Mowitch Estuary Project

Photo Gallery #1 Mowitch galleries: [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [Mowitch Home] Click on the image for a larger version. Fall 1999. The site is approximately a three-acre area, 1,000 feet by 100 feet from the center of Hylebos Creek to the cedar fence and the chainlink fence to the Turning Basin respectively. The tidal range in Hylebos Creek is similar to tide gauge data. Fall 1999. The banks of Hylebos Creek (then a straight channel) were steep (2:1) and slumping into the channel. Fall 1999. Previous plantings at the Mowitch site had been unsuccessful, and overall colonization by native volunteers was marginal. There were a few areas that supported salt marsh vegetation at the site, particularly adjacent to the Turning Basin, in an area that was once a log ramp. This is a pre-construction view, looking north toward the Turning Basin. The creek was on the left side, in front of the Louisiana-Pacific property. On the right of the photo is a former MTCA clean-up site. Fall 1999. Plantings in the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) mitigation site (adjacent to the Mowitch project site, upstream) have been slow to colonize, but WSDOT reports the site is showing signs of vegetation establishment this (1999) season. Early summer 2000. The construction sign signifying initiation of the construction phase of the restoration project. Summer 2000. One of the several trucks being used to remove debris and fill from the site. In all, approximately 21,000 cubic yards of soil and debris were removed from the site. Summer 2000. Silt fencing along the log ramp was constructed as a first line of defense to prevent silt from entering the Hylebos Waterway. A hanging silt curtain (barely visible behind the silt curtain) kept sediment from entering the water during construction of the project. Summer 2000. An unanticipated find -- several logs buried beneath the log ramp. Photos 1 through 4 courtesy of Rober Clark, NOAA, 1999; Photos 5 through 8 courtesy of J. Steger, NOAA, 2000.