Photo by Lewis Johnson
PROGRESS IN YESLER SWAMP
The construction of the environmentally designed, accessible Yesler Swamp boardwalk is more than half way finished and restoration of Yesler Swamp is on the home stretch! All that remains is the East Trail, the entry path, and the viewing platform on the north side of Yesler Swamp.
Generous donors have contributed over $260,000 to fund the restoration and the boardwalk.
Restoration has been amazing! Volunteers have donated hundreds of hours pulling ivy, digging blackberry, and planting native plants. Areas that were once tangles of invasive blackberry and English ivy are now cleared and planted with native willow, dogwood, and evergreens. Friends of Yesler Swamp is now monitoring and reporting progress to the Seattle DPD and other environmental agencies.
We encourage the community to donate to complete Yesler Swamp! Friends of Yesler Swamp has applied for several grants to help finish the work. The Seattle Department of Neighborhoods Matching Fund has generously supported Yesler Swamp in the past, and we have requested about $90,000 to complete the East Trail. We have asked King Conservation District – another generous supporter – for about $20,000 to build the viewing platform, finish planting, and fund monitoring and reporting. Finally, we have asked Peach Foundation for about $20,000 to construct the Entry Trail.
Yesler Swamp – one of the last true swamps in Seattle – is a beautiful, serene oasis in the midst of a busy neighborhood. Great blue heron nest on the shore, beaver families live in the beaver lodge, and hundreds of birds perch on its trees and shrubs.
Please visit Yesler Swamp! Dogs on leash are welcome, but please refrain from biking and jogging in this fragile wetland environment.
1 comment:
Jogging on this trail does no damage, its a trail. The bird watchers who venture off the trail, as they do on the Wetlands loop, are far more likely to damage the wetland environment.
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