Big Stew
Big Stew Restoration Thinning and Vance Creek Culvert Removal
The Big Stew project area is located near the northeast end of Lake Cushman in the foothills of the east slope of the Olympic Mountains in Mason County, WA. The Big Stew unit is 329 acres of 80-year-old stands. The site was sold to Sierra Pacific Industries in 2018, a member of the Collaborative.
About 200 acres is being thinned, as of August 2024, as a stewardship sale with consideration of stream, wetland, unique species and special habitat. The OFC’s long-term desired future conditions for this project are to obtain habitat characteristics that are found in fully functioning late successional/old growth forest. The treatment prescribed is a combination of heavy thinning and variable density thinning.
The Collaborative continues to support the Olympic National Forest in outreach to stakeholders, and has worked in partnership with the Skokomish Watershed Action Team to identify a priority stewardship project, which is the Vance Creek culvert replacement. More information on this project below.
Vance Creek Culvert Removal & Field Tour:
In May 2022, the Olympic Forest Collaborative hosted a field tour for the Lake Cushman Firewise Council to share insight into our Big Stew sale. Along with Lake Cushman community members, the Firewise Council shared concerns and asked insightful questions about the Big Stewardship sale, including the role of restoration thinning, prescription thinning, and wildfire mitigation. The Collaborative also shared information on the Vance Creek culvert removal. The Vance Creek culvert replacement will replace an existing 36″ diameter culvert with a much larger 72″ diameter culvert where Forest Road 2350 crosses a non-fish-bearing tributary of Vance Creek. The culvert replacement will help protect water quality in Vance Creek, which is a fish-bearing creek.