Our island. Our environment.

Bainbridge residents can explore returning salmon and the streams they depend on at eight Kitsap Salmon Tours sites on Saturday, November 7, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. The free, rain-or-shine event brings biologists, trained volunteer guides, and family activities to streams from Poulsbo to Gorst.

None of the eight stops is on Bainbridge. But the island has a direct connection to the same work: the City reports that spawning salmon reached upstream of its new Cooper Creek crossing during the 2025 monitoring season, illustrating what removing a fish barrier can make possible.

Eight Places to Explore on November 7

The WSU Extension event page and activity guide describe these stops. Each offers different activities; all have coloring stations and polarized glasses to share.

Poulsbo’s Fish Park, 288 NW Lindvig Way, Poulsbo: A scavenger hunt, salmon-survival game, and library activities accompany viewing. Nearby Martinson Cabin offers salmon arts and crafts, hot cocoa, and cider from noon to 3 p.m.

Merle Hayes Salmon Enhancement Center, 23175 Indianola Road NE, Poulsbo: See native salmon at the Suquamish Tribe’s facility, explore with microscopes and guidebooks, and make a salmon journal. Two salmon dissections are planned during the day.

Clear Creek Ridgetop Pavilion, near 9228 Ridgetop Boulevard, Silverdale: Talk with guides at the viewing platform and learn about salmon anatomy and stream insects.

Chico Estuary, 4264 Kittyhawk Drive, Bremerton: Meet guides at the water’s edge, explore salmon anatomy with a fish biologist, and learn to identify invasive crabs.

Chico Salmon Viewing Park, 3121 Chico Way, Bremerton: Activities cover beavers and salmon, fish identification, and fishing education beside a restored creek bed.

Salmon Haven at Dickerson Creek, Northlake Way NW and Taylor Road, Bremerton: Explore water quality and stream invertebrates, try a salmon-hazards game, and use citizen-science observation boxes.

Keta Legacy Rhododendron Preserve, 2401 Seabeck Highway, Bremerton: Hike to the confluence of Wildcat and Lost creeks, where they become Chico Creek. The route has steep, uneven sections.

Otto Jarstad Park, 4230 West Belfair Valley Road, Bremerton: Activities include salmon life-cycle presentations and dissections, plus information about preventing stormwater pollution and conserving water.

Bainbridge’s Salmon Connection

The City’s salmon-monitoring program follows adult returns, typically in November. Its January 2026 update reports spawning salmon upstream of the new Eagle Harbor Drive crossing at Cooper Creek. That finding concerns the previous season; it is not a report of fish present there today.

Another City effort, the Springbrook Creek fish-passage project, proposes replacing the Fletcher Bay Road culvert and downstream weirs—small barriers across the channel—with a bridge and restoring vegetation. It remains a proposed project on the City’s project page.

For a public walk on the island, Springbrook Creek Preserve, at 7550 Fletcher Bay Road NE, offers access to salmon habitat from sunrise to sunset. Stay on designated trails; dogs are not allowed. Parking is limited, with overflow at Johnson Farm across the road.

The recently opened Lost Valley Trail also provides a walk through the Cooper Creek watershed, including a wetland boardwalk. See our earlier coverage of the trail connection. These are habitat walks, not advertised November 7 tour stops. The City’s monitoring map does not establish public access to every monitored stream reach.

Beyond Saturday

Two outdoor StoryWalks extend the event: Run Salmon Run at Salmon Haven at Dickerson Creek is available dawn to dusk through November 15, and An Incredible Journey at Rhododendron Preserve runs dawn to dusk through November 30. WSU says the tour sites can also be visited outside the event, with salmon migrating through the fall.

Wear waterproof shoes and dress for rain. Check the activity guide before choosing a site: trails, parking, and restroom access vary, and Rhododendron Preserve and the path down to Chico Estuary are not wheelchair accessible. Salmon sightings depend on water levels, water clarity, and timing; the event celebrates the return even when fish are difficult to see.

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Bainbridge property owners who meet Kitsap County’s hardship criteria could gain help controlling English ivy, holly, and Scotch broom under a proposal headed to the county’s Noxious Weed Control Board on November 4.

Those plants are currently excluded from the county’s Stewardship Assistance Program. The proposed expansion would make them eligible through its hardship track. That track requires both a qualifying weed infestation and eligibility under the county’s senior and disabled property-tax exemption criteria.

The distinction matters on Bainbridge: the island’s Cooperative Weed Management Area partnership identifies ivy, Scotch broom, and English holly as its three priority weeds because they are widespread and can displace native plants and degrade wildlife habitat.

The existing assistance program provides up to $2,500 in weed-control services performed by county contractors, rather than cash reimbursement. Participants commit to a two-year management agreement, including follow-up work and access for inspections or treatments. Assistance depends on available funding.

For the hardship track, the linked 2026 exemption criteria include a qualifying age or disability, ownership and occupancy requirements, and household income of $65,000 or less for 2025, calculated under the program’s rules. The proposal would expand the plant list; it does not propose removing those eligibility requirements.

