February 2015 Headwater Highlights

Water Walking? 

DeKalb County is readying to build a connection from one side of the South Fork of Peachtree Creek to the other near Clairmont Road.

Sketch from DeKalb plans.

Just don't call the connection a bridge. It will be stepping stones.  This week Facilities Project Manager Bob Sims reported the long-wanted crossing linking neighbors on the Superior Avenue side of the creek to the library and tennis center beyond the old Waterworks on the other side will be sent out for construction bids in March. 

Valerie Boss, leading the effort to add native plants and people to the Ira B. Melton park, broke the good news to the Medlock Area Neighborhood Association meeting Friday Feb. 14.

The group pushed the county for low-impact trails and a creek crossing to link hundreds of neighbors to Mason Mill Park.

The master plan on DeKalb's website  shows how it connects to the dog park and comfort facilities. How will this kind of crossing work?

Stones arranged as DeKalb  plans won't block the normal flow of water, and in flood, the steps will be underwater. 

Plans call for 14 3.5 to 4 foot boulders set in the creek bed, rising 6 inches above average water elevation. Gaps between the stones will be no more than 1.5 to 2 feet. Stairs on either bank will let creek lovers get to the stones without eroding the bank. 

Sims' email confirmed the stream crossing re-design is complete, and permitting approval anticipated within two weeks.

 

How do connections begin?

by Sally Sears

I gave Marianne Skeen a ride home from trail building in  Zonolite Park to her house on Superior Avenue near North Decatur Road. She stretched her limber fingers and wondered out loud "What would it be like to be able to walk to the library without having to get on Clairmont Road?  We would have to get through the privet thicket and across the creek somehow. But it could be gorgeous."

That conversation was five years ago. Today the adventurous Marianne is back from navigating the Irrawaddy River in Myanmar, and reflecting on the success of her wish. 

First she invited Conservancy volunteers to tame some of the privet in Ira B. Melton park. We partnered with the neighborhood associations, led by Valerie Boss and heavy Boy Scout involvement. Dozens of work days pruned the maze of trails to an easy to follow loop. Now a native plant entrance welcomes walkers and dogs, off road bikers and children.  And finally, DeKalb County's creek crossing, on stepping stones,  is promised to be "significantly complete" within the year. What else can Marianne Skeen ask for? We're all ears!  We think a trailhead sign and a high-quality well designed trail head is next on her list.

 

A Day On for MLK Day

Sage Hill Kroger's gone and done it again! They provided water, bananas, chips, and granola bars for our MLK volunteer day and fueled SIXTY wonderful volunteers as they restored the Meadow trail. Thanks Manager Bert Bohannan!

How many volunteers does it take to yank a meadow's worth of invading vines? The MLK Holiday found some 70 people from middle school ages on up tossing vines to return the Meadow Loop to its open habitat. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hole in the Ground where a plant used to be

Emory physics professor Jed Brody tends a sturdy new tree.

Late on MLK afternoon, somebody snatched three trees from the ground at the North and South Forks Confluence. The news stirred volunteers to action. Trees Atlanta and two dozen helpers replaced the three lost saplings with big, heavy plants, saving the 30 gallon giant beech for the very spot where the trees were lost.

John Wiley enjoyed the company of a beautifully colored Muscovy Duck for a month, at his home on the South Fork near Clairmont Road. He reports the duck hung out with mallards and a blue heron, dining on wildlife and John's cheerios.

South Fork Board Member Ruthie Taylor Norton is a Live-Work-Play fan, working in Atlanta's city office of sustainability, and playing with kayaks in whitewater everywhere in the Southeast. Last Saturday on the Chattooga she took a seven foot drop, hit a hole and broke her ankle.   We're sending fruit and best wishes for a fast recovery.

January 2015 Headwater Highlights

Getting Along Swimmingly With FISH

Dekalb County Commissioner Jeff Rader, U.S. Fish and Widlife Deputy Refuge Chief Shaun Sanchez, SFC Board Chairman Bob Kerr, SFC Executive Director Sally Sears, and U.S. Fish and Wildlife's Sallie Gentry

This time last year, we were dreaming of a U.S. Fish and Wildlife partnership. By the end of 2014, the partnership became reality when Deputy Refuge Chief Shaun Sanchez came together with Sally and Board Chairman Bob Kerr to sign a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA). We agreed to work together to engage urban communities in an effort to connect people with nature and protect and conserve the South Fork of Peachtree Creek. The regional Refuge program is underway! First on the list is a new Emory University Environmental Studies intern, Diane Ryu. Welcome to the fold Diane!

