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Environmental Study Of Lechtenberg Park


Turtle

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45º 38' 50" N

 

122º 27' 37.35" W

 

I found this park a number of months ago using several map programs to explore my area, and I am bound & determined to look into it's ecological condition for myself.

 

I'm within a few miles and hope to work up my stamina so I can walk to it, but I finally drove by yesterday to scope things out. If you put the above coordinates into Google Earth you can follow along as I go. It may yet be weeks before I get there to spend a few hours exploring, so I will entertain your suggestions for topics of investigation or measurements, etcetera.

 

The park is 40 acres and looks from the road to be undisturbed for decades if not scores of years. Running through the park is Burnt Bridge Creek, which then runs on through metropolitan Vancouver. [Running through it is Lacamas Creek.] I suspect the park is a land donation and that it is no coincidence that it's 40 acres, as this is a 1/4 Section of the oft-used Township/Range method of surveying. I have found no historical information yet on the park.

 

On my menu so far is a bird survey, plant survey, water level & streambed condition, animal poop survey, and trails. :hihi:

 

Index

 

Expedition Dates

  • April 23,2007
  • June 27, 2007
  • August 18, 2007
  • September 8, 2007
  • October 13, 2007
  • November 3,2007
  • April 17, 2008
  • May 5, 2008
  • May 10, 2008
  • May 14, 2008
  • May 17, 2008
  • June 2, 2008
  • June 24,2008
  • July 19,2009
  • February 5, 2010
  • February 7, 2010
    September 9, 2010

 

Animals

 

Invertabrates

  • Forest Snail - ?
  • Water Snail - ?

 

Mammals

  • American Beaver - Caster canadensis
  • Black Bear - Ursus americanus
  • Deer - ? (either White Tail or Mule)
  • Mountain Cottontail - Sylvilagus nutallii
  • Opposum - Didelphis virginiana
  • Raccoon - Procyon lotor

 

Birds

  • American Robin - Turdus migratorius
  • Black-Crowned Night Heron - Nycticorax nycticorax
  • California Quail - Callipepla californica
  • Great Blue Heron - Ardea herodias
  • Greater Yellowlegs - Tringa melanoleuca
  • Ring-necked Duck - Aythya collaris
  • Savannah Sparrow - Passerculus sandwichensis
  • Steller's Jay - Cyanocitta stelleri
  • Tree Swallow - Tachycineta bicolor
  • Turkey Vulture - Cathartes aura

 

Vegetation

 

Trees & Shrubs

  • Black Hawthorn - Crataegus douglasii
  • Cascara Buckthorn - Rhamnus purshiana
  • Common Snowberry - Symphoricarpos albus
  • Douglas Fir - Pseudotsgua menziesii
  • Garry Oak - Quercas garryana
  • Hazelnut - Corylus cornuta
  • Indian Plum - Oemleria cerasiformis
  • Oregon Ash - Fraxinus latifolia
  • Pacific Ninebark - Physocarpus capitatus
  • Red Alder - Alnus rubra
  • Red Elderberry - Sambucus racemosa
  • Red-Osier Dogwood - Cornus stolonifera
  • Saskatoon - Amelanchier alnifolia
  • Scentbottle - Platanthera dilatata
  • Tall Oregon Grape - - Mahonia aquifolium - [berberidaceae]
  • Trailing Blackberry - Rubus ursinus
  • Vine Maple - Acer circinatum

 

