May 2 - McLane Creek

It was cloudy this morning, for the first time in days, and was 46º F.  So, I drove out to the Washington Dept. of Natural Resource’s McLane Creek nature trail and “demonstration forest”.

DNR had recently logged a portion of the upper area, which had been marked earlier this winter.

The harvested area had been a stand of not-too-large second-growth Douglas Fir.  The State of Washington, having no Income Tax, is forced to rely on a regressive sales tax to fund its operations.  Back when there was lots of old-growth timber, it made sense for them to write into the State Constitution a provision that Public School construction would be funded by returns from harvesting the State Forests.  Now that the big trees have all been cut down, long since, and any timber is shipped to Japan or China to be milled into lumber rather than being milled locally, the value of the resource has diminished to the point that cutting these “pecker-poles” just doesn’t cover the cost of doing business.

That said, the upper trail goes through some of the second-growth that hasn’t yet been cut, and the walk is peaceful, allowing one to enjoy the birds and the flowers.

Trilliums here start out snow-white, and as they age, they turn purple

But, I have always loved seeing these flowers every Spring!

This is the first time I've ever seen a Trillium with Four petals!

The books call this "fumeroot" - Corydalis scouleri

The upper trail connects with a lower, level trail and boardwalk that loops around a large beaver pond complex and along McLane Creek.

Hairy Woodpecker - the 'muddy' west coast version

At the nest hole

In the late fall, chum salmon return to spawn in the stream by the hundreds, and this is a good place to view them as they complete their life cycle.  There are no adult chum salmon here now, but I recommend coming here in November.

Photo shamelessly stolen from Douglas Scott's Thurston Talk

This time of year, the pond is fairly quiet, with a few waterfowl and other wetland residents.

It's always good to see a Wood Duck

Painted Turtle "sunning" himself

On the lower section, the trail passes many of the stumps remaining from the days that they logged the old-growth timber.  A few show the notches for the springboards that the loggers used to elevate themselves above the lower section of the tree, which was often either hollow or the wood had twisted grain unsuited for the sawmills of the day.

Now, after 100 years, the stumps are decaying, and serve as “nurse trees” to foster the seedlings of new generations of forest.

In all, it was an enjoyable morning, and I’d seen and heard a few new birds for the year, including Vaux's Swift, Cassin's Vireo, Pacific-slope Flycatcher, and Wilson's Warbler.

McLane Creek eBird checklist is Here