Applegater Winter 2020
3
Volunteer opportunities abound at Provolt Recreation Site
BY PROVOLT VOLUNTEER TEAM MEMBERS AND APWC STAFF
Are you ready to volunteer? The
Provolt Volunteer Team has been
organized through the Applegate
Partnership & Watershed Council
(APWC). This group of volunteers and
staff members is working together to
give the Bureau of Land Management
(BLM) Grants Pass Field Office,
their new Recreation Planner, and
their Outdoor Education Specialist a
jumpstart at developing the Provolt
Recreation Site.
The volunteer team is an eclectic
group of fifteen people from all walks
of life. Our commonality is our love
for the outdoors and our dedication to
making this special site on the banks of
the Applegate River a destination for
everyone in our community. Despite
COVID-19, smoke, and the heat, the
team and its partners from the BLM
have made a good start and hope to get
some on-the-ground projects started
soon in two of the four recreation
management zones (RMZ). (See map.)
BLM re-opened RMZ A this
summer. This 86-acre area fronts
the Applegate River across from the
Provolt Store. Visitors to RMZ A can
enjoy hiking, biking, horseback riding,
fishing, picnicking, kayaking, wildlife
viewing, or just plain ol’ hangin’ out.
This area is open Thursday through
Sunday, year-round, from sunrise to
sunset (we’re hoping for expanded days
in the future).
Improvements so far include a
paddlers’ launch ramp and a short
t r a i l , re c e n t l y i n s t a l l e d t h r o u g h
an Eagle Scout Project by Graeme
Wiltrout (see story in this edition of
the Applegater). The Education Trail
will be the focal point for outdoor
education in partnership with BLM
and the Applegate Partnership’s Youth
Environmental Stewardship “YES”
program. BLM is funding an entry
kiosk, which the volunteers will help
install, to welcome visitors and educate
them about the site.
Earlier this summer a group of
volunteers gathered and pulled star
thistle near the parking area, an effort
that had an amazing impact on the
small treated area. We hope to have
more events to help eradicate the
Map: Bureau of Land Management (slightly altered by Annette Parsons).
Applegate Partnership board member Janis Mohr-Tipton, second from left, hands a $1,000
Momentum Grant check to Liz Shen, co-chair of the Provolt Volunteer Team. Also present are,
at left, Cathy Rodgers of A Greater Applegate, Tom Carstens, Barbara Chasteen, and
Caleb Galloway. Photo: Joelle Jorissen.
Birders enjoy an outing at the Provolt Rec Site. Photo: Tom Carstens.
invasive weeds around this site. Finally,
we’re planning and fundraising for a
one-mile river-walk trail in the riparian
area of the Applegate River where
invasive blackberries have been treated
and native plants reestablished by the
APWC restoration program.
RMZ B, located on the west side of
Williams Creek is designated as the disc
golf area in BLM planning. The only
thing this zone is limited in is funding,
because the possibilities are great.
Calling all equestrians!
BLM has designated RMZ C as a
155-acre equestrian riding area with
almost five miles of gravel or dirt
roads networking throughout for
great horse trails. BLM has plans to
open this area for equestrian use as
soon as funding for a few required
critical elements, such as a safe point
of entry, turnaround, and parking area
on Williams Highway, can be obtained
and installed.
Recently, the volunteer team helped
prepare an application for a Momentum
Grant from A Greater Applegate. The
APWC received a $1,000 grant to
duplicate and install the Applegate
Watershed Map, designed by the
APWC for Cantrall Buckley. We are
very excited to have this map in two
public parks in the Applegate. (See
photo.) The volunteer team experts
and the APWC have been instrumental
in preparing and submitting federal
grants for infrastructure and recreation
needs at this site, reaching a total of
$286,000 to help fund infrastructure,
recreation development, interpretive
signage, and future upland restoration
projects at the site. Some of these
planned improvements include
improved parking areas, vault toilets,
information kiosks with maps and
interpretive information, picnic tables,
and barbecue grills.
T h e A P W C a n d t h e Pr o v o l t
Volunteer Team are working with the
BLM Grants Pass Field Office to fund
and implement these improvements at
this community gem. Please join us and
help facilitate the transition from the
seed orchard into a quality recreation
site for everyone.
We’re especially in need of grant
writers at the moment. Feel free to
contact the APWC Provolt Project
Manager, Caleb Galloway (caleb@apwc.
info), or Provolt Volunteer Team Chair,
Elizabeth Shen (provolt@apwc.info).
If you need more information about
equestrian trail planning, we will gladly
forward your information to the team’s
equestrian experts.
Janelle Dunlevy, Executive Director
Applegate Partnership &
Watershed Council
janelle@apwc.info, 541-899-9982
PO Box 899
Jacksonville, OR 97530