What does the well-dressed salmon wear? and where does he swim?

Sammy the Salmon interacts with student
Photo courtesy AASF

On Thursday March 22 at 7pm, the Adopt A Stream Foundation (AASF) will be presenting a Salmon Fashion Show featuring “Sammy the Salmon” to kick off a six-part Stream Ecology Training Program. 

This free event will take place at the Third Place Commons in Lake Forest Park’s Town Center, 17171 Bothell Way NE, Lake Forest Park, one block east of the Burke Gillman Trail, next to Mac Aleer and Lyon Creeks ... two small salmon streams that flow from SW Snohomish County to Lake Washington.

“Sammy the Salmon” is going to introduce the audience to the life cycle of salmon with some elaborate costumes. Next, AASF Director Tom Murdoch is going to take the audience through the five steps of How to Adopt A Stream:

• Investigate Watershed Information
• Establish Watershed Allies
• Create Long and Short Term watershed goals
• Develop and Action Plan to meet watershed goals
• Become a Streamkeeper by carrying out planned actions.

“After the audience is ‘hooked’ with the salmon fashion show, we are going to ‘reel them in’ by teaching the crowd to become Stream PI’s (Private Investigators),“ says Murdoch. “We are going to show them how to investigate the physical, biological, and chemical characteristics of streams...and their social, and political characteristics as well.” 

Sammy contemplates a fish ladder
Photo courtesy AASF

Then the crowd will be invited to become allies to solve a “virtual fish barrier” problem. The evening will conclude with some great visual examples of stream protection and restoration projects done by folks who have adopted their streams and an uplifting video of a local elementary school that restored a salmon run to a city stream. Everyone from advanced middle school students to old gray beards will enjoy this event.

The next training session is All About Invasive Plants on Saturday March 31 outdoors at the Lake Forest Park Grace Cole Nature Park. Then back in the classroom on April 12 for Stream and Wetland Science; outdoors on April 28 for Designing and Planting a Native Plant Landscape; back in the classroom for All about Salmon and their Protection on May 3; and outdoors on September 15 for Native Plant Monitoring & Maintenance.

Those who complete all six sessions will earn a Stream Ecology Certificate. To register, call 425-316-8592. For more details go to the Adopt A Stream Foundation website.

The Adopt A Stream Foundation’s partners in this stream ecology effort are the King Conservation District, the City of Lake Forest Park, the Lake Forest Park Stewardship Foundation and the Lake Forest Park Streamkeepers.