Hayden Creek shooting area gets makeover

More than 40 tons of garbage was removed by volunteers a week ago from the Hayden Creek shooting area. 

On U.S. Forest Service land near Hayden Lake, the area has been heavily used for many years by recreational shooters.

The two-day cleanup was organized, funded, planned, executed and initiated by Coeur d’Alene resident Sean Kaschmitter. 

“From my perspective in life, I am not a talker,” Kaschmitter said. “And I got annoyed about locals bringing stuff out there and no one ever does anything about it. We make a mess of things and the Forest Service is trying to do their job that they’re getting paid for. I saw it as an opportunity to mend the gap and bring people together and give people an opportunity to do good.” 

Kaschmitter spent about $6,000 of his own money to pay for the necessary materials and equipment to clean up the shooting area at Hayden Creek. It took about two months to organize the entire cleanup, collaborating with the U.S. Forest Service, engineers and between 20 and 25 local contractors, excavators and volunteers. 

Caterpillar in Hayden, H and E equipment in Post Falls, S and S Construction and Trucking and Cd’A Equipment Company donated time, labor or equipment for the project.

In the days leading up to the cleanup, during his commute to work from Coeur d’Alene to Boeing in Moses Lake, Wash., Kaschmitter would go over the plans in his head.

He said that when he got there around dawn, he was blown away by how easy it was to give the volunteers direction and see them get things done. 

“I was a leader of leaders,” Kaschmitter said. “I put the time and money and effort in to bring the resources and the tools. And then I put my authority into the leaders. And I let them do what they knew how to do. All of us are a bunch of rednecks with gee-whiz knowledge. What we learn and what we know we all get from things we have done in the past in our own way.”

Kaschmitter said he couldn’t believe how quickly and smoothly everything went on the day of the cleanup. 

“There’s so much stuff we did out there,” Kaschmitter said. “We completely redesigned the shooting range.”

Teams dug 20 feet to create a French drain to replace an existing rubber barrier and culvert that prevented lead from seeping into the creek. 

Teams also dozed the ground with a D-6 dozer donated by Caterpillar, three skid steers, two mini-excavators, one front-end loader and one super dumptruck. They made six to 10 trips to the local transfer station with trucks full of trash, including an old boat dumped there. 

Volunteers and friends participated by moving dirt, picking up trash, driving the skid steers or bringing and cooking food for everyone who participated. 

“I don’t know how it is now since it’s been a week, but we left it completely redesigned and clean,” Kaschmitter said.  

When COVID-19 hit in 2020, Kaschmitter felt alone and grew depressed. It bothered him to see his favorite local spots falling into disrepair. Kaschmitter, known to his friends as the bonfire guy, brought a bunch of friends to Fernan Saddle to build a bonfire and to escape from the restrictions brought on by the virus. 

He had an incredible time, and got a $1,000 fine from the Forest Service for the unsanctioned event. 

But instead of being bitter about the fine, he took that moment as motivation to do something bigger.

“The fine gave me the answer that I didn't know I needed,” he said. “That’s been at the root of all these things.”

He saw people loving bonfires, like himself, and wanted to bring people together in a positive way around the shooting area.  

Kaschmitter pulled from his experience in the military and his job repairing airplanes to build a dream and a plan. He decided to clean up the shooting area and improve it for everyone so the community could have a better forest space to come together, and the Forest Service could protect the creek and the forest. 

“We are appreciative that they added to our capacity in both labor funds etc.,” said Holly Hampton, district ranger for the Coeur d’Alene River Ranger District. “We’re very thankful for 'Kasch' and all his volunteers. We had a very good group of people from the Forest Service there, too.”

Kaschmitter worked with engineers from the Forest Service to plan the new and improved shooting area. 

“The paperwork wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be,” he said. “From day one the Forest Service was super supportive and grateful.”

And with the huge success of the project, he won’t stop there. 

“I have the blessing now to do what I want,” Kaschmitter said. “With this relationship that I have now with the Forest Service I already have future projects next year that I’m already spooling up for.”

He has a handful of companies that have already expressed interest in being a part of his future plans. 

“The Forest Service is very appreciative of the new partnership with local volunteers and local businesses,” Hampton said. 

The entire experience has made Kaschmitter feel connected to his community again, and like he’s contributing something valuable. 

    From left, volunteers Forest Grivetti, Sean Kaschmitter and Kyle Jackson stand in the middle of the finished product of the Hayden Creek Shooting area cleanup Nov. 12.
  

    Excavators and heavy equipment operators volunteer to clean up the Hayden Creek shooting area Nov. 11 and 12.
  

    Volunteers move the final piles of dirt around at the Hayden Creek shooting area Nov. 12 as part of a volunteer cleanup for the popular recreation site.