Behind the Waterfall
A NEWSLETTER FOR FRIENDS OF SILVER FALLS MEMBERS
The Park After Dark
by Kim Maley, Park Interpreter
The night sky has been a popular theme for Silver Falls in 2023. Early in the summer, Friends of Silver Falls volunteer and Jan Dobias agreed to provide a Moon Party presentation in the campground. The annual Star Party was in August, the planned Star Walk in September was sadly rained out but will be rescheduled, and the Annular Solar Eclipse is happening in October. Though astronomy is not a park-specific theme (because you know, the sky is everywhere!), the emphasis on Dark Sky and light pollution impacts on wildlife is directly applicable as an interpretive theme to Silver Falls’ visitors. The Star Party and other night sky events are great opportunities to educate the public on light pollution awareness while providing fun dark sky activities.
This years Star Party was on August 12th, in line with the annual Perseid Meteor Showers (see below). The hope is to view this phenomenon but also get an up close and personal view of other well-known and more obscure celestial bodies such as Saturn or perhaps a globular cluster!
The event kicked off with a soft start at noon in the center of the South Falls Historic District. Staff and volunteers primed visitors for the evening events with cool astronomy information, a chance to talk to a real life astronomer, a walk through a scale model of our solar system, and jokes!
Conditions for the evening portion of the event were near-perfect! The night sky was clear, the moon was slim enough not to over-illuminate the sky, the temperature was pleasant, and the Night Sky 45 Astronomy club were ready with 10 telescopes in preparation for the crowds of visitors.
Volunteers greeted incoming visitors with smiles and the essential Star Party supplies (glow sticks, red cellophane for flashlights, star wheels, and a Celestial Treasure Hunt). Friends of Silver Falls night sky merchandise plus Silver Falls Café snacks were also available for purchase and proved quite popular!
Early in the evening, Ranger Matt gave a Dark Sky presentation, inspiring us all to be mindful of how light pollution disrupts bird migrations and other wildlife behaviors. He gave some great statistics on how down-facing street lights and porch lights are much safer for humans as well, making Dark Sky approved light fixtures a win-win for all! (For more information about Dark Sky Movement, click here)
And of course, the centerpieces of the event were the gaggle of telescopes with their accompanying astronomers (courtesy of NightSky45 astronomy club). As usual, visitors enjoyed getting a chance to view objects light years away as if they were mere miles away! This year, astronomers mixed it up even more than usual and trained their telescopes on a wider variety of celestial objects than just planets, and included Double Stars, Nebulae, and Red Giants.
Perseid Meteor Showers
The Perseids occur when Earth’s orbit travels through dust and debris left behind from the Swift-Tuttle comet. (Think of walking through a room which a toddler has played in. You are bound to run into something!)
These pieces of dust and debris burn up as they hit Earth’s atmosphere and they appear to us as “shooting stars”.
Click here for more information
Ransom Notes
by Susan Ransom, Board President
Well, another busy summer is behind us; and now we are eagerly anticipating the beautiful Fall colors and cooler weather.
I hope you all have had a chance to come to the Park to experience our new North Rim Trail that leads to a brand new viewpoint of North Falls. We are very proud of our involvement in helping to design and finance this beautiful site. And it is especially welcome as the new trail is both accessible and pet friendly! If you haven’t seen it yet plan to do so soon 😊.
This photo is our current Board of Directors for the Friends of Silver Falls. These lovely people give generously of their time and talents to serve the Park by meeting, discussing, researching and voting on how the funds we generate can best be used to ‘preserve, protect and promote’ the Park. We will soon be having a Board Retreat so that we can discuss and define who we are and who we want to be; along with what our vision is for the future. We are currently looking for dedicated individuals who would like to give back to the Park by becoming involved with the Board. If you are interested please fill out this application.
Keep an eye on our website: friendsofsilverfalls.net for updates, activities and articles. Hope to see you all up at the Park soon! And if you visit on a Saturday be sure to come visit me in the Nature Store 😊.
Let me leave you with this quote:
‘I go to nature to be soothed and healed, and to have my senses put in order.’
(~John Burroughs)
Beware of these Beauties
by Patti Lindquist, Board Member
Our Silver Falls State Park is packed with wonderful flora and fauna. We can delight in the majesty of the mighty Douglas Firs and Hemlocks and the smaller wonders of myriads of wildflowers – and all in between.
However – some of these plants are masters of hiding their darker side! For instance, take the common Snowberry. It is a lovely medium size bush with tiny pink to white flowers – but the pretty white berries that form are toxic if more than 1 or 2 are ingested. Some languages refer to them as Corpse berries.
If you are enjoying the park later in the summer you will see beautiful tall stalks of magenta-ish flowers that look like little bells. This is Foxglove, a very interesting plant. It is highly poisonous, affecting circulation and muscles. That said, it is also the source for the heart medication digitalis! Just don’t eat the flowers in the wild. The origin of its name may come from the Anglo Saxon word for a ring of bells – the flowers on this plant do resemble a ring of bells around the stalk.
And then there is the ubiquitous bracken fern seen everywhere in the park. It dies off in winter, emerging in the spring as a coiled frond – fiddlehead – which is edible. However, once it unfolds it is not so good – it can cause abortion in cattle.
One of the prettiest of our bad beauties is the Delphinium also known as Cow Poison. The toxin in this plant is Delphinine which can cause death. It is a beautiful plant with dark blue flowers with white upper spurs in the center. Look for it in late spring.
