Taking Care of Tubbs
Tubbs Hill, our natural treasure, is a wonderful asset for our community. It provides a variety of recreational activities and is used and enjoyed by thousands of people every year. Like anything that gets used much, it requires some care and maintenance to keep it healthy. The good news is that over the past several years, the Tubbs Hill Foundation, the Parks and Recreation department and the fire department have partnered to shoulder the responsibility of caring for the hill. Their efforts have resulted in protection for the hill and increased user friendliness.
In the past year or so the Parks Department did significant cleanup of the downfall and damaged trees from a major windstorm, they have provided tools and manpower on trail remediation and improvement projects, graveled several areas, such as the Third Street entrance where the trail had worn to the point of needing repair, and replaced many older signs with new ones providing better directions to various trails and exits from the hill. They are also in the process of replacing the boards on the suspension bridge and tightening it, so it is safer and easier to use, and finally have removed some of the hazardous trees along the trails.
The fire department has also been very involved, particularly with safety measures that will lessen the danger of fire. Their activities include establishing a water supply (fire hydrant) on the east side of the hill, completing the fire road that connects both ends of the hill, doing annual maintenance of the road, designing a fire boat and wild-land fire engines specifically suited to fight fires on Tubbs Hill, performing annual training and planning for fires on Tubbs, and doing annual tree thinning in conjunction with the Parks Department. They have also been involved in the long-term planning to maintain the health of the hill’s forest, including occasional prescribed burns to reduce fire potential.
The Tubbs Hill Foundation has also been actively involved in care of the hill. Our mission is basically to maintain Tubbs Hill as a healthy forest typical of North Idaho while also providing for appropriate public use. To that end, the THF several years ago began to develop strategies for preventing erosion of trails, especially unauthorized trails, strategies for maintaining the health of the forest on the hill, improving signage, and providing education to the public about the hill.
Two years ago several THF board members, along with several veteran foresters, did a survey of the hill to determine areas of concern and make recommendations for dealing with them. As part of the effort to educate the public we have participated in numerous community activities, such as leading tours on the hill, participating in Art on the Green, conducting clean-ups on the hill, and creating a PowerPoint presentation about Tubbs Hill that is available to the public.
A new Trail Ambassador program and a program to get every kid in the fourth grade on Tubbs Hill were initiated. We also worked with the Museum of North Idaho to incorporate an outdoor interpretive display about Tubbs on their site.
This year, another major effort has been trail remediation and improvements. The northeast trail entrance was modified to make it safer and shortcuts were closed, which helps protect the habitat structure of the hill, as well as prevent erosion, and the upper section of that trail was modified to mitigate the winter hazard of ice on a sloping section of the hill, and to help with closing of several shortcuts.
Work was done on the upper section of the Fire Road trail to re-route the trail and close a dangerous unauthorized trail down the east slope of the hill. Several other projects, such as re-routing trails and clearing brush along trails, were also completed. All told, in 2020, 45 volunteers completed 26 different activities on the hill while accumulating 422 hours of volunteer service. A great debt is owed to the Inland NW Land Conservancy for their very helpful involvement in these activities. Thank you to all of our volunteers!
As you can see, a great deal of effort has gone into keeping Tubbs Hill a healthy forest and a safe place to enjoy the outdoors. The Tubbs Hill Foundation is a nonprofit organization and relies on contributions from the public to help sustain its activities. Check us out on our website at tubbshill.org, and please consider becoming a Friend of Tubbs Hill. Annual membership is only $15 and you could also have your family’s name inscribed on one of the rocks at the entrances to the hill for a donation of $150.
We are grateful to the parks and fire departments for the help in maintaining the hill, and to you who support the THF. We could not carry out our mission without our partnerships. Continue to enjoy the hill and please do so in a respectful manner. Please stay on designated trails, don’t leave trash behind or your pet’s waste, but do enjoy your time on Tubbs Hill.
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George Sayler is a member of the Tubbs Hill Foundation.
