Himalayan blackberry can be a real problem along riparian watercourses.  In disturbed, sunny areas, it chokes out native plants and reduces biodiversity.  It doesn't provide real shade to creeks and streams, and prevents older successional species like Fir and Cedar from getting established. 
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Now Himalayan blackberry has a problem, and that's US!  We've been using a mattock to dig out blackberry roots, and this small tool makes easy work of digging out the root balls. It's SO satisfying to clear a small area in a short amount of time.  It's easier to carry out this work in the cooler months when we can wear long sleeves and pants to protect our skin from the thorns.  Wearing thin gardening gloves with a thicker leather pair of gloves on top helps protect hands, though some thorns still manage to get through!  We load the cut brambles on a tarp and haul loads away for disposal by the City.  Over several years, we've been able to suppress the Himalayan blackberry enough at the Morningside culvert that native Thimbleberry are thriving.  
Along the gravel path to the tennis courts in Morningside Park, the Oceanspray are finally getting a chance.  Persistence is paying off!

In 2022 we received support from the Pacific Salmon Foundation to hire an engineer to create a plan to deal with the fish barrier near the mouth of the creek.  The resulting plan was far too involved given the private property access, so the barrier is on the backburner again, for now.

PSF generously allowed us to use the remaining funds to dramatically improve the biodiversity in the riparian area in Morningside Park, and just upstream of Shores Drive.  That planting was carried out in November 2024 and March 2025.

Walley Creek is very different above and below Shores Drive.  Where the creek flows past the RDN GNPCC its course has been altered so that it's cut off from ground water infiltration by a clay liner.  To make stream flow even more challenging, the GNPCC removes ground water periodically to maintain the function of the settling tanks that treat the City's waste water.  Some ground water does make it into Walley Creek below the Shores Drive bridge, and we want to maintain these base flows for fish habitat.   

Our focus on the RDN property is to improve the riparian area by replacing invasive Himalayan blackberry with native plants, as we've done in Morningside Park.  Maintaining  shade and native plant composition gives the greatest chance of survival for fish and other animals that live in and around the creek. 

On March 1, a strong group of volunteers used loppers and mattocks to remove fresh growth in an area we cleared a year ago.  On March 3, a grade 7 class from École Hammond Bay moved soil and bark mulch into the polygons, and planted native ferns, salal,  Oregon grape, and Oceanspray.   It's exciting to continue working our way up the creek, involving great volunteers and students.