Clear Creek Greenway Field Trip, November 12, 2023

by Laurie & Don BurkPosted onField Trips
On Clear Creek Trail, over the creek. D. Mandel.
On Clear Creek Trail on the November 12, 2023, hike. Photo © Doug Mandel.

Nine enthusiastic hikers showed up for the joint Shasta Chapter CNPS–Shasta Environmental Alliance field trip along Clear Creek on what turned out to be a very warm mid-November afternoon.

The group at the gorge. K. Urlie.
Our fun group on the November 12, 2023, hike along Clear Creek. From left to right: Yo Sadohara, Doug Mandel, David Ledger, Laurie Burk, Don Burk, Paula Crumpton, Brigitte Robertson, Shirley Martin, and Kathy Urlie. Photo taken on Kathy Urlie’s camera by a kind stranger.

We hiked upcreek along a portion of the trail that Shasta Environmental Alliance has adopted and recently cleaned up a bit. Good thing, too, because some of the encroaching star-thistle was head high!

Slender snakecotton infestation. D. Burk.
Speaking of star-thistle, slender snakecotton, Froelichia gracilis, is another, albeit recently introduced, noxious weed. We were stunned and dismayed to see how widely it has infested the Clear Creek Gorge Overlook parking area—all of the pink stems in the photo are slender snakecotton. (BLM, take note!)
Photo taken November 12, 2023, by Don Burk.

We hiked for a couple of miles upstream, crossing Clear Creek Road at one point, and veering off to the northwest to see some silverback fern (Pentagramma pallida), which is very uncommon in Shasta County. To get to the fern, we passed by some gold-mining equipment that is apparently still in use, despite its derelict appearance.

Mining equipment. D. Mandel.
Still-functional mining equipment along the trail, on the November 12, 2023, hike. Photo © Doug Mandel.

David stopped along the trail now and then to point out and discuss various botanical wonders: oracle oaks, common vs. whiteleaf manzanita, galls on sandbar willow, and much more. We were fortunate to have retired wildlife biologist Paula Crumpton along, who really knows her birds! She identified a black phoebe by sight, and an American dipper in the creek riffles by its canary-song, but we all could identify the turkey vultures circling above—over 16 of them! Paula was also able to explain the grating on an adit: to protect a good roosting place for bats.

Grated adit. D. Burk.
Grated mine adit allows bats protected roosting space. Photo taken November 12, 2023, by Don Burk.

Back at the trailhead, we were treated to the spectacle of salmon creating and protecting their redds, the males vying for dominance, sometimes locking jaws in battle. Such excitement!

Watching salmon in Clear Creek. D. Burk.
Enthralled with battling salmon in Clear Creek, at the gorge overlook.
Photo taken November 12, 2023, by Don Burk.

Many thanks to David Ledger for organizing and leading this very fun 4-mile hike, and to everyone who came, bringing with them their quest for knowledge and love of nature. Below is a short slideshow of just a few of the cool things we saw on this hike. Enjoy! ~Laurie & Don Burk