Visit the goats Saturday August 26, 2023 on the Interurban Trail

Poster boy Filbert is happy to pose for the camera

By Diane Hettrick

Goat Day at Midvale Gardens on Saturday August 26, 2023, 10am to 6pm. 

Midvale Gardens is a piece of land adjacent to the Interurban Trail at 192nd and Midvale, behind Sky Nursery. The property belongs to Seattle City Light, which allowed it to go wild. 

A thick tangle of blackberry and ivy eight feet tall choked the trees on the site, looking impenetrable to all but the homeless and drug users who burrowed into it to make camps.

Neighbors, led by Derek Creisler, began a clean up project. Affiliating with Shoreline Parks - and through them City Light - they started to clear the site. 

Volunteers from the immediate neighborhood and the greater Echo Lake Neighborhood Association held work parties to remove piles and piles of vines. Parks staff came in and cleared the garbage and drug paraphernalia as well as hauling away the piles of vegetation. 

Midvale Gardens - before and after
Photos by Derek Creisler

Derek joined Diggin' Shoreline, a local organization dedicated to the creation of community gardens, which has 501(c)3 status, and enlisted their help and sponsorship. Clearing the site was still slow and laborious.

And then - someone (probably Derek) said "What about the goats?"

Ed Portnow owns Earthcraft Services and rents out a herd of hungry goats to clear overgrown sites like this. The City of Shoreline has used Ed's goats on several occasions, usually for clearing brambles on steep slopes, which, of course, are no obstacle to goats.

Derek says "Ed loves the project and the goats need to eat." 

In the beginning the City funded the cost through environmental mini-grants but that fund was never intended to support ongoing projects. Rather than ask for more from the city, Derek and Diggin' Shoreline set up a Goat Fund Me Diggin' Shoreline site to raise money from the public.

Derek points out that "in the end the money raised goes into hay fodder for the herd. So we've worked out a strong relationship. He brings the goats, and I raise the $. This year we're actively advertising the events"

 

So far this year, the project has received some strong donations, including local businesses Dunn Lumber, and West Highland Dental, and many individuals such as Larry Monger. Larry and his late wife Jeanne were among the first to step up to clear blackberry vines from the site.

The goats were able to work through the pandemic, so progress continued. 

The site has been literally transformed from a spooky urban jungle that appeared impenetrable (but wasn't if you were determined to setup camp hidden in the weeds).

The goats cost $500 a day and it usually takes six days a summer to keep the site clear. You can help by donating here.

The public is more than welcome to visit as the goats are at work. They are comfortable with people and dogs, but you might not be as attractive as a yummy mouthful of blackberry vines.

Midvale Gardens is directly across the street from the Aurora Park n' Ride where the Shoreline Farmers Market is held, also on Saturday.