This year we’ve done more plantings in Hidden Valley to help return it to a more natural condition and to provide shade for the creeks. This work is critical to the health of salmon runs. The shade cools the water and the roots of the plants shore up the creek banks to mitigate soil erosion that impacts salmon spawning and the overall health of the fish.
In addition to salmon, we have also done good work to improve the health of our forestlands. Many of the recently added parcels the trees were so overstocked that they were competing for resources like sunlight and water, making the trees more prone to disease and die-off. To create a healthy ecosystem, we have been thinning the overstocked tree stands and using the debris to make wildlife habitat piles. Over time, the remaining trees, now able to breathe and grow strong, will look like some of the other thriving mature stands on the Preserve.
To support the recovery of wild creatures on these parcels and in Hidden Valley, we’re adding bird and bat boxes to the areas that we’re restoring. While there are suitable nesting places in the old growth and ecologically sound sections of the Preserve, these boxes will serve as nesting places while the landscape regenerates to a healthy forest in the areas that we are working to restore.
In 2025, we’ll continue this work and the monitoring of fish, wildlife and bird populations with experts and our invaluable interns and board members. We hope you’ll join us for a tour of the Preserve to see our work, enjoy the fall colors, or see the salmon return this coming Saturday, Nov. 2nd, as part of Kitsap Salmon Tours.
-Jeff Wirtz, Vice President