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he final large-scale canyon construction occurred in 1957, with the excavation of the north bank for the construction of the cross-canyon dorms. Since then the canyon has largely been left to fend for itself, as the management regime for the canyon has shifted from recreation through transformation to recreation through preservation. Canyon Days have subsequently seen energies spent focusing on trail repair, revegetation efforts, and other types of general maintenance rather than prescriptive measures for turning it into an urban park. Whatever level of wildness remains in the canyon, efforts are made to let it run its course while protecting the canyon from potential ecological catastrophes such as invasive plant species.
Last year's extravaganza was led by Canyon Day signator Eric Buhle '98, and as in the recent past, the day had been scheduled to coincide with Earth Day, which falls each year in the latter half of April. Pleading before the Student Senate, Buhle managed to acquire enough funds to lay out a nice spread of food, drink, and other goodies. Additionally, in consultation with various members of the physical plant office, the faculty, the Green Board, and the 1995 signator, Nancy Hoegler '97, he had identified key areas of concern and identified a plan of attack. There was quite a lot to be done--blackberries and other nasty vines had left great swaths of the canyon devoid of ground cover. The severity of the previous winter added to the work list, as record rains, floods, cold, and wind had all done their part to rearrange the canyon. The physical plant office staff was, as always, exceedingly generous with support, providing tools, a wide stock of native Northwest species for transplant, even a tractor--which later narrowly escaped being sucked into the depths of the famous canyon mud.
fter a week-long blitz of fullscale publicity, a sudden wave of rampant volunteerism struck campus, exceedingly rare the Saturday before the final week of classes. Spirits buoyed by the good food and drink, Buhle's able leadership, and the knowledge that their cause was just, a healthy horde of Reedies turned out to dig, plant, and fix. Work was done all along the length of the canyon, repairing washed-out sections of trail and adding large numbers of ferns, salal, Oregon grape, western red cedar, red alder, and other plants to the landscape. Many vines were chopped, and much mud was strewn about. As the sunlight lengthened and the day turned to dusk, many present began to feel anew the nagging urge to clean up and return to the library. As Canyon Day drew to a close, the progress made by a day's worth of stewardship became clear.
Nathan Coutsoubos, a senior in biology, comes from Battle Ground, Washington. His article on reintroducing salmon into the Reed canyon appeared in the May 1996 issue of Reed.
Thanks to Marilyn Kierstead, Reed College archives, for the historical photos
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