A Cleveland Ohio native, Diane studied abroad in Namibia and Botswana, igniting a passion for conservation work. She worked with wild mountain gorillas in Rwanda and focused on environmental degradation.

Welcome to Diane Ryu, our new intern!

Diane's work with the South Fork will explore urban wildlife refuges. She'll be directed by colleagues from the US Fish and Wildlife Service plus the Greening Youth Foundation.

We are beyond thrilled by this partnership and can hardly wait to see the fantastic impact it has on restoring the creek and building trails that bring us all a little closer to nature. 

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Life In An Urban Watershed
By Christine Van Roosen - volunteer

View fullsize

Christine at the confluence point, next to the South Fork. It was 8-10ft higher than normal due to an extended rain event

I live just up the hill from the north fork of Peachtree Creek. In 2009, I stood on a nearby bridge looking down as the creek rushed past, spreading far outside its banks as trunks and trash came spilling downstream in a seething mass. Little did I know then that just a couple of miles downstream, houses on the creek’s floodplain were almost under water.

As a river and coastal kayaker, I’m fascinated by rivers and their courses, navigability, health, and challenges.  I’ve ranged throughout the Southeast on long kayaking trips in remote and not-so-remote areas. But I never thought about what happens to the creek in my own backyard on its journey to the Chattahoochee.

My eyes were opened on a South Fork Conservancy tour this month, just after a massive rain event. As I watched the normally lazy creek flash by at 1900 cubic feet per second (a Class 2 creek), I began to fully understand how important it is to constantly battle erosion and effectively control storm water overflows via carefully engineered technique. Structures like the “upside-down bridge” on the Confluence Trail mitigate damage in major storms like this one. I was also intrigued by the archaeological sites so close to the river, the carefully planted stands of chestnut trees and indigenous plants, the signs of beavers at work and the birding opportunities that draw avid birders to the area. It was encouraging to meet neighbors and friends of the river out and about in the damp, exploring and telling stories about river-related events. Perhaps most importantly, I was happy to learn more about my “wild” neighborhood.

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Spotting something special on the South Fork. From Left to Right: Ellen Miller, Eric Bowles, Teresa Mayes, Stella Wissner, John Mayes, Sally Sears

Winging It With The Birders

A generous round of silent applause for my friends in the Atlanta Audubon Chapter.  Generous because you shared your affection for our downy, rufous and nutty friends up and down the South Fork. Silent so we don't scare the birds. And Applause for all your tolerance for my wild binocular swings.

My first ever bird count began in a misting sunrise at Zonolite Park January 3, 2015. Four robins waited for me on a wire above the Motorcar Studio next to the Soto Zen Center. Recognizing the first birds made me dangerously confident. By noon we had  39 different species of birds, many of them brown and small. My boots were muddy  and I was chastened by how much I did NOT know.

Favorite birds? Ellen Miller our leader spotted a brown creeper. She jumped up and down. It was a species first for Stella Wissner.  Eric Bowles confirmed it circling a giant tree, like a barbershop pole twisting up the trunk.  Except the tree is brown, the bird is brown and it creeps.Three of our best birders were celebrating.

Teresa Mayes' favorite was the red-shouldered hawk. It flew out of the woods across the new meadow cleaned up from decades of asbestos contamination. American Crows heard the hawk and started protesting with loud caws. The pond held ten green Mallard Ducks, which joined the protest. The hawk sat like the king of all he surveyed and took the ruckus as applause.My favorite were a pair of Great Blue Herons. One flapped upstream toward Herbert Taylor Park. The other looked us over coolly and minced away.

"The most dangerous animal out here," said Eric Bowles, as cool as the heron. No kidding? Fatal?   "People trying to rescue an injured heron get a bill through their skull and die."   A shiver ran through my binoculars.   Yikes! The birds were here first. I'm the newcomer on the creek. Carol Bush liked the Kinglets, ruby and golden crowned. Big name, tiny bird, but lots of energy.

Bird counting at Zonolite Park

Eric Bowles kept a wildlife tally of other species. "We ended the day with 7 deer – 5 at Zonolite and 2 at Cheshire Farm.  We also saw a sleeping raccoon high in a dead tree on the Confluence Trail.   The highlight for me was at the very end of the day on the Cheshire Farm Trail.  Not 25 feet off I-85 at Lindbergh a red shouldered hawk was carrying and feeding on a pigeon – with the Cooper’s hawk that originally caught the pigeon nearby."

