It's All About The Fish

      While we've been working to put the house together, the Wahkiakum Conservation District has been working to keep the house where it is. The creek has made severe migrations in the past several winters during major rain storms. It has eroded deeply into the middle pasture and scoured the creek bed. Of deepest concern, it is starting to move precariously close to the base of the hill. Oh yeah....and it has seriously compromised the migration of spawning salmon. Those are the Magic Words for the various agencies who hold  and disperse the grant money for this project. 
    Before we built the house we had a soils engineer come out and look at the site. "This is great", he said. "as long as that creek stays away from the base of the hill. Then all bets are off." We've been watching with increasing dread as the creek has creeped slowly north winter after winter.
    We have been saved by the Conservation District's project and we are profoundly grateful for their help. We like the fish. We like watching them fight their way upstream in the spring. We like watching the fry swim and dart around in the summer and fall. And when they are mature, we like fish on the BBQ. It's all about the fish, and restoration of their habitat... and saving the house.
    Darin Houpt is directing the project. His midwest drawl, easy smile and sense of humor  mask a very sharp mind.
   Last week Darin, Ed and I were standing at the edge of the creek where the soil had been disturbed.
     Darin says "You think there may be gold in the creek? This part of the creekbed hasn't been disturbed for a long time and I thought I saw some color."
     Now, he doesn't push the thought. He lets it sit there and roam around for a while. Ed is peering into the sand. Finally Darin says, "You gonna go get a pan and try it?"
     Ed smiles and says "Not while you're looking. If I'm gonna make a fool of myself, you're not gonna watch."

    Part of the project calls for deeply embedded structures in the bank of the creek to deflect water at crucial locations. They dig a pit about 15' deep and 50' back, weave trees together, bolt them together, and cover them up. That's the short version.

    The real plan calls for the trees to be placed in a very specific and strategic way. Sloan Enterprises was handling the digging and tree handling, while Darin was directing.
   Ed was standing with Darin, looking at the huge hole, and  Ed says "You know, you could hide a body in there and they'd never find it."
    Darin looked pretty surprised.  Ed says "If you want to catch crooks, you have to think like a crook."
So much for being retired.

    After a bit I came down to watch. Darin was standing in the creek directing Don The Excavator Driver with hand signals. Log #2, in 2', now pick up the end and move it tight to the bank. #4 needs to cross #1 and #3. All with hand signals. He looked like a third base coach, only he was directing trees instead of runners. Once the first layer of trees was in place, they  took other logs, about 20' long, cut the end to a point and drove them into the earth. They used the bucket of the excavator like a pile driver and drove the point about 6' into the bottom of the hole. They literally weave the logs together like cloth.

     Once the logs are woven, Adam the Lumberjack, drilled holes and drove pieces of rebar though the logs, tying them together. After the structure is done, the hole is filled in. Later this week another crew will come in, put down jute cloth, plant willow shoots and seed for grass.
    This all puts a different light on the old country phrase "God willing and the creek don't rise". Truly we are very grateful to the Conservation District and Darin for all the help they've given us...and the fish.
    As a side benefit, they have had to remove a few alders and part of an old maple during this project. Because of the size of the pieces they aren't usable in the project but the will make very nice firewood for next winter.

    This winter's wood has been drying next to the barn. Ed moved it into the basement so we can use it. So far he has 2 1/2 rows about 14' long moved and stacked. Only two more rows to go!
    I helped him move a little of it yesterday afternoon. Apparently there are several techniques to moving wood. Ed scoops up a big armful and throws it into the gator for transport. I inspect each piece very carefully for spiders or other similarly creepy beasties. Ed moves the spiders out of the way. I smash them into a million pieces. Ed wore a long sleeved shirt because it was raining. I wore a long sleeved shirt and gloves because otherwise I'd be devoured alive by insects.
   Speaking of rain, the hydraulic window opened on September 15th. Who knew there was such a thing...besides Darin, that is? Yesterday we woke up to rain, right on schedule. It was so tempting to find one of our old flood pictures and attach it to an e-mail to Darin.