The board’s meeting materials also raise possible annual limits on funding or the number of hardship projects. They do not establish a start date for expanded eligibility.

Separately, the board will consider changes to free weed disposal. The previous program, which included Bainbridge Disposal, ended July 31 after reaching its budget. Options now under discussion include weekend-only service, using private facilities alongside Olalla, and a revised voucher system. No replacement arrangement has been approved in these materials.

The meeting begins at 6 p.m. Pacific on Wednesday, November 4, at the Poulsbo library’s community room, 700 NE Lincoln Road, with a Zoom option. The board’s meeting page provides the agenda, online access, and public-comment instructions. Written comments submitted through its form by noon that day can be read during the meeting, subject to a two-minute limit.

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Purple foxglove and cherry laurel could join Washington’s noxious weed list next year, putting familiar garden plants under a new spotlight for Bainbridge Island homeowners.

The Washington State Noxious Weed Control Board is proposing four Class C additions for 2027: purple foxglove (Digitalis purpurea), bird cherry (Prunus avium), cherry laurel (Prunus laurocerasus), and bittersweet nightshade (Solanum dulcamara). It would also broaden the ivy listing to cover Hedera helix, H. hibernica, and their hybrids without the current cultivar restrictions.

What Would Change for Gardeners?

The official proposal makes an important distinction: the four Class C additions would not themselves require landowners to control those plants. County weed boards could, however, subsequently select them for mandatory control. The state says the listings are intended in part to support access to grants and voluntary control efforts.

This rule also would not necessarily ban their sale. The Department of Agriculture maintains a separate quarantine list governing prohibited sales and distribution. Some noxious weeds are already on that list; a change to the weed list should not be read as either a new sales ban or permission to sell a plant already restricted.

For a Bainbridge gardener, the practical questions would remain separate: Is the plant on the state list? Has Kitsap County required its control? Is its sale restricted? A Class C label alone does not answer all three.

Why the Garden–Forest Boundary Matters

Cherry laurel illustrates the ecological concern. The state board documents its escape from gardens in western Washington, with birds carrying seeds beyond ornamental plantings. Cut stems can resprout.

King County’s plant guidance describes how cherry laurel shades native shrubs and tree seedlings and can replace forest canopy trees over time. A hedge’s effects can extend beyond the property where it was planted.

On Bainbridge, the Cooperative Weed Management Area partnership already prioritizes English ivy, Scotch broom, and English holly because they are widespread and damage native vegetation and habitat. The proposed broader ivy listing would intersect with that existing local work.

Comments Due November 2

Written comments are due by 5 p.m. Monday, November 2, at noxiousweeds@agr.wa.gov. The public hearing begins at 1 p.m. Tuesday, November 3, with online participation available. Verbal testimony is limited to three minutes. All times are Pacific.

The rule notice identifies November 4 as the intended adoption date; the changes remain proposed. The board’s meeting page provides online access. Its venue listing differs from the formal notice, so anyone attending in person should confirm the location with Mary Burrows at mary.burrows@agr.wa.gov or 360-561-4428.

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Bainbridge residents can learn about reducing conflicts with bears and cougars at a wildlife coexistence presentation announced for Thursday, November 12, at 4:30 p.m. at the Bainbridge Island Senior Community Center, 370 Brien Drive SE.

The event announcement identifies Cole Janowski, a regional wildlife conflict specialist with the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, as a speaker. The program will discuss bear and cougar biology, their roles in local ecosystems, and ways to reduce conflicts between people and wildlife. A panel question-and-answer session is also planned.

The announcement says Janowski will discuss “ways to reduce conflict with the wildlife around us.”

Preventing those conflicts can begin at home. WDFW advises securing garbage, birdseed, pet food, and livestock feed so bears do not learn to associate neighborhoods with easy meals.

“Garbage management and removing attractants is the single best way to reduce human-bear interactions,” WDFW wrote in a report submitted to the Legislature in January 2025.

The agency says prevention can protect people and property while reducing the need to kill bears that become a public-safety risk after growing accustomed to human food sources.

Photo: U.S. Forest Service, via the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (public domain). Illustrative black bear photograph; not a Bainbridge Island sighting.

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A failing culvert on Fletcher Bay Road could be replaced with a crossing that allows fish to pass, under a proposal going to the Bainbridge Island City Council on October 27.

The culvert is north of High School Road, near the intersection. City staff say the project would also reconstruct aging road infrastructure in the immediate area.

The council is being asked to authorize advertising for a consultant to handle design and permitting. That step would begin the consultant selection process; it would not award a construction contract.

Staff estimate design consulting at $428,000. Their report identifies $1.24 million in the city’s capital improvement plan for the project, funded through storm and surface water management.

The City Council packet describes the existing structure as a “critical failing culvert.” It does not identify the fish species expected to benefit or estimate how much habitat would become accessible.

The Council packet attaches a capital plan that lists an earlier schedule of design in 2025 and construction in 2026. The new request does not provide an updated construction timetable.

The proposal is on the consent agenda for the October 27 meeting, which starts at 6 p.m. Pacific time. The council packet contains the staff report and project funding sheet.

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