— from Mindy Kayle and Izie Janecek —
This week the Orcas Island Youth Conservation Corps began their week at Camp Four Winds, where we boarded a boat and then landed on the rocky shore of Victim Island. The boat was piloted by Mike Smith and his son Noah Smith who safely got the crew to the island and back.
Victim Island, part of the San Juan Islands National Monument, is home to an infestation of Spurge Laurel, and the unique native plant community is threatened by this hearty non-native, so we gave our best effort to control the invasion. Our 14 crew members worked with Nick Teague of the Bureau of Land Management, Russel Barsh, Madrona Murphy and Nina Lundstrom from KWIAHT.
The crew also enjoyed learning about the unique history of the island, as a Native American burial ground. Spurge Laurel has a sap that is semi-toxic and damaging to the skin, so the crew wore gloves, hats and eye protection before cutting as much as we could in the one day excursion.
On Tuesday and Wednesday we worked near the Channel Road Bridge in Deer Harbor. We conducted surveys to provide an inventory of the plant population along the edge of the mud flats, and also surveyed the intertidal substrate and marine life.
Tuesday was the first day of construction for the soon-to-be new bridge, so it was interesting to know that what we were looking at was about to change.
The purpose of the survey was to see how the construction of the new bridge would change the natural environment in the surrounding area. This survey started last year and will continue 5 to 10 years after the new bridge is built. At the end of Wednesday, we were satisfied with our work knowing that our data would be important to the survey. As a reward for our efforts, the crew was treated to ice cream at the Deer Harbor dock store.
