Friends Annual Dinner Gathering 2020

The Friends of Shimek's annual banquet was loaded with interesting information and updates.  Forester John Byrd had a lot of information about the logging operation currently being done in the Lick Creek Unit.



Update from Forester John Byrd on What is Happening in Shimek Forest....... Let's see what was or is going on in the forest!

Spring is getting closer and that means more people will be out and about in the forest. As of March 5th, the DNR Shimek Forest crew had cleared down trees from the over 6 miles of the Lick Creek Wet Weather Trail System. We are still having some very windy days, though, so please use caution when riding or hiking. We'll be clearing any down trees as they are found throughout the year.

At the Friends Volunteer Recognition Dinner on March 7th , I reported on other Lick Creek Projects that the DNR Shimek Forest crew Ben Hassman, Heath Fraise, Eric Martin and I have been hard at work on this past year. That included the following:
* A new 0.6 mile of trail in the forest was constructed by our crew to tie together two sections of the Wet Weather Trail so that riders could stay off the highway right -of-way, making for a much safer ride.
*Erosion problems in the Wet Weather Trails caused by heavy rains of the previous winter were all corrected by the crew . Both projects used rock funded by the Lee County Charitable Fund and the Friends of Shimek.
*We are now re-rocking the entire Wet Weather Trail thanks to a grant from The William M and Donna J Hoaglin Foundation. That will be completed later this year.
In addition to those trail projects, forest management practices have kept us busy all winter. Our major forest management unit was the Keosauqua Unit. It is unique in that it borders both Lacey-Keosauqua State Park and Lake Sugema Wildlife Management Area which is all managed by the Iowa DNR. We have also had a couple of forest management projects in the Lick Creek Unit. A contractor cut understory trees out of a few areas that you will see as you ride trails. There was also a clear cut timber harvest along a trail section. This timber harvest is an exciting time in forest management. It is a regeneration clear cut harvest. The overstory trees were removed in order to let the oak currently regenerating start to capture the site. Young oak seedlings will not grow and thrive in dense shade. Pre harvest inventory indicated 2,000-7,000 oak seedlings per acre! This will ensure that our next generation of Iowans will be able to enjoy oak on this site.

Kathy

Editor