McIntyre Creek Cleanup - Sept 16, 2012 - 10 am - 2 pm

August 29, 2012 - Good News

It is nice to report good news, and today, the Yukon College staff chose to spend some of their professional development day by volunteering in the community.  They contacted the Friends of McIntyre Creek and asked if there was anything they could do to help, clean up  the area or whatever.  Since the broken fence was still very fresh in my mind, I suggested if they wanted a direct affect to correct some of the vandalism, they could perhaps repair the fence that was created by Fish and Game Association last year, to protect the young trees planted as part of their restoration project.  Yukon College staff thought this was a great idea, and so made this one of their projects. 

I am happy to report the fence is up, appears very sturdy, and hopefully with all the press the vandalism has received, the vandals will realize this fence has not been constructed to annoy them, but for a positive reason, to help protect the restored area. 

I understood the City was supposed to put some large boulders across this area last year to further protect it.  It hasn't happened yet, so hopefully it will not be delayed until the fence is again destroyed, and all the baby trees have been killed.

It is great there are so many people who are interested in the gem we have in McIntyre Creek, and with enough voices of support, we may have a chance at blocking Porter Creek D, and preserving this area for a recreation park, as well as saving the wild life corridor.

In just  one half hour on my walk, I came across a jogger, a cyclist, a person walking, another walking a dog, and if there are that many people appreciating what we have, I hope everyone will keep up the pressure on government's to protect the area.

Thank you again to Yukon College staff for caring about McIntyre Creek.

August 24 - fence destruction

It appears that the drivers of motorized vehicles are determined to destroy the area.  They knocked down the remaining fence posts, and drove into the area.  The ATV's drive through a tiny trail into the marshes to spin around and dig up the turf with their huge tires.  They think this is fun, and it doesn't matter that their fun is damaging the area.  They are too self centered to care, as the only thing that appears to matter is the pleasure they get from the destruction.

Unfortunately even though what they are doing is illegal, the By-law department doesn't have the manpower to actually police the area, so the vandals continue to get away with their destruction.

The City has cameras set up to monitor the pump house to prevent further destruction, and I can't understand why they can't monitor the area being destroyed with an additional camera.  I have suggested it, and they claim it is an invasion of privacy.  So if that would be an invasion of privacy, what were the cameras set up to monitor wildlife and people activity for their recent study of the use of the area?  If that was legal, why can't they monitor the destruction of the fence and damage in the marsh area?

It appears that what is self serving for the City are things they can do.  What would serve to protect the area, including putting up large boulders, which I understood they were supposed to do where the broken fence is, doesn't make it to the top of their "to do" list.

Also, one of the large rocks that was protecting the bridge near the pump house has been moved.  There are scars on an adjacent tree that appear to have had a winch on it to move the rock.  Also, one of the smaller rocks that was set up to block the paved trail has also been moved.  The City has to get serious about protecting the area, and not do things half way, with a show of small boulders.  They need to put in humongous rocks if they are serious.

If the protection of this area from vandals and motorized vehicles that are where they are not supposed to be is important to you, please write, phone or email the City and the Mayor and Council.  The Friends of McIntyre Creek Board are doing what we can to protect the area, but we need the support of the people who are also concerned.  The more voices supporting the protection of this area, the better chance we have of success.  Let them know that you care, and that you want to see more support from the City in being serious about protecting the area.

Augs 17,2012 - More Worries

Vandals again knocked down the few remaining poles protecting the young planted trees.  It doesn't make any sense to me, but I am a logical person, and believe that vandals must be mentally defective people to damage a fence that is protecting the environment.

The water levels at the little lake are dropping what seems like daily.  Unless new beaver families move in to the area to restore the broken dams, I am certain this area will be nothing but a meadow by the end of  summer 2013.

 
I saw a flock of migrating ducks in the Creek, and although the migrating birds are the only ones that have been in the Creek this year, as no birds stayed at the creek to raise their families this summer, I hate to see them as it is a reminder that what little summer we had is leaving us at a rapid rate, and even the birds are heading south already.

August 14, 2012 - Fire

Hiking today near the trails we had traversed on the Saturday walk, I saw two people in bright orange outfits digging in the ground just off the edge of the trail.  I stopped to ask what they were doing and found they were Whitehorse Firefighters who had been called by someone in one of the residences by the College, when the residents smelled smoke, and saw whifts of smoke in the air. 

