick known as a "click grabber" designed to get you outraged enough to read some more. We know who did it and are glad to have them in our park. During periods of high water, beaver will venture out from their summer foraging area and feed on trees that are not normally accessible due to low water levels. They are feeding on the willows near the culvert and must have water nearby to escape predators. We ask your patience and want you to bring your boots when hiking as Old Loop Parkway will be underwater until spring. If we cleared the culvert, the beaver would not be able to feed in that area. They will return to the large pond when rains stop, and Culvert 5 will be cleared when the water table drops to a safe level. Thank you for protecting our wildlife, water and fish. A very good book on beavers "Eager, The surprising secret life of beavers and why they matter by Ben Goldfarb.
Annual MLK Work Party
Habitat Improvement Thinning
Bridge Project Completed
All trails are now open. Thanks to all our park users for patience while we installed the bridge. To those who did not care about our trail closure, you complicated our task. This is the culmination of six years of research and engineering. Funding was through donations and forest product proceeds derived from environmental thinning from Kitsap County Parks. Labor was provided by volunteers. Special thanks go to: Tom Coleman, Anjalee Banerjee, BIll and Diane Wasson, Kitsap Community Foundation, Arno Bergstrom, Keith Asbury, Colen Corey, Karl Erickson, WNEK Engineering, Pacific Bridge, Milican Cranes, Dori Leckner, Brittany Gordon, Eileen Nichols, Alison O'Sullivan and hundreds of others.
Beaver Loop Boardwalk
This project was funded by donations and grants at a total cost of about $5000.00. The geo-tech report Shawn WIlliams WNEK Engineering, the gabion baskets Kitsap County Parks (brush picking proceeds) Quarry Spalls and 2/4 minus, Keith Asbury. Thanks to Silverdale Rotary, Back Country Horsemen, and NHHP Stewards for financing this project. Thanks to Paul Larsen and his brother for milling the salvaged cedar logs to make the stringers. Thanks to Arno Bergstrom for saving the logs for us during road building operations. Volunteers from the Navy and CK Schools participated in finishing the approaches and hauling rock. We are 99% complete, and once the Hoof Grid is in place will be done. The boardwalk is oopen for use.
Annual Rummage Sale
Great sale, thanks to all who donated. Stewards made a record $2000.00!
Beaver Food
Student volunteers from CK Schools Transitions program planted willows in the Little Anderson Beaver Pond preparing for the return of the beaver. They have been absent for a few years, and our pond water level has suffered because the dam has not been maintained. We hope these willows are tasty. Live stakes were collected and prepped by friends and stewards from willows along Old Timber Parkway.
Annual Martin Luther King Jr. Work Party
The usual band of suspects showed up to help Hope Worldwide complete the Type II Puncheon work on Bobcat Run. This project has been on going and moving forward with a lot of help from NAVHOSP Bremerton Pediatrics Ward volunteers led by Trey Irwin and stewardship president Tom Coleman. Thanks to MTV Home Repair for loan of the company dump trailer, Dennis, Autumn, Trey, Frank, Nancy, Pat, Joanne, Tom, Colen and Yvonne. Use the link below (Learn More...... Honoring Dr. King) for more information.
Vandals Return
We have not had a lot of vandalism in the park but it seems to be on the rise. Several trail signs were torn down along Salish and Bobcat down to Old Loop. The Children's Forest has been plagued with several hits and interpretive signs pulled up and thrown throughout the park. Please keep an eye out for us all and report any vandalism. Thanks
Noxious Weeds
We use any and ALL methods available to control Scotch Broom. We hope to add mulching to our arsenal of control tools and are doing an experimental control project on Coyote Loop Trail. Steward Gail Rase donated bales of hay and stewards spread it over the log landing to prevent sunlight from reaching the seedbank. We will keep you posted.
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Boardwalk Completed
Stewards completed the boardwalk on Salal Trail during the monthly work party. The addition of a bullrail and erosion control completed the installation. As a final engineering test, we weight tested it.
Boardwalk Progress
After three years on the Work Plan, stewards finally got things moving with the boardwalk installation on Salal trail. This wet spot formed after years of silt erosion from "John Wayne Hill" and Coyote Trail silted out the seasonal stream channel. A large puddle forms each winter and has been causing patrons to make new trails and find other ways to cross without getting wet feet. A great work party with 5,400 lbs of concrete to move by hand we were fortunate to have three great young sailors from NAVHOSP Bremerton Logistics Division. Not only did they load all the concrete, they pulled Scotch Broom between loads. Scheduled for completion soon. Thanks for your patience.
Stewards Work Party
Stewards and friends installed rescue locator tags at all trail intersections on Saturday the 18th of November. The work party was the culmination of several months of volunteer work and community cooperation. The bright red tags purchased by Kitsap County are trail intersection markers that will guide CK Fire and rescue to your location in an emergency. If there is an emergency in the park, call 911 and give the locator number (NH14 for example) of the nearest intersection. Accurate mapping of all trails and intersections was completed with AES Consultants taking the lead. Steward volunteers Bill Wasson, Steve Ottmar, Tom Coleman and Frank Stricklin gathered intersection and culvert coordinates. Several trails had been rerouted over the past 5 years and steward Steve Ottmar updated the trail map GPS coordinates and mapped the location of the re-routes. Bill Wasson created a spreadsheet and marking scheme for all culverts and emergency locator tags. KC Parks volunteer coordinator Lorie Raymaker turned our info into tags attached to Carsonite strips allowing us to attach them to existing signposts. The updated map with all the emergency locator information was geo anchored and uploaded to the MAPRIKA server. If you have the old map, NHHP North on your smartphone, delete it and download the latest version (also called NHHP North). If you download the map at home, the GPS function of MAPRIKA will still work in the park even without cellphone service.