Wildflowers

  • Camas - Camassia quamash
  • Creeping Buttercup - Ranunculus repens
  • False Lilly-Of-The-Valley - Maianthemum dilatatum
  • Fringecup - Temlima grandiflora
  • Hooker's Fairybell - Prosartes hookeri var. oregana (previously Disporium hookeri)
  • Jewelweed - Impatiens capensis
  • Miner's Lettuce - Claytonia perfoliata
  • Muliflora rose - Rosa multiflora
  • Self-heal - Prunella vulgaris
  • Sessile trillium - Trillium chlporopetalum
  • Siberian Miner's Lettuce - Claytonia sibirica
  • Star-flowered false Somomon's-seal - Smilacina stellata
  • Stinging Nettle - Urtica dioica
  • Wavy Bittercress - Cardamine flexuosa
  • Western Buttercup - Ranunculus occidentalis
  • Western Skunk Cabbage - Lysichiton americanus
  • Western Trillium - Trillium ovatum
  • Western Yellow Oxalis - Oxalis suksdorfi
  • White fawn lily - Erythronium oregonum
  • Yarrow - Achillea millefolium
  • Youth-On-Age - Tolmiea menziesii

 

Fungi

  • Red Pimple Fungus - Nectria cinnabarina
  • Bracket Fungi
  • Jelly Fungus - Dacrymyces palmatus

 

Other Vegetation

  • Licorice Fern - Polypodium glycyrrhiza
  • Staghorn Lichen - Letharia vulpina
  • Sword Fern - Polystichum munitum
  • Lichen - Usnea

 

Minerals

 

Found Items

  • blow-up doll face
  • old homestead & associated refuse
  • barb wire

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Many fish stores will do a water test for the home aquarist for free. Some charge a few bucks for a more detailed analysis. You could call around and see what you can get done and what kind of detail they will give. Some places just tell you your levels are ok for pet fish, and some will give you the details without extra charge. Depends on the store.

 

Some things home fish kits can test for:

pH level (can vary by time of day)

NitrAte (final result after bacterias remove Ammonia and NitrIte. Some bacterias exist which remove nitrAte, but are only found in oxygen free enviroments and not typically in a home fish tank)

GH and KH (test once in a while)

copper levels (test once in a while)

 

The above I have used regularly, liquid forms where you gotta add drops. Fish forums around the net recommend these types for accuracy and believe the paper strips are just to prone to error.

 

Iron levels (I have heard varied reports on accuracy and I havent used it myself)

phosphates (I havent used this one so I dont know how good it is)

 

Things that could also be tested for include:

Ammonia

NitrItes

but I dont know that any would show up due to bio factors that SHOULD negate these things. I have used these tests and find them very accurate (again liquid drops form).

 

Pet smart and Petco will match online prices for kits. BigAlsOnline is a favorite and I have gotten some of these tests for as little as $4 via price matching locally.

 

I would recommend various tests on different days to get an average water quality. Things that can alter averages include rains, droughts, etc.

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Many fish stores will do a water test for the home aquarist for free.

 

 

Some things home fish kits can test for:

 

pH level (can vary by time of day)

 

NitrAte (final result after bacterias remove Ammonia and NitrIte. Some bacterias exist which remove nitrAte, but are only found in oxygen free enviroments and not typically in a home fish tank)

 

GH and KH (test once in a while)

 

copper levels (test once in a while)

 

 

...I would recommend various tests on different days to get an average water quality. Things that can alter averages include rains, droughts, etc.

 

 

§ Water samples...check.:rolleyes: How much should I collect, and will I need to collect multiple small samples or just one aggregate & divide later?

 

 

§ Other equipment going with: GPS; compass; folding shovel; variety of plastic bags; video camera; field notebook; Dora says, "say backpack!"...backpack; staff; Audubon bird ID field book; Audubon rock ID field book...

 

 

I don't see any evidence yet of trails, and from both the aerial view and my drive-by, the park appears densely vegetated. I won't bear any surprise to find it marshy either, given the stream size & location. From the parking lot across the road, I measured an elevation on my GPS receiver of 196 feet. :rotfl:

 

 

PS Know any clever field methods to estimate GPM (Gallons Per Minute)water flow?

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§ Water samples...check.:eek2: How much should I collect, and will I need to collect multiple small samples or just one aggregate & divide later?

 

§ Other equipment going with: GPS; compass; folding shovel; variety of plastic bags; video camera; field notebook; Dora says, "say backpack!"...backpack; staff; Audubon bird ID field book; Audubon rock ID field book...