The fire fighters said there was no signs of partiers, and because the fire went deep into the ground, they expected it was a lightning strike.

Fortunately it was spotted before it took off and caused major damage in the area.

Aug 8,2012 - Visioning Walk

Friends of McIntyre Creek to lead Visioning Walk

UPDATED:

Some participants on the Walk

An eagle seen looking at the little lake

The Friends of McIntyre Creek (FOMC) lead a Visioning Walk in Middle McIntyre Creek th
Saturday August 11.

“We discussed the plants and animals of the area, its educational, recreational and ecological
importance, and threats to it,” said Friends of McIntyre Creek board member Gerry Steers. “Most
importantly we will envision what Middle McIntyre Creek could look like in 50 years depending on
what decisions are made in the near future.”

“This is an interactive walk,” said FOMC Secretary Karen Baltgailis. “We want to hear from
participants about what they would like the area to look like in the future. The Porter Creek D
subdivision is proposed for this area, so it could end up full of houses and roads. Or it could be a park
or Yukon College endowment lands, supplying habitat for wildlife, and a natural area for education
and recreation for future generations.”

NDP MLA Kate White invited the Friends of McIntyre Creek to lead a McIntyre Creek walk as part of  her Summer Community BBQ on Saturday. “We were delighted to take Kate up on her offer,” said
Steers. “We want to take advantage of every possible opportunity to publicize the values of McIntyre
Creek, and to let people express their goals for the future of the area. After the walk people can come
back to the open house and have a bite to eat and socialize.”

The walk will start at 4:30 Saturday Aug. 11th at Kate White’s community BBQ at Takhini Elementary School. It will take about an hour.

Aug 6 2012 Low Water levels

The water level in the little lake by the Pump House, below the Yukon College residences, is disappearing.  It has dropped dramatically in the last few weeks.  I made a few enquiries, and was told the water coming into the little lake from McIntyre Creek is at normal levels, but it is likely that part of a beaver dam has broken, allowing more water to flow out.

Approximately 3 years ago, under the direction of YTG, a trapper was authorized to trap and kill the beavers. Unfortunately, this human intervention has a huge impact on the area, including the recreational enjoyment of those who enjoyed canoeing and kayaking on the little pond, as well as enjoying watching the beavers as they hustled to get their winter food supply.  I fear that the little lake will soon be nothing more than a mud flat at the rate the lake is drying up.

On a happier side, I also saw two bald eagles sharing the watching perch.  They looked like young eagles, as although they had their white heads, they appeared to be smaller than many that use this perch for hunting.

August 2, 2012 - More vandalism

Unfortunately all the extremely hard work done last year by the young people working with Fish and Game to plant trees to restore the damage along the McIntyre Creek has suffered at the hands of vandals. All the willow stakes were pulled out, and the sign noting that the areas was a restoration area was defaced with graffiti.  It would appear from the graffiti, that the perpetrators considered the willow stakes were placed to harm.

The vandals must have had to read the sign saying this area was being restored, in order to apply their graffiti , but none the less, they chose to pull out all the willow stakes.  Fortunately, for the moment at least, most of the little pine trees are still in the ground.

There are also signs of further damage to the environment by wheeled vehicles driving through and churning up the ground with the large wheels.

Low Water McIntyre Creek July 2012

I have been getting more and more concerned about the water levels in the little lake that McIntyre Creek feeds into just below the College, and by the Pump House.  The water levels are at the lowest I have seen in 26 years, and this is especially worrisome considering the amount of rain we have had this year.  Just two weeks ago, the Creek was roaring.  I have not seen any ducks nesting in the area all summer, which made me wonder what was wrong with the water, as most years, there are several families of ducks enjoying the lake.  If it was a problem that the Beavers were damming up the Creek, this should have been more eveident than just having it suddenly slow down and dry up in a short period of time.

This is the first year I have seen slime (algae) in the Creek and in the Lake, and again, I wonder what is happening.  The photos below have been taken in the last couple of days, so if any of you have any ideas of what is going on here, it would be great to hear from you.

This is how the Little Lake looked in June, 2012

The photos below are what the lake looks like now - last two weeks in July, 2012.