Invasive Knapweeds Of Washington

Day 284: While driving along one of my accustomed routes in South Hill yesterday, my eye recognized flecks of lavender on a leggy, three-foot diameter plant with sparse pale greyish-green foliage. By the time I had uttered the words, "Dammit! Was that Knapweed?" the car had travelled about 100 yards, and I found myself looking at a monoculture covering a quarter-acre of open field. I couldn't stop safely, so continued on to finish my shopping, and on the way back, I parked a little ways away and made a patrol on foot. I was horrified at what I found. Although the quarter acre was the most densely covered by this invasive, I could see mounds of it throughout an acre or more of county/private property. I suspect it has been there for years, and I never noticed it because I never caught it in the flowering stage. I took coordinates and filed a report with the Invasive Plant Council, although with the Knapweeds listed as "Class B" weeds, the landowners are not required to control the infestation. It is precisely that short-sighted thinking which makes the campaign against invasive species so frustrating. Education is currently the most important tool we have to stop the spread of Class B invasives. More information and free pamphlets can be obtained through the Washington State Noxious Weed Control Board. Click the "Resources" tab.

Spotted Knapweed (Centaurea stoebe) is the second species of Knapweed I have found in Pierce County in 2016. Earlier this year, I was conducting a training for the IPC on the Bud Blancher Trail and discovered Meadow Knapweed, a related species. To date, the Town of Eatonville has not seen fit to control it, and when I checked on it two weeks ago, it was beginning to go to seed. The two species can be differentiated by looking at the tips of the bracts under a magnifying glass if you're curious (the fringes are "fringier" on C. jacea x nigra), but in any case, any Knapweed you happen to find should be regarded as the enemy.

Paddling Tilton River Canyon

Day 298: I can't tell this story without prefacing it with a rant against Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife's extortionate fee system, because it very nearly ended this adventure before it could begin. When I arrived at the "public" boat ramp (I use the word "public" with tongue firmly in cheek), I came up against a sign advising me that if I wanted to launch my little craft, it would cost me an additional $7. The extra charge was tacked onto the $35 I'd paid for my Discover Pass, a permit which apparently only allows me to sit in my car in the parking lot looking wistfully at the water. This is the second time I've encountered a surcharge when I had nothing but a $20 in my purse and was not inclined to backtrack 10-30 miles to get change. In the first place, I resent having to have a Discover Pass and/or a Northwest Forest Pass to enter the woods half a mile on either side of my home. Fortunately, I am exempt from also having to purchase a National Parks pass, or I would be restricted entirely to pavement. Luckily, I was able to track down a semi-official person in the State Park campground who pointed me at the "day use" area where I could launch my kayak free of charge, although I'd have to wheel it about 300 yards. Wheel it I did, bump-bump-bump down the concrete steps at the swimming beach. That 300 yards was harder on my shoulders than the nine miles of kayaking which followed. As for WDFW, they have got the last cent out of me they'll ever see, except for my fishing licence. The Discover Pass is a masterpiece of false advertising, and I won't make the mistake of purchasing it again.

Now for the trip...I'd heard from one of our Park volunteers that the Tilton River Canyon was a fantastic kayak trip. I had seen it from above while walking the trail, and it did indeed look very enticing with its fern-covered walls and milky blue-green water. However, walking the trail gave me little sense of how far up the river I might be able to go. I expected to get quite a bit farther than I did. After being forced to get out and walk on three occasions, about two miles up, I hit the final obstacle: a small rapids I couldn't pass without portaging the 'yak, and I could see another larger one a tenth of a mile further on.

Upon turning back, my adventure took on a different mission when I noticed Spotted Knapweed (a "hit list" invasive) on the river bar. I had my GPSr with me, so I put in to take coordinates and photos so that I could report it to the Invasive Plant Council. While trying to determine the extent of the affected area, I also discovered Buddleia, Tansy Ragwort and acres of Japanese Knotweed. When I got home, I mapped the infestation. It's all on State Park land. The one good note I can inject here is that the Tansy was being devoured by Cinnabar Moth caterpillars, a biologic control introduced a decade or two ago which has had a good success rate (but maybe not here).

Because I'd had to turn back earlier than expected, I was feeling rather disappointed. I made a couple of loops around the island opposite the swimming beach, put in at a 20' x 30' knob of rock and dirt in the middle of the river and had lunch, and then decided to do it all over again! Back up to the rapids I went, and on the second pass, I was able to find a channel which didn't require getting out and dragging the 'yak through the shallows. I also saw some whopping big fish, and was kicking myself for having left the rod behind. Oh, well. I'll have another chance before my present Discover Pass expires, and now I know how to get around that stinking surcharge. $7 just to put a kayak in the water? Get real.