Now let me ask all the Atlantans who drive on Lindbergh Drive every week. That's about a hundred thousand motorists.  Do you know what's for supper on the Creek?  Alos, a final question for the Audubon tally: If two hawks are eating a pigeon, does the pigeon count? 

Final tally for the Audubon Bird Count on the South Fork on January third: 43 species, 414 birds.

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City Innovation Invites Questions From The Public

Good Idea? Atlanta city hall wants ideas to make money for the city, using park and greenspace real estate as a possible source.Mayor Reed's office wonders if ideas like Citi Bike in New York, sponsored by CitiBank, would work in Atlanta. Maybe internet hotspots sponsored by an internet provider in exchange for a large sign on an internet tower?

Park and greenspace backers and their volunteers are digesting the idea. Some see this as a great way to afford extra amenities for parks and greenspace users. Others are wary of commercializing precious green sanctuaries. What do you think?

The deadline for Information requests is Feb. 4, 2014. You can find the Request for Information form as well as additional info here

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Volunteers Lead, We Follow In 2015

The group down the many priorities into these and then assigned them to various categories

Last night, a remarkable and invested cross section of the South Fork Community gathered to help us figure out what 2015 will look like. Using 2014 as both an example and a lesson, these 14 neighbors, outdoor enthusiasts, and board members put their heads together to determine organizational priorities. They worked through four phases during the session starting with identifying priorities and ending with tasks that accomplish them.

See the picture to the right? The group closest to us, composed of (from left to right) Anita Brown, Tom Tomaka, Chris Nelson, and Diane Ryu, worked so carefully and considerately that they were always the last group to finish an activity. Further down the table you see Sally Sears, Van Hall, and Christine Van Roosen having a lively discussion about the applicability of their ideas. Martha Porter Hall, Margaret Stewart, and Paul Looper sat at the end of the table fairly discussing each and every idea in front of them (see picture below). You won’t be able to see the folks deliberating from the comfy couches in the living room. Rich Sussman, Bob Scott, Barbara Baggerman, and Dave Kaufman’s discussions were full of jokes and laughter and they got the job done in comfort and style.

Margaret Stewart holding a priority her group was discussing

So what did they decide? In first place, Outreach- get the word out so more people will volunteer and support this vision. 2nd Place, Trail Maintenance- keep those trails clean, open, and walkable. Third, continue working to restore native plants and eradicate invasive plants. Finally, capital improvements, like signs and bike racks, are highly desired along the trail.

Now, we hand off not one, but 14 torches to these wonderful volunteers and work with them as they lead many of these events and outreach efforts, accomplishing tasks they themselves identified in the visioning session. We can see the path glowing brightly ahead. Can you?

December Headwater Highlights

 

Calling All Birders To The Trail

Saturday, January 3, 2015, the famous Christmas Bird Count of the Audubon Society for the first time will include South Fork Trails. The annual count braving cold weather to number birds and species in the name of science brings hundreds of binocular-toting bird lovers outdoors.

Join us Jan 3! Photo Atlanta Audubon Society

For decades, bird counters ignored much of Intown Atlanta, under the theory there could be few interesting birds or numbers to count because of concrete and lack of green space.  Two years ago, Atlanta Audubon  president Joy Carter and others brought the CBC  back within the perimeter. Her skill at encouraging volunteers with modest bird knowledge to join the fun re-invigorated the Society's annual count.  Veteran naturalist Charles Seabrook interviewed Joy  for a story in Saturday's Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

"...last year’s intown CBC results — 84 species — showed that Atlanta, although buried under thousands of acres of asphalt and concrete, still has ample green space to provide habitats for a variety of birds. “We’re hoping, of course, for more species this year, and perhaps a surprise or two,” Carter said.

Read Charles Seabrook's entire story 

In May 2014 Joy Carter toured South Fork trails with us and identified 25 species in just ninety minutes of walking. Why not come along in January and see how it compares to Joy’s May list?

