Miscellaneous Items - 7/19/09

Kitsap Sun Article.  We like to pass on newspaper articles about Illahee and there was an interesting one in the Kitsap Sun's Sunday paper regarding the Illahee Community's appeal of the Hearing Examiner's decision to approve the Timbers Edge project.  Reporter Brynn Grimley was in attendance at the Commissioner's work study session where the appeal was briefed to the Commissioners and she wrote the linked article:  http://kitsapsun.com/news/2009/jul/16/commissioners-preparing-to-hear-appeal-to/ 

Commissioner's Meeting.  There were also 4 Illahee residents at the meeting to listen to the county's briefing which took about 45 minutes.  What is interesting is the Illahee Community will have roughly 10 minutes to present its appeal arguments to the the Commissioners, which may be fine if this was a simple appeal, but in this case there were over 400 exhibits and two days of testimony. 

Timbers Edge Counter Proposal.  The community is reported to be working on a Counter Proposal to be presented to the developer.  The process has been ongoing off and on for two months and reports are they are getting final approvals from the ad hoc committee and the 15 member Illahee Community Club board.  Afterwards it will be voted on by the Illahee community at an August meeting, yet to be scheduled.  We will pass it on in an Update once it becomes available to us.

Copies of Counter Proposal.  We just heard that they are hoping to have copies of the Timbers Edge Counter Proposal available at Illahee Day on August 1, 2009.

Illahee Day on August 1st.  This is a reminder that Illahee Day is next Saturday.

Illahee Day.  Save Saturday, August 1 for Illahee Day 2009.  The theme is the ABC's of Illahee.  A for an Attractive Illahee, B for Breakfast and lunch at the community dock, and C for Community clean-up in-between breakfast and lunch.  Breakfast at the dock between 9-10 am.  Community clean-up between 10am -12 pm.  Lunch at 12 pm.

5 Clean Up Teams.  You can pick the clean-up team you would like to be on. The five of them are:  Team Dock, Team Illahee Road North, Team Illahee Road South, Team Ocean View & West, and Team Illahee Preserve.  The attached brochure provides the details.

Volunteer Receive .....  All volunteers will receive Illahee T-Shirts, and there will be drawings and prizes.  Sign up by sending an email or leave a message with your name and shirt size atdocdmsret@msn.com or call 340-7257.

Illahee Preserve Trash Dumping.  We are attaching a picture of some major trash dumping at the new Illahee Preserve parking lot on Almira.  They are realizing that they will need to open some "windows" through the trees so that those doing the illegal trash dumping might be seen and caught.

Rotary Work.  Thank God for the East Bremerton Rotary Club that has taken the Illahee Preserve on as one of their projects.  Not only are they doing a stellar job of trail work, and promoting the Preserve, they also took care of illegal dumping that occurred (see the attached report),

East Bremerton Rotary completed another successful work party at Illahee Forest Preserve on Thursday evening, July 16th.  10 Rotarians participated in efforts to tidy up the Almira Drive parking lot.  Activities included spreading wood chips around the perimeter of the parking lot and removal of construction debris which had been dumped in a hidden corner of the parking lot.  Thanks to Ron Pettygrove for taking care of this disposal task.  Hooray for Ron!

Wildlife Reports.  Just a few wildlife reports coming in.

Plant Nibbling Deer.  Near nightly nibblings by deer passing through the neighbor hoods have been reported. 

Otter Family Increases.  There are reports the numbers of otters in the area have increased.  We don't know if it is because of new young ones or not.

Blueberry Addicted Goose.  There evidently is a lone Canada goose that has become so addicted to blueberries he is able to repeatedly defeat mesh netting.  We understand the wife paid for an additional four foot high fence around the berries so the husband wouldn't shoot the goose.  We hear that emotions can run quite high as people try to cope with wildlife.

Brownsville Weather Station.  We haven't had time to research the Illahee weather station, but did receive the following information that there is a Brownsville weather station.