The Western Yew tree is interesting – it is classified as a conifer, but rather than a conventional cone it bears a red berry similar to that of the red huckleberry, with a seed visible inside. The seeds are highly toxic and the foliage is poisonous to horses and cattle. And yet – the birds eat the flesh and disperse the seeds! Yew has long been sought after for its tough durable wood. It also provided the source for the first breast cancer medication.
Next meet the red elderberry. The clusters of little red berries look very inviting – but eaten raw they may cause nausea. The roots, bark, leaves and stems are toxic due to the presence of a cyanide producing presence. All this said – the berries are popular for making jelly and wine – yum!
Death camas is a relative of the common camas but it is extremely toxic. The beautiful common camas is usually blue but can be white occasionally. Death camas has creamy white bell shaped flowers with distinctive green glands at the base of the petals. Both the bulbs and leaves of the Death camas are highly toxic. On the other side, common camas root has long been a staple food source.
Lastly we come to the False hellebore or Indian hellebore. This pops up in early spring, with long ribbed leaves – faintly reminiscent of a corn stalk . The flowers are pale green, star shaped in clusters, clinging to an upper stalk. This false hellebore is considered the most violently poisonous plant on the Northwest coast – but it is so pretty!
All of the above are toxic only when ingested, with the exception of the red elderberry which is fine when cooked. We are so fortunate to be missing skin toxins such as poison oak or poison ivy!!
Like so many things in our world, what you see may harbor some distinctly unpleasant hidden factors! Enjoy all our wonderful plants, but don’t ingest something unless you know for sure what it is!
Thank you business sponsors!
There's nothing quite like volunteering at the Nature Store!
By Jim Thomas, Board Member
It recently occurred to me that I have never written an article about how much I enjoy working my shift at the South Falls Nature Store. The picture here is the one I use for wallpaper on my iPad, and it is a joy to be able to show it to friends and say “This is where I go to work”.
The store opened in its current location in July of 2009, and became the place for me to spend my Friday mornings just two months later. At first it was (like any new business) somewhat slow, as the public had not become aware of it, but always fun. The visitors always seem to be in a good (vacation?) mood, and happy to be there. Whenever anyone asks me how my day is I respond “It’s always great up here”, and I mean it.
Well, the Nature Store has only gotten better since then. There are several reasons for that, but first and foremost we have to thank our Administrator: Chelsea Sims; our Interpreter: Kim Maley; and our Assistant Store Manager: Alice Sjolander. The beautiful layout of the store and the current (and always changing) merchandise selection is because of them. Next is a round of applause for all of our volunteers. Without all of you it would be impossible to continue to provide our support to Silver Falls State Park.
Thank You!
Park Projects
By Chelsea Sims, Administrator
North Canyon Day-Use is officially open! This project has been in the works for several years, and we are thrilled to have been a part of it. Your membership and support allowed the Friends to fund and design the North Falls Viewpoint. This new day-use area is located where the group camp and dump station were previously. The North Rim Trail is an accessible, pet-friendly, half mile walk that leads to the North Falls parking lot and into the canyon.
Perhaps slightly less glamorous than a waterfall viewpoint is the new dump station which is fully operational and conveniently located near the campground. This dump station has multiple lanes and is large enough for the biggest RVs to comfortably navigate (yep, even you 44’ toy haulers!).
Volunteer Recognition Carnival
by Chelsea Sims, Administrator
If you’ve visited Silver Falls, you have seen the work of our volunteers. In the summer, you’ll find them at Discovery Tables sparking the interest of inquisitive visitors or on the trails offering guidance and information. Perhaps you’ve shopped at the Nature Store or warmed up next to a cozy fire in the South Falls Lodge: all courtesy of our amazing team of volunteers.
Much of the work volunteers do at Silver Falls is not seen firsthand, but the results are undeniable. They are crucial in the function and operation of this park. Volunteers clean cabins and campsites, maintain equipment, litter pick parking lots and pathways, they rescue injured hikers, build trails, put out wildfires, attend board meetings, work events, lead hikes and SO MUCH MORE!
The devotion and enthusiasm of these individuals is truly remarkable. They have created a supportive and welcoming community that is built on passion, dedication, and joy. As the busy season comes to a close, Park and Friends staff have the opportunity to show our appreciation for those that generously donate their time throughout the year. At this year’s carnival themed appreciation event, we played games, shared stories, ate great food, and gave our volunteers the well-deserved chance to mingle and relax!
Upcoming Events and Invitations
Check the calendar for upcoming events, guided hikes, and programs. You can also check membership invitations page for exclusive invites to workshops.
Run Wild Event
Run Wild Adventures is hosting their annual trail run November 3rd-5th. Several trail runs will be happening that weekend and you can sign up on their website: runwildadventures.com/register/. A portion of registration fees is donated back to the park through FOSF!
December Member Discount
Members get 20% off purchases at the Nature Store for the entire month of December! Twelve month Oregon State Park passes are also $5 off everywhere.
Winter Festival Returns!
December 9th & 10th
Join us for the annual Silver Falls Winter Festival. Celebrate the beauty of winter by making a wreath, joining a guided hike, building a bird nest box, and more! You’ll also have the chance to collect the 2023 commemorative Silver Falls wood cookie ornament. All activities are FREE; parking is $5 per vehicle.
First Day Hikes
Kickoff the new year at Silver Falls! Guided hikes will be offered January 1, 2024.
More information is coming soon!