 

I don't see any evidence yet of trails, and from both the aerial view and my drive-by, the park appears densely vegetated. I won't bear any surprise to find it marshy either, given the stream size & location. From the parking lot across the road, I measured an elevation on my GPS receiver of 196 feet. :tea:

 

PS Know any clever field methods to estimate GPM (Gallons Per Minute)water flow?

 

Each test takes about 2-3 teaspoons of water (tests vary from 3 mL to 10mL). You would want all the sample from the same site, but you may want multiple samples for different water settings (creek, pond, lake, entering park, leaving park, etc) at least for an initial analysis.

 

How about adding a tape measure to tools taken?

Maybe a butterfly net?

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Each test takes about 2-3 teaspoons of water (tests vary from 3 mL to 10mL). You would want all the sample from the same site, but you may want multiple samples for different water settings (creek, pond, lake, entering park, leaving park, etc) at least for an initial analysis.

 

 

How about adding a tape measure to tools taken?

 

Maybe a butterfly net?

 

 

Roger Wilco... 25 foot Stanley & a 6 inch rule in the bag. :esmoking: I try with all my might to resist pack-ratting these days, but the little hot-sauce bottles I cleaned & saved are now justified and in the bag as well. :esmoking:

 

 

Always in my pocket, a pen-knife, space-pen, whistle, pen-light, and a pocket magnifying glass. Added also to the bag, the old eye-piece I use as a loupe. I have no butterfly net, but I have a small tobacco can in the bag to hold any bugs.

 

 

If you go again to your favorite map,

 

45º 38' 50" N

 

122º 27' 37.35" W

 

you see South across the road from Lechtenberg Park a couple of parking lots. The most Easterly lot is a golf-course, the most Westerly a new trailhead for what they have named the Lacamas Heritage Trail. This trail follows Burnt Bridge Creek back to its source at Lacamas Lake. I was a bit put off when I pulled in the other day to confront numerous signs warning it was a 'High Crime Area' and to remove valuables and lock vehicles. :bounce: If I end up going by auto rather than walking, I think I'll just have someone drop me off.

 

 

:esmoking: :cup:

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Sounds like a fun idea!

 

§The pH should be monitored over time and after rainy/dry events/seasons. This will give you a range.

 

§I'd recommend taking a write-in-the-rain field-book and a pencil. This way you will not be stopped by rain or mist, or accidentally dropping your field-book in the river. (I dropped our GPS unit in a stream today...still works thankfully) :cup:

 

You might also consider taking a list of invasive plant species with you, if you are not familiar with all the invasives in your area.

 

For the stream itself, I'd suggest measuring a stretch of channel and classifying the stream from there. Toss a twig in the stream-flow. Time it across a measured distance (throw it a little upstream of your start point so it has time to build up to speed) and you have a good basis (ft/s or m/s) for an estimated GPM (given some conversion). You will also need to estimate volume. Without getting into the river and taking some measurements, this can get tricky.

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Sounds like a fun idea!

§The pH should be monitored over time and after rainy/dry events/seasons. This will give you a range.

 

If I have a positive experience the first time, this is a distinct possibility. :esmoking:

 

§I'd recommend taking a write-in-the-rain field-book and a pencil. This way you will not be stopped by rain or mist, or accidentally dropping your field-book in the river. (I dropped our GPS unit in a stream today...still works thankfully) :esmoking:

 

Will have to go with paper for now. My field book is rather wrinkly as it is from previous expeditions in the NW mizzle. I carry a pencil and a space-pen.

 

You might also consider taking a list of invasive plant species with you, if you are not familiar with all the invasives in your area.

 

Acknowledged. I have the Clark County Weed Control Board page bookmarked somewhere. I had in mind to be on the lookout for hedera (ivy) as it is because the park is just 4 miles from the Columbia River & the forested banks are seriously infested with it.

 

For the stream itself, I'd suggest measuring a stretch of channel and classifying the stream from there. Toss a twig in the stream-flow. Time it across a measured distance (throw it a little upstream of your start point so it has time to build up to speed) and you have a good basis (ft/s or m/s) for an estimated GPM (given some conversion). You will also need to estimate volume. Without getting into the river and taking some measurements, this can get tricky.