I don't know if this would be any use to you.... but the Port of Brownsville has a weather station set up on the dock, it records rain, wind, pressure and such... I have included the web site, http://www.portofbrownsville.org/      on top left is weather and events click that, then just click weather, it's interesting and would be worth a few minutes just to look around, it also gives all the upcoming events such as BAD in September , which is Brownsville appreciation Day, very cool, well I am signing up for the big clean-up on August 1, so I will see you then.

Aquifer Meeting Airing on BKAT.  We owe the community more information of the aquifer meeting that was held on June 30, 2009.  In the meantime the meeting was taped and is being rebroadcast on the Bremerton Kitsap Access Television (BKAT) station at the following times:

“The Illahee Watershed Aquifer Protection Plan” will air:
7/20      11am
7/22      10:30pm
7/24      3pm
7/30      10am
BKAT is Kitsap's local TV channel.
Channel 12 - Comcast
Channel 3 - WAVE

Illahee Creek Posting Inadequate?  We just got word that a letter sized yellow sheet of paper was stapled to a telephone pole by Illahee Creek.  The posting is a "Statement of Exemption From Shoreline Substantial Development Permit Requirements."  Evidently Kitsap County wants to clean out the culvert again and deposit the material on the beach.  We understand there are some who are concerned about the continued dredging of the stream and are asking if there is a long term plan.  The yellow paper says it was posted on July 10th and needed to be appealed within 10 days of the decision, which was noted on the paper as July 6th.  Some are wondering if this is proper notice and if this provides adequate time to find out what is being planned.  We took a couple pictures of the posting and we'll let you decide. 

Jim Aho

Miscellaneous Items - 5/27/09

Letters to the Editor re Homeless in the Illahee Preserve.  There was a recent letter to the editor in response to the Kitsap Sun article covered in our last Update.  The blog entries following the initial article weren't very thoughtful or helpful in our mind, but the responses to the letter to the editor were much more interesting and insightful.  See the attached link: http://kitsapsun.com/news/2009/may/20/homeless-camps-raising-the-ire-of-illahee-park/

Response to the Illahee State Park Email.  In our last Update we included the text of an email expressing concerns about housing the homeless in a mothballed Illahee State park.  We received comments on both sides, with many of them phone conversations.  Most of those who live near the park and use it often have not experienced problems.  We talked with Steve Ryder, one of the Park Rangers, who said in the four years he has been there that there have been very few incidents and that Illahee is a very quiet and peaceful park, specifically when compared with other parks he has worked in.  He gave as an example this past Memorial Day weekend when the park was full and there was only one havesting citation issued at the beach. We had one person write us that after their hip surgery they started walking through the Park, but stopped when they saw some suspected drug people, which was the only other negative response.  The consensus was that there will always probably be some incidents at any public facility, and that there needs to be some regulatory presence, which is what the email was getting at.  Thank you to all for letting us know your thoughts!

Illahee Bird Watching.  Attached is the results of a recent bird watching event, and an announcement of another one coming up.

On Saturday, May 23rd Idie Ulsh led a guided bird walk thru Illahee Forest Preserve.  A total of 31 different species of birds were identified by sight or sound.  Highlights included a "first time" identification of a Hammond's Flycatcher.  Numerous Western Tanagers were heard thru-out the forest, but not seen.  A Wilson's Warbler was sighted near the gate on Thompson Lane.

Illahee Preserve Birding Tour
Idie Ulsh will be leading a bird walk thru Illahee Forest Preserve on Saturday, June 13th.  The focus will be upon sounds of forest birds.  Idie Ulsh is a Master Birder and past president of Seattle Audubon.  Idie is remarkable with her abilities to bird by ear.  Meet in the new parking lot located on Almira Drive at Illahee Forest Preserve.  From the traffic light on Highway #303 at Lowe’s Hardware, take Fuson Road up-the-hill and follow the hard right hand turn onto Almira Drive.  The parking lot is just ahead on your left.  Space is limited to about 12, so advanced sign up is required.  Bring binoculars. Bird books optional.  Start time is 7AM.  Questions or sign-up?  Please contact Vic Ulsh at work (360) 479-6900 orvic@bradleyscottinc.com.

