Putting the Community in the Community Forest Story by William Dietrich
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ometimes the most effective conservation occurs close to home. Parks, greenbelts, and Land Trust conservation easements are encouraging examples. So is the four-decade-long quest by a citizen’s organization known as Friends of the Forest to protect more than 2,000 acres adjacent to Anacortes.
Island city one of best ratios of forest-topopulation in the nation. And thanks to internet publicity, it increasingly draws visitors from five counties, including the population centers to the south. At the base of Mount Erie—the
History
It’s a woods and lakes mecca that has become a recreational refuge during Covid-19. The community lands are a marvel of conifers, maple, and alder. There Little Cranberry Lake. Photo courtesy of Friends of the Forest are quiet lakes and plenty of wildlife: deer and river prominent 1,273-foot peak that crowns otters, osprey and owls. Bald knobs Anacortes Community Forest Lands— bloom with wildflowers in the spring. the number of parked cars increased Lily pads blossom in beaver ponds. about 150 percent in 2020 compared The preserve gives the Fidalgo 34
The heartbeat of Cascadia
to previous years, said Assistant Parks Director Bob Vaux. With the pandemic keeping recreationists closer to home, the preserve has become a microcosm of forest issues nationwide. It is avidly used not just by hikers but by bikers, horse riders, paddle boarders, the occasional motorcyclist, and legions of dog-walkers.
This community crown jewel didn’t just happen. Early city watershed lands were supplemented by decades of generous land donations. The result is two big blocks of woods that stretch from Mount Erie north almost to Guemes Channel and encompass Whistle, Heart, and Little Cranberry Lakes. More than fifty miles of trails wind through the mostly second-growth forest, which also has a >>> Go to AdventuresNW.com
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