Thursday, August 28, 2008

Kautz Creek: Nature's power is evident

That's the title of an article in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, detailing the effects of the November 2006 floods on Kautz Creek. The author of the article "played leapfrog" with volunteers working on the trail as they hiked up into the forest:

The damage to Kautz Creek and other trails within Mount Rainier National Park was so extensive that volunteers from several organizations answered the call for help and have responded accordingly. At the trailhead we ran into volunteers from Starbucks working with the Student Conservation Association, a non-profit organization established 50 years ago. The focus of SCA is to restore and protect public lands for future generations.

We played leapfrog with the volunteers to the crossing of Kautz Creek, their project for the day. The crew was putting in stone steps where the stream bank had crumbled away.We stopped to view the destruction; much of it still looks as if it happened yesterday. Between the trailhead and Kautz Creek fallen trees and root balls line the new route the creek created. The old bridge lies askew on a pile of debris where it was tossed during the rampage. Now bridges are back in place but debris borders the creek as far as the eye can see.

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