Photo Credit: Shawn Pearce

The Bomb Cyclone that hit the West Coast on November 19, 2024 was an event few would soon forget. High velocity winds – some as high as 70 mph – pounded much of Washington, downing trees, damaging structures, and knocking out power to over half a million people. While power was restored to most within a week and residential and commercial cleanup was quick to begin, nearly seven weeks later, many of our state parks and forest lands still have much work to be done.

One of those parks is Bridle Trails State Park, a multi-use equestrian and pedestrian haven of mostly second growth Douglas firs and Western cedars. At nearly 500 acres in size with 28 miles of trails, Bridle Trails suffered extensive tree damage from the Bomb Cyclone. Although almost all downed trees were cleared off main trails in the immediate weeks after the storm, subsequent smaller storms have continued to bring down smaller branches, twigs, cones, and needles from the canopies. This debris creates challenges for the park in maintaining good drainage and preventing erosion issues. Not to mention this leads to more mud.

So, when the Bridle Trails Park Foundation and Lake Washington Saddle Club put out a call for volunteers to further clean up Bridle Trails this past Saturday, LSRC jumped at the opportunity to help. The club is a frequent patron of the park: we hold Thursday evening runs in the park from late spring through early fall, utilize its trails for cross country workouts, and for the past four years have fielded relay teams for the Bridle Trails Winter Running Festival. It was time for us to give back.

Just over a dozen volunteers attended the trail cleanup party, with nine representatives from LSRC. Park Ranger Matt Birkland explained we would be in groups of four, each group tackling a different section of trail along the east side of the park. For two hours we raked up debris from the forest floor; while the largest pieces were easily flung off trail with gloved hands, it was often easier to use manure forks to scoop up the piles, fling them into the undergrowth, move down trail, and repeat. We got into a rhythm with the work, working quickly to make as much progress as possible. Although most teams did not fully complete sweeping their sections, the end result was still dramatic: where once lay a shaggy, uneven carpet now saw forest floors clean and bare.

This was one of the best ways to start 2025, doing our part to help restore these trails and protect local habitats. If we all step up and make a collective effort, a little truly goes a long way – hopefully allowing us to preserve Bridle Trails for many more generations to come.

If you are able, please consider a donation to the Bridle Trails Park Foundation.

Photo Credit: Shawn Pearce