 

Thank you! Perfect! Depending on the type of banks I find, my 25 foot steel Stanley tape may allow me to take stand-off measurements of depth & breadth.

 

To my kit & kaboodle I have added field glasses, reading glasses, Leatherman Wave tool & machete. :esmoking: :cup:

 

Addendum: Find attached a list of the vascular plants in the county.

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Acknowledged. I have the Clark County Weed Control Board page bookmarked somewhere. I had in mind to be on the lookout for hedera (ivy) as it is because the park is just 4 miles from the Columbia River & the forested banks are seriously infested with it.

 

Polygonum cuspidatum (Japanese Knotweed) is another big one to be on the lookout for, though I wouldn't recommend removing it as it requires a lot of digging and on-going maintenance (or a healthy dose of chemicals). Notifying the weed control board of a siting is a good idea.

 

Thank you! Perfect! Depending on the type of banks I find, my 25 foot steel Stanley tape may allow me to take stand-off measurements of depth & breadth.

 

This is a cool link:

How streamflow is measured: USGS Water Science

 

To my kit & kaboodle I have added field glasses, reading glasses, Leatherman Wave tool & machete. :esmoking: :cup:

 

I meant to add machete in my last post... :esmoking:

Do you have a stopwatch?

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Polygonum cuspidatum (Japanese Knotweed) is another big one to be on the lookout for, though I wouldn't recommend removing it as it requires a lot of digging and on-going maintenance (or a healthy dose of chemicals). Notifying the weed control board of a siting is a good idea.

 

This is a cool link:

 

How streamflow is measured: USGS Water Science

 

I meant to add machete in my last post... :esmoking:

 

Do you have a stopwatch?

 

I won't be doing any weeding on my initial survey. :esmoking:

 

Excellent link! Just what I needed. Takk. :esmoking:

 

Stopwatch...check.

 

I have been examining all the maps I have and it appears I mistook the particulars of the stream through the park. It is not Burnt Bridge Creek, but rather Fifth Plain Creek and it does not flow out of Lacamas Lake but rather flows into it. Given all the pasture & farmland upstream then, I won't be surprised to find high nitrogen levels from runoff. As I recall the lake has regular algae blooms attributed to such runoff.

 

Also it occured to me to make a note of trash & homeless camps if any. So it goes. :cup:

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Thank you! Perfect! Depending on the type of banks I find, my 25 foot steel Stanley tape may allow me to take stand-off measurements of depth & breadth.

 

 

Just measure out a full step (or a couple) at home, then count your paces. Should be close enough for an basic idea of the distance.

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You might consider bringing a sound recorder of some sort. You can use this to capture your thoughts w/o need for a pen (like an investigator).

 

Also, what would be my preference, the audio recording can be used to imprint the sounds of the nature you experience whilst questing through nature, allowing you to re-experience the setting more easily at your liesure from other locales... The sound of the birds, and the wind, and the streams... That's what we should all have in our living rooms.

 

 

:esmoking: :cup:

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Oh, just a thought...

 

You may be able to spot the old homestead area. From there, you might be able to get an idea of how long ago the place was used via tree growth. For example:

 

A state park near my moms is several old farms that were added to the park in the 70s. Some of the places were bought out, some were long abandoned, some burned down. When traveling over the parkland, you can spot the old farmsteads by the tendancy for box elders and elms (in this area) to grow in a straight line along the old foundation walls. The straight lines of similar aged trees look out of place in the rest of the landscape. You can sometimes find old property/fence lines the same way, especially the corners. It is the trees growing within the former borders, say within 15-20 feet of the old property lines that give you an approximation on how long a land has been idle. Lots of trees around here will shoot up runners within a couple of years of being left alone. I know there are ways to measure the trunk and calculate age, but I dont know the exact formula.