Canada Goose, Mallard, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Downy Woodpecker, Blue Jay, crow sp., Carolina Chickadee, Tufted Titmouse, Brown-headed Nuthatch, Carolina Wren, Golden-crowned Kinglet, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Eastern Bluebird, American Robin, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Pine Warbler, Eastern Towhee, Chipping Sparrow, Song Sparrow, White-throated Sparrow, Northern Cardinal, American Goldfinch, House Sparrow

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Illegal Creek Dumping Hurts the South Fork 

By Sally Sears

The week before Thanksgiving I was driving home when my cell phone rang. It was Ansley Abraham, sounding urgent. "Sally, somebody's been illegally dumping in the South Fork," he told me. By the time I spared Atlanta drivers my inattention by pulling over, he had emailed me photos of what he found.  I opened up the files carefully.

It was hard to believe my eyes. Big concrete slabs lay at awkward angles, slicing into the creek at Zonolite, on DeKalb County public land, across the beach from Zonolite Park. The pile of large pieces included fat chunks of broken concrete.  "What in the world?" I asked him.

Now I know Ansley Abraham is one great creek stewards, often walking miles up and down the banks in a single day after a rain. He's found some of the most beautiful pieces of native American pottery during his hikes, plus birds, unusual trees and rare human beings, too. But this human reminder is against the law.

"How did anybody get the concrete there to dump it?" I wondered. Ansley said he saw fresh scars of bulldozer tracks, eating into the fragile bank, leading back into the flood plain by Johnson Road, toward Noble Drive and Meadowdale Avenue.

Ansley Abraham ( In profile on the right) shared views on John and Teresa Mayes' terrific artifact collection. Also gathered are other creek collectors  and  SFC friends. 

Neighbors there support in large numbers the idea of connected trails leading from Zonolite Park to the two nearby city of Atlanta parks, Morningside and Herbert Taylor. I figured most would be outraged at someone using the creek as a dumping ground for concrete. 

Soon I emailed the photos to DeKalb County's Natural Resources champion David Butler. He was immediately alert, asking for every scrap of information we could provide. He promised to raise the red flag with state Department of Natural Resources water protection officers.  

The mystery deepened the following week. I walked the creek and saw an old South Fork Friend. He lives within a mile of the illegal dumping. I asked him to inspect the scars from the bulldozer. He did. It seemed to him the tracks lead to a back yard of one of the neighborhood houses.  We passed that information on, too.

Any one up or down the creek who can help identify the culprits? Please email David Butler at DAButler@dekalbcountyga.gov or Sally Sears at Sally@southforkconservancy.org.

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From left to right: Troy Wilson, Migratory Bird Biologist, Debbie Harris, Fish and Wildlife Biologist, Angelou Ezeilo SFC, Sally Sears SFC, Sallie Gentry, Visitor Services Specialist, Haile Macurdy, Fisheries Biologist, Warm Springs National Fish Hatchery, USFWS, Alice Lawrence, Fish and Wildlife Biologist, Cindy Bohn, Fish and Wildlife Biologist 

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Bob The Beaver Returns and This Time, We Love Him

Toothy beaver bite photo by Sallie Gentry, US Fish and Wildlife Service

“He’s baaaaaaaaack!”

Bob Scott led his email with this last week. He didn’t need to say more- we understood. Bob the Beaver and Co. have returned to the Confluence Trail.

A little background:  We were introduced to a fine family of beavers last spring, when they announced their arrival by absconding with some of our hornbeam saplings. Now, we love the presence of wildlife, but we are not  pleased at losing some precious hornbeams. We struck a compromise with the beavers:  Trees Atlanta's Brian Williams taught us how to fence in our most important and expensive new trees & bushes. The non-natives? We left them  up for grabs. After all, a beav’s gotta eat.

By late fall, the return was a surprise. And trail users are keeping a close eye on  beaver-istic  activities on the trail. Last week they relayed surprising (and welcome) news: their new favorite snack seems to be the non-native, invasive Mimosa tree and even some Chinese Privet.

 “It appears the beavers are dragging the saplings and the branches down to the creek, softening the bark, and eating the bark,” reports neighbor Donna Davis. Bob Scott has also continued to update us with their progress, recently informing us that there was “a lot of chomping going on out there.”

Well Beaver buds, this is A-OK with us. Perhaps our furry friends noticed volunteers working tirelessly to push back these invasives and decided they wanted to do their part. Either way, we certainly won’t interfere with this natural invasive removal and Bob the Beaver:  if you’re listening, we’d like to say welcome back! Eat More Privet

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Trash Talk

Michael Montgomery's tireless energy tucked up twelve tires tossed illegally in the creek. Thanks Michael!

