Lucy and stream surveys

I cat-sat last week some of the kitties I did in the spring, this time sans Old Bay the sweet dog. So it was me and Lucy and Charlie, both females. Lucy is very cute and sweet, Charlie hisses and lacks a tail, a manx cat...and doesn't listen to me. Regardless, it's nice to have their company.

Miss Lucy

In my free time lately, beside the salmon surveys, I've been doing stream surveys for the North Olympic Salmon Coalition (NOSC). A few years ago, NOSC did a creek restoration of Morse Creek. It had been straightened by the landowner, so NOSC came in and unstraightened it, essentially. Creeks, streams and rivers naturally have bends in them and the organisms in them, need a canopy above to shade it. With some redirecting and tree plantings, and a handful of years, creeks and streams rebound pretty quickly. If you haven't heard about it, the Elwha Dam removal is happening out here in the Olympic National Park as we speak. This is the largest dam removal in U.S. history and has received quite a bit of attention, since dam removals can be controversial. It was established that this dam's uses were outdated and it was harming more than helping the river. This dam removal is on a much larger scale than Morse Creek, but it will also involve pre and post-research, as well as redirection of the river and restoration of its banks. It is pretty fascinating and you should google it if you're interested.

Anyway...I've digressed, as part of the restoration and follow through, the staff goes back to the creek and with the help of volunteers, collects data so that they are able to see how the creek changes after the restoration. This involves walking upstream and taking measurements, data every few meters...tree cover, wet width, bank width, pebble counts, deepest depth of the stream, making observations, etc. I got to try out most of the tasks, which involved dusting off my measuring skills and wading in chest deep water (in waders). They will continue to collect data for a few years, to monitor and ensure that the restoration was successful and there aren't any large problems. It was a great day on the water, without rain even, and I got to work with three great people I haven't worked with yet: Jac, Sarah and Kevin - this is what I love here!

Jac and Kevin, taking the measurements

Sarah, data collector and expert leader