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You might consider bringing a sound recorder of some sort. You can use this to capture your thoughts w/o need for a pen (like an investigator).

 

Also, what would be my preference, the audio recording can be used to imprint the sounds of the nature you experience whilst questing through nature, allowing you to re-experience the setting more easily at your liesure from other locales... The sound of the birds, and the wind, and the streams... That's what we should all have in our living rooms.

 

:spin: :esmoking:

 

Roger Wilco...adding microcassette recorder to kit. Also there's a microphone in the camera and I thought I might narrate a few shots.

 

Cedars

 

Oh, just a thought...

 

You may be able to spot the old homestead area. From there, you might be able to get an idea of how long ago the place was used via tree growth.

 

Roger Wilco... Will keep an eye out for ruins and try not to fall into an old shitter. :angel2: :bounce: :esmoking: I also plan to add a folding saw so I can't collect some wood samples for dendrochronological analysis. I have found that by setting the scanner to 1200 ppi I can get outstanding detail for ring counting as well as leaf ID.

 

Rain forecast for tomorrow, Sunday is iffy, but I'm hot to trot rain or shine. :cup:

 

PS More map scrutiny and I see folks call this part of the stream system Lacamas Creek. :smart: Mon dieu! :esmoking:

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:hyper: Can I go off on a tangent or what! :eek: :eek_big: :hyper:

 

My small backpack is full-up and weighing in at a bouncing 20 pounds. This doesn't include the books, video camera, uhhh...it doesn't include another 10 pounds or so. :doh: I think I'll consult the books on the return to the lab. No worries. I will sling the small pack on my packframe and use a few stuff sacks to hold the rest of the gear and any samples collected. The packframe has a good hip-belt so it will take a lot off my back.

 

That you are smiling to yourself at the imagined sight of it :) , is enough to disencourage me from making it a part of the unclassified archive. :photos: :eek: :D :turtle:

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Just returned from 3 hours of exploring Lechtenberg Park...in short it is both beautiful and brutal. No trails, just forest and marsh. I have video of forest and birds, a few plant samples, a branch cutting for dendrochronology, tree measurtements (this place hasn't been disturbed in a hundred years as near I can tell), ...oh, and blisters the size of 1/2 dollars.

 

Give me a few hours to decompress and start organizing materials and then I'll start uploading data. What a place! Is that why they call it climax forest? :eek: ;) :hyper: :turtle:

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Give me a few hours to decompress and start organizing materials and then I'll start uploading data. What a place! Is that why they call it climax forest? :eek: ;) ;) :turtle:

 

Man...it's gonna take me a couple days to put this all together. :eek: :eek: :hihi: Here's a short video of a momma duck & her duckettes, and a tree felled by beaver :hyper:

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OyPQF_9G5cw

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Okaly dokaly :hihi: . Lechtenberg Park is 40 acres of some of the wildest terrain I have hiked in a good while. ;) At this time of year, it is predominately swampy with some ponds near the Northern boundary. I went in at the SW corner, and walked the Western boundary to the NW corner. As I was just outside the fence, the terrain was predominately grasses and the ground very wet.

 

I retraced my route back to a fenceline and headed East to find the creek. This land has not been disturbed to any great degree in perhaps a hundred years. Large Oak, Oregon Ash, and Doug Fir predominate, and I measured one Oak in the interior at 32" diameter and 100" circumference at chest height.

 

I recorded tracks in the mud of Elk, what I think is Racoon, and an unidentified set. I sawed a slab from a fallen 4" branch to scan for counting the rings. I did get a water sample from the creek, but no water flow measure other than a short video clip. (By the time I reached the creek the blisters had set in on my heels :eek: :hyper: )

 

I have some plant samples to scan and lots o' photos to prepare. Here's another short video of a duck as yet unidentified. >>> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IMrSQrEaH0Q

 

I didn't take my tripod because of the weight and it's a clumsy fit in the pack (I left the pack-frame & went with just the rucksack); I won't leave it behind the next trip and sorry for jiggly vids. :turtle:

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