Trash is a common topic of conversation in our office. I know, I know- you’re thinking, “Wow, I wish I could talk about trash all day.” True, it is one of those conversations that can just go on and on… and on…and on.  Disposing of litter pulled out of the creek is a major challenge without a clear solution. Especially tires!  What a tricky, tiresome topic. And we know we’re not alone- many of you have reached out to us with your own concerns about disposing of creek and trail litter. When our wonderful volunteers, huffing and puffing, drag tires up from the creek, they are often full of waterlogged dirt, making them heavy and difficult to move. Ideally, removing them from the creek would be the hard part. Well, we’re here to tell you what actually happens when a tire is pulled out of the creek.

Here’s a recent example: volunteers pulled tires out of the creek and left them at the Lindbergh trail entrance. The ideal solution? Pick up by an organization equipped to manage tired removal We know others who have limited success with this approach, many by simply leaving the tires by the road. However, they sometimes end up waiting months for their removal.

In the end, we went to one of our trusty volunteers, Michael Montgomery, who generously lent his morning and truck to the cause by going with us move a batch of 14 tires to Liberty Tire on Huber Street, where we paid $1.25 per tire to recycle them. While we are so grateful to Michael, we know that this a less than ideal solution to an endemic problem.

The good news? More (and free) options are coming soon.  Next month, in January 2015, a boon for tire draggers and battery hoarders alike will open its doors to the public. LiveThrive Atlanta’s Center for Hard To Recycle Materials (CHaRM) will accept a variety of items for recycling and even better, reuse- see the full list here.

“We’re hoping to be open from 9AM to 4PM, six days a week,” says Peggy Whitlow Ratcliffe, who is leading the effort. “But it may end up being less than that- as non-profit, we’ll depend on volunteers.” The center can take up to 10 tires per person for free, anything more than has to stem from a city-approved clean up (authorization the South Fork and CHaRM can assist with).

CHaRM’s first event is one day on January 3 9-4pm- holiday clean up. Why not go and recycle your holiday waste with at their new facility? At this particular event, they will be accepting old electronics, x-mas tree lights, styrofoam, plastic packaging, etc. 

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Checking Traps, Finding Treasure

By Margaret Walker, Volunteer Extraordinaire 

Cars move in and out and around Atlanta on highways designed for speed and access to places I want to get to: to visit friends, go out to eat, drop off the dry-cleaning, attend a meeting or ball game, a concert or hangout at a coffee shop: a net works of streets roads and highways have become like well worn paths.

I often refer to these comings and goings as “checking my traps”.  New to the Atlanta area, I have found myself often musing, “I wonder were this leads to?”  I wonder as I am out checking my traps, driving-the-now-all-too familiar-pattern of rights and left turns, what is under the ground where the MARTA station passes through…more networks and passages.  I am so grateful for these questions…like the prospector…. digging around for a strike, a jewel; an undiscovered fortune.  I admit, as well, to feeling sad and not just a little heart sick when I see buildings replacing green spaces.  I feel connected to the natural world and miss being in it more deeply.

Recently, while “checking my traps” on a bright, cold, and windy Saturday morning, I ran into the South Fork Conservancy tabling at ACE hardware – represented by a gal (Celia Lismore), the white table cloth flapping as if to lift itself from the table and head south.   What caught my eye was a logo of a leaf and I wanted to see it up close… If you are reading this, perhaps you have also examined the logo. The leaf reminds me of the back of my hand and looking more closely, I see that the veins of the leaf represent a waterway and I am hooked by it. This is how I became acquainted with the conservancy their trail plans. I quickly signed up for the next dusk tour.

I love a fall hike…I saw into the heart of the woods; and the creek, the rippling water sliding along.  I saw what I can’t see when there is foliage or when I am driving 50 mph.  When I raised my gaze to judge where I was, my surprise was the nearby buildings…impressive structures with their tall, unflinching backs turned to this serene spot down away and out of sight.  They are on the leaf as well! Following the trail beneath the broad expanse I-85 was a delight I never expected.  A blending of worlds of massive cement pillars and nearby flowing water and native species plants that made us all, well, happy to be in the middle of it.   I saw small well-worn animal trails and a path leading to the creek made by a deer…they, too, check their traps every day, hang out at the stream for a drink…so much I saw and so much I couldn’t see…so much wondering…so wonderful.