Salmon group buys Big Beef Creek property

Matt Baide | Jan 20, 20220

Courtesy of Hood Canal Salmon Enhancement Group count

The wetlands at Big Beef Creek.

The Hood Canal Salmon Enhancement Group has purchased 50 acres of the Big Beef Creek property.

HCSEG now has 302 acres of habitat at Big Beef Creek, located near Seabeck in Kitsap County, across Hood Canal from Brinnon. A creek nearby is called Little Beef Creek. The name comes from cows pastured in the nearby upland areas.

It was not easy to acquire the land, according to HCSEG Executive Director Mendy Harlow. The property was previously owned by the University of Washington with a research facility on the land that the HCSEG worked with them for years.

The HCSEG had to write multiple grants to purchase the property and partnered with Forterra, a land trust that operates in Washington, to assist in purchasing the entire property. HCSEG wrote grants in 2018 to acquire three-quarters of the money needed to buy the property in 2019. Forterra received a bridge loan through the Russell Family Foundation to purchase the remaining property, and the HCSEG just paid off the loan to fully acquire the land by obtaining more grant money in December.

The land is vital to salmon habitat restoration Harlow said. With the fast ferry system to get from Kitsap County to Seattle in 30 minutes and the ability for people to work from home, the county is growing, which means protecting land from development is important.

"Protecting that 302 acres on Big Beef Creek is important for the wildlife that live in the area because they now have a stronghold on protective habitat where they can go to for shelter and food and protection from either their predators or from humans," Harlow said. "It's also a very unique watershed in that it's a Kitsap peninsula lowland stream, so it's a spring-fed stream, it's not a snow-fed stream like you see in the Olympic mountains. True, we do get some snow in the lowland areas like we saw over the last month or so in Mason County as well, but that snowpack is very short-lived. The primary source of water in those streams is from springs and as we see more and more areas getting developed, those spring-fed streams aren't as good at storing water long term because there's more overland flow...Super important especially to that type of stream environment."

The plan is to hold the land in conservation and develop some passive recreation opportunities. People can go birding there right now. The HCSEG is conducting a feasibility study on the research facility to determine the best use for the facility. There are also opportunities for habitat restoration projects, including a road running through the middle of the lower half-mile of a stream that could be removed.

The restoration effort will take years, according to Harlow. The state Department of Fish and Wildlife has a fish weir at the mouth of Big Beef Creek where they count all of the adults coming in and all of the juveniles that are leaving.

"We would be happy to see Big Beef Creek at its full restoration potential, I would say within the next decade," Harlow said.

If you've never seen Big Beef Creek, Harlow describes it as gorgeous. It is the best time to go bird watching due the variety of birds you'll spot and the lack of tree leaves that normally obstruct certain views. Beavers are easy to spot this time of year. Old Conifer trees are within the property and protected by the land acquisition.

"We're happy to be able to protect it for that reason itself," Harlow said. "It's a beautiful area for sure."

For more information, visit https://www.pnwsalmoncenter.org/big-beef-creek-and-estuary