River Otters.  We have had two emails asking what to do about river otters.  One has 5 of them living under their house and the other wasn't specific.  We used to have three of them living near us, but we have some small dogs that get loose now and then and are small enough to go through the brush to their den, and so we think they moved, and probably ended up at these other residents.  It shouldn't be too long before the otters will have their young and will hopefully move on. 

Suggestion?  Those with the otters are asking for suggestions on how to deal with them, other than contacting the Department of Fish and Wildlife.  If you have any ideas, let us know and we will pass them on.

Status of Incubating Goose Eggs.  We had reported earlier of a disturbed Canada goose nest that still had two eggs in it.  We tried incubating the eggs for five days without success (see the attached photo).  We finally broke open the eggs to see if they had been fertilized and the found they had with nearly complete chicks inside that would probably have hatched if they hadn't been disturbed by probably a raccoon or possum. 

Jim Aho

Wildlife Update & Meeting Info - 1/26/09

River Otters. We asked for pictures of river otters and just received one. There have been three otters seen in the area for quite some time now, and it is good to get a photo of them.

Bald Eagles. We also just received some bald eagle photos. The latest were from this past Sunday when at least 5 bald eagles were seen taking turns eating something on the beach, with one of them being an immature eagle who had to wait until after the others had finished. We were trying to figure out what the eagles were feeding on, and it appeared to be possum based on the tail, shape and color.

Plant Salvage Question. We had questions of whether there was any plant salvaging done at the construction sites along Almira. There was some salvaging done a year ago at the Illahee Preserve parking lot site where plants were moved elsewhere in the Preserve. They looked at moving some of the huckleberry bushes a few weeks ago, but there were no good candidates as only small huckleberry bushes are normally successfully moved. We don't know if there was anything done at the Keller House site.

Native Plants Available. We contacted Jim Trainer, our local Illahee forester, who noted the following:

1. Every year I giveaway between 10,000-50,000 surplus native trees compliments of Mike Driscoll of Hood Canal Nursery, Port Gamble,WA.

2. In Illahee I have a small native tree and plant nursery for sale. See Treez, Inc. website www.treezinc.com for tree and plant lists

3. 20,000 douglas fir seeds were distributed in the Illahee Preserve. Compliments of Treez, Inc. and Hood Canal Nursery.

Illahee Meeting Location. Some people have asked about the location of the Illahee meetings on Thursday evening (1/29/09). The Norm Dick's Center is located on 6th Street in Bremerton and is the 6 story government building that is only a few years old. It has a main floor conference room that is state of the art and is the location for many meetings including the Bremerton City Council meetings. The big screen projector makes this an ideal place for presentations like we are expecting on Thursday.

Parking Available. The benefit of having this meeting in the evening is that there is usually ample parking available in the area.

Questions? If you have questions, please let us know what they are as others are probably asking the same ones.

Jim Aho

Missed Miscellaneous Items - 1/2/09

Seattle PI Guest Columnist. We were forwarded the attached article from the Dec 14th Seattle PI and asked why we have not passed it on. The column appear first in the Olympian and then in the Post Intelligencer. The link to the article is http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/opinion/392115_firstperson15.html

Robins Here are Not Local. We sent out an Update yesterday that stated the robins being observed this winter were local. We were wrong. According to the Audubon experts, they are not local Robins as noted in the attached response received, but rather migrants.

Hey Jim:

By the way, an interesting note from my aunt. The robins we have here in the summer are not the same as the ones we have here in the winter. They all migrate north/south during those seasons. Our winter robins spend summer season nesting further north of here. Our summer nesting robins spend winter further south. Robin behavior dictates they flock-up during winter, then pair up for nesting activity in spring.

Other Wildlife Notes. We were also remiss in not noting that one of the local ravens appears to have a cold or something because of his strange cawing. They are mostly heard around the Illahee Preserve.

Some seals were reported working the shoreline after corralling some kind of fish and one of the bald eagles was able to get a fish in the process. There were even a river otter trying to get in on the action.

