Working With Lincoln County Parks

 Yesterday, Jim Welch and I spent the day touring various county parks with Kelly Perry, Lincoln County Parks Operations Supervisor.  We installed a duck box, scoped out other locations for future installations, and ended the day visiting Dawn Harris, U.S. Fish and Wildlife visitor services manager.  She has an amazing, bird friendly home in Toledo.

Our first stop was the mouth of the Salmon River at Knight's Park north of Lincoln City. Kelly and SWIFTY member Kurt, who met us there, are pictured.  We ruled out this area because Wood Ducks shun salt water, and this was a tidal stream.

It was on to driving up the Siletz River.  This park was beautiful, but the river here is tidal.  Back in the car.

We found a good location at Brown's Park further up the river.  Kelly and I are driving in a T-Post that will help stabilize the pole the duck box is mounted on.

Bolting on the duck box.

Tadah!  Kelly and Jim.  Kelly has an abundance of positive energy and has formed relationships with the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians to restore wetlands that benefit flood control.  Her other duties are cleaning up messes created by her predecessors, staffing, working with multiple agencies, and getting grants.

Dawn Harris showed us one of her many duck boxes surrounding her home.  They all get occupied, mostly by Wood Ducks, but also some Hooded Mergansers.  We learned a lot from her in our short visit.