Lots of people were sheltering from the heat last weekend, as temperatures skyrocketed up to extreme heights. But Friday wasn’t just a hot day – it was also the United Way Day of Caring here in Kitsap. Thanks to the strong partnership between Great Peninsula Conservancy and the Clear Creek Task Force, we came together to have some fun and work on trail maintenance together! Thanks to the hard work of our volunteers, Clear Creek Trail will continue to stay open and accessible to everyone in the community.
The Kiwanis Club of Silverdale showed up in full force, led by Phil Shoemaker, and brought a huge amount of tools and expertise to fix up the boardwalk. They were helped out by one of GPC’s new AmeriCorps VISTA members, Hannah, and a couple of new volunteers. The youngest volunteer of the day, Brayden Beason, is hoping to keep coming back for even more stewardship opportunities in the future. Together they fixed up 40 feet of boardwalk.
On the trail, two more AmeriCorps VISTA members, Janessa and Peter, led a group of volunteers to prepare sections of trail for continued maintenance. Later this summer, these trails are going to be resurfaced so they will be better than ever. For now, they cleared back the vegetation trying to grow over the path and pulled out the weeds growing up through the gravel.
The last team was led by Sierra, another AmeriCorps VISTA member. Sierra’s whole family showed up to volunteer alongside her! They cleared back vegetation, cut away overhanging branches, and removed debris from the Birkenfeld boardwalk just north of the All Star Lanes Pond. Thanks to their hard work, it looks better than ever!
Meanwhile, GPC was hosting another stewardship event on the other end of the peninsula at Beards Cove. Adrian and Micaela from our Stewardship Team led this event with six volunteers, removing invasive scotch broom from the Klingel-Bryan-Beard Wildlife Refuge. This conservation area, a former cattle pasture, is being restored as a healthy shoreline. It’s already an important stopping place for all sorts of birds and wildlife, and these restoration efforts will only help them thrive even more!
With all this volunteer energy showing up on the peninsula, we’re making great progress towards our stewardship goals! Not even the rising heat could keep us from going outside, getting our hands dirty, and contributing to the wellbeing of our community and our natural landscapes. There are always more opportunities to volunteer on GPC stewardship projects, including another event at the Klingel-Bryan-Beard Wildlife Refuge on July 16th. Check out our Events Page for more details!