A red breasted sapsucker was sighted when the persons cat became interested in a nearby tree. One of the sounds made by the red-breasted sapsucker is a meow like a cat. They didn't hear the "meow" sound but surmised that something attracted the cat to the tree.

More Snowbrush Bush Information. Attached are two websites with more information on Snowbrush bushes, which are native plants in this area.

http://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=CEVE

http://www.cwnp.org/photopgs/cdoc/cevelutinus.html

Thank you for keeping us informed. We get a number of emails everyday and sometimes get behind. We don't mind reminders. We especially like emails where can simply paste your comments.

Jim Aho

Wildlife Report - 7/7/08

River Otters. On an earlier wildlife update we called the otters in the area sea otters and have been reminded that they are really river otters. There was a report that three river otters were observed the other evening playing on one of the floats at the Illahee Community Dock. They rolled around and played together on the float similar to the way they do in the water. We are waiting to see if there are any new offspring this year.

Birding in the Illahee Preserve. Here is a birding report from Vic Ulsh. "A bird survey was conducted in Illahee Forest Preserve on Sunday morning, July 6th. We set our own new record of 35 species of birds identified. Highlights included sightings of western tanager, immature pileated woodpeckers, and immature brown creepers. A total of 55 different species of birds have been identified in Illahee Preserve over these past few years during our walks. If you are interested to join a future bird walk, please contact Vic Ulsh during daytime at 479-6900 or vic@bradleyscottinc.com."

Eagles. "A bald eagle was observed in a fir tree north of the Illahee dock that flew nearly to Bainbridge Island to pick up something, probably a bird or fish, and flew directly to the area north of Illahee State Park." This report corresponds with the following report. "Jim Trainer reports that the eagle's nest adjacent to his house on Illahee Rd is occupied again with adult eagles and one eaglet. The attached photograph shows some of the remnants of prey found beneath the nest: feathers and one partial skeleton of a crow: In clockwise order: seagull, raven, seagull, red tail hawk, sea gull, crow, red tail hawk, raven, sea gull."

Coyotes. "Yesterday (7/2/08) at 0830, neighbors to the South were busy working their grounds on the East side of the house and their 3 dogs were in the yard on the West. I heard yelping and a commotion from my house -- looked out to witness a standoff and scuffle between a coyote and the two larger dogs, one that suffered a bloody foreleg wound. The coyote ran off when I stepped into its view." We've had other reports of coyotes in the area.

Deer. Many reports came in about deer that have been killed along the area roadways. At least one set of twin fawns have been reported, and possibly two, depending on how mobile they are. The most interesting report came in with two photos that were attached, and have been attached to this email. Seeing a big buck eating from a bird feeder is a first for many of us. Thank you Pat for sharing the pictures with us.

Send us your reports and pictures. Keep the reports coming. From the feedback we receive the wildlife reports are the most appreciated.

 Jim Aho

Wildlife Update & Photos - 6/6/08

Sea Otters. Three were observed on Friday. We are waiting to see if there will be some young ones soon.

Deer on the Beach. Deer sometimes travel along the beach but we don't usually see them by the water at low tide. See the attached photo.

Gosling Report. This report was received on Thursday (6/5/08). We had reported in an earlier update that we thought the pair of Canada Geese with 6 small goslings had lost them, but evidently they didn't. "The original pair of geese with the 8 goslings are still here and also the pair with the 6 babies after all. At least, I believe they are the original group of 6 goslings. They are the appropriate size and feathering is proceeding at the right rate in comparison to the older goslings who have their tail feathers in."

Jackknife Clams. These clams are small and fast and can be found on our sandy and silty beaches. They resemble small razor clams but are not as broad. This one shown in the attached photo was found on Schutt's point at low tide on Wednesday. They can also found on the beaches at Illahee State Park.

Sea Anenome Eating a Crab. This is a Painted Anenome (Urticina crassicornis) eating a crab that was observed at Foulweather Bluff on Thursday. Sea anemones have nematocystes or stinging cells on their tentacles and use them to sting their prey when contacted. As you can see they eat crabs, along with fish and whatever else comes close.

Keep sending us your wildlife information.

Jim Aho