Behind the Waterfall
A NEWSLETTER FOR FRIENDS OF SILVER FALLS MEMBERS
Silver Falls Birding and Wildflower Festival Is Back
By Kim Maley, Park Interpreter
What a great reintroduction to this fun Silver Falls event!
Enjoy some photos and highlights from the weekend:
Native Plant Display
Rex Swartzendruber and Ranger Matt Palmquist collected and displayed 139 species of native plants in the South Falls Theatre, allowing visitors to learn to name and identify local species as they explore the park.
Raptor Presentations
Alina Blankenship from PERCH Wildlife Education Center in West Linn captivated visitors with her live raptor presentations. Visitors not only got up close and personal with these magnificent birds but learned some amazing facts! (Did you know raptors can be hired for agricultural pest control?!)
Discovery Tables
District manager Sarah Steele offered park visitors a fun game to test their knowledge of bird feathers! Sarah also gave out information about Dark Sky and the impacts of light pollution on bird migration. The posters and cool stickers were crowd-pleasers!
Native Plant Sale
The Annual Native Plant Sale fundraiser was a hit as well, bringing in over $1400 profit for the park! Thank you to our helpful volunteers who make all this possible. This year, Aislinn Adams and Marion Soil and Water Conservation District contributed valuable information and insights in regards to native plants to visitors.
Guided Hikes
Multiple guided walks were offered. Some of Silver Falls’ tougher visitors braved the elements for the chance to join Steven Shunk, Earl McCullum, or John Savage for one of their famous guided hikes!
Bird enthusiasts were delighted with the Warblers but the show stopper was the Peregrine falcon who decided to nest at the prominent South Falls!
It's Official!
Effective June 1st, the Manager of Silver Falls State Park has been confirmed.
Chris Gilliand who has been acting in the capacity of interim manager is now officially our park manager.
Congratulations Chris!
Water Stations in the Historic District
By Chelsea Sims, Administrator
Last year, FOSF funded two water stations for the South Falls Day-Use area. These water stations have a water bottle fill, fountain, and dog bowl. The first was installed this spring at the main restrooms, where over a million visitors enter the park every year.
In 2021, we sold nearly 2,000 single-use water bottles in the Nature Store alone. Many of these bottles do not get recycled, but are left on trails, in the creek, or thrown away to ultimately end up in a landfill. Park management will use the new water stations as a starting point to halt single-use water bottle sales in the park completely.
Ransom Notes: May 2022
By Susan Ransom, President, Friends of Silver Falls
Happy Spring~
Well, if April showers bring May flowers we should be in for a real treat this season! But the considerable rainfall has not dampened the spirits of our guests. As I am in the Nature Store on Saturdays, and occasionally help out at events I have many opportunities to chat with our visitors – and all of them are just awed by our beautiful park – rain or shine.
Were any of you able to join us for our Mother’s Day Wildflower and Birding Festival? There was a dazzling display of resident wildflowers to view, as well as to purchase. And the live raptor demonstration was truly amazing. To be sitting just a couple of feet away from a Barn Owl, a Great Horned Owl, a Barred owl, a Peregrine Falcon and several species of hawks – without any cages or bars – was truly fascinating. I was surprised to learn that some of these birds are actually employable by farmers to help rid their crops of rodents. And up close they are all bigger than you imagine them to be.
I also had the pleasure of attending our Interpretive Ranger Kim Maley’s Volunteer presentation of Lichen. There are so many species around the Park! We went on a short walk around the South Falls Historic District and Kim pointed out many different kinds. Here is a picture of one variety called ‘Fairy Barf’. Yes, you read that right. And once you know this name and how to identify it you can never un-know it. And the mental image that is formed is not so pleasant……. As a volunteer you have access to monthly workshops like this one to educate us on the amazing life all around the Park. If you are interested in volunteering you can reach out on the Friends of Silver Falls website: www.friendsofsilverfalls.net.
Don’t forget to check our website regularly to keep updated on all that is going on with FOSF.
Let me leave you with this quote:
‘Spring is nature’s way of saying, ‘Let’s party!’ (~Robin Williams)
Regional Staff Meeting
By Matt Palmquist, Interpretive Ranger
In March, the staff of Silver Falls met with dozens of other OPRD staff for the annual Valleys Region Meeting, held in person for the first time since February 2020. The meeting provided an opportunity to discuss agency updates, test out new equipment, plan for the coming year, and discuss issues being faced by parks all across the region, which stretches from the Columbia River Gorge to the upper reaches of the Willamette near Eugene. The meeting was held at McMenamin’s Edgefield in Troutdale and allowed for plenty of time to catch up and socialize with colleagues from other parks.
Check out this fun introduction video Silver Falls staff put together for this event!
Membership Portal
By Chelsea Sims, Administrator
Behind the Waterfall is going digital! In an effort to enrich content and reduce printing, FOSF has decided to move to a paperless newsletter by the end of 2022. Behind the Waterfall is available through our new membership portal on friendsofsilverfalls.net/members. Here, you have access to membership discounts, an exclusive FOSF store, previous newsletters, and more!
An email invitation to sign-up has been sent to all current members. If you did not receive this invitation, please let us know so we can update your contact information.
Update your contact info by calling or emailing:
admin@friendsofsilverfalls.net 503-873-8735
Thank you Business Sponsors!
Official Merch!
By Chelsea Sims, Administrator
OPRD has created official park identities. Each state park has it’s own design. We’re very excited to have stickers, hats, and patches with the official Silver Falls design in the Nature Store now!
More official merchandise is available at oregonstateparks.threadless.com
The Smith Creek Village
By Shalimar Nissen, Partnership + events Manager, Silver Falls Hospitality
The Smith Creek Village, formerly the Silver Falls Lodge and Conference Center, of Silver Falls State Park has long been one of Oregon’s favorite places to meet and gather with loved ones and colleagues, and is a space that holds long-standing memories and nostalgia for many people of Oregon. The Smith Creek Village offers accommodations ranging from Tiny Cabins that were Girl Scout cabins back in the 1930's, to Family Lodges that can sleep 12, all the way up to the historic Davidson Ranch that can accommodate up to 100 day-use guests and 75 overnight guests. In addition, they offer several easily accessible, yet sufficiently secluded meeting halls and gathering spaces to allow for meetings, intimate gatherings and restorative unplugged outings.
Big Leaf Coffeehouse + Grill
Formerly the Big Leaf Dining Hall-- this space has served up community and meals for decades. The Smith Creek
Village will now offer both the broader public, and Park lodging guests, the opportunity to fuel up and nourish themselves before heading out of camp, or after returning back to settle in for the day.
The Dine-in menu includes a variety of homemade fresh breakfasts, pastries, trail goodies and a great source of nutrition to start your day in the Park! Breakfast is served daily from 7AM to 11AM.
For lunch service, enjoy a bistro-style Smith Creek Village Burger, fresh vegan options, a hearty salad, or something to take along for your trek in the forest.
Sip on a local brew from Silver Falls Brewery or a local wine -- we highly recommend the pinot noir, selected specially from the Willamette Valley of Oregon. Lunch is served all weekend long from Friday to Sunday, 11AM to 5PM | And, on Monday through Thursday, 11AM to 2PM.
As we grow and expand, service hours will extend out to dinner-- COMING VERY SOON!
Nature Store Hours
Effective June 1st, the South Falls Nature Store will be open every day from 10:00 A.M to 6:00 P.M.
The Park will be open from 7:00 A.M. to 9:00 P.M.