Friends of Shades Creek
Upcoming Events
>Click here for completed Shades Creek Management Plan.
Thank you to all that donated to Friends of Shades Creek in 2021 and to those helping with creek cleanup, restoration projects and other activities. The Salamander Festival happens on January 29, 2022, it will be virtual and will include in-person outdoor hikes, focusing on Salamanders and our environment.
Thursday, January 13, 2022 – Monthly educational meeting – Restoration projects plus tree planting on Shades Creek. Learn about “live stakes” for restoration, trees to plant for riparian restoration areas and more. Video for this presentation is now on YouTube:
https://youtu.be/ffwfgEZa2pE
>Sign up for weekly E-Messages – information, activities, hikes, videos: [email protected]
2021 Shades Creek Fall Cleanup and Restoration Projects
The Fall 2021 Shades Creek Cleanup was held in person with small groups of time staggered volunteers, for social distancing. If you couldn’t join us on September 25, you can still help clean up Shades Creek. Email: [email protected] about locations and supplies for your cleanup. Job choices include: picking up trash, invasive removal, weed whacking, and other options.
>Our 23rd Fall Cleanup – Clean-up photos for 2021 and more:
Mr. Shadey is telling us a lot about trash in Shades Creek – Find out more here:
Photo by Tom Mann, Mississippi Museum of Natural Science
Salamander Festival
The next Salamander Festival will take place Saturday, January 29, 2022. The festival will take place virtually this year, because of many Covid cases. It begins on Saturday, January 29 and will run through the month of February. There will be an in-person component for the festival: Three times for outdoor small group hikes on Saturday, January 29 and two times for the hikes on Sunday, January 30th. Storyboard Nature Trail signs will be up at the Homewood Forest Preserve for self-touring hikes. Watch for more details.
2021 Salamander Festival video links and photos from 2020 festival.
Shades Creek Restoration
Learn about “live stakes” for restoration with Paul Freeman, which trees to plant for riparian restoration areas with forester, Henry Hughes and more. Zoom meeting was on 1-13-2022. YouTube video now available: https://youtu.be/ffwfgEZa2pE Sign up for future meetings: [email protected] to get Zoom link. Sign up for meetings and get Zoom link by email: [email protected]
>Link for all 2021 programs:
Shades Creek book
(Lakeshore Drive in 1914)
Did you know Lakeshore Drive in the years around 1914 was envisioned to be part of a speedway like the Indianapolis Speedway? “Shades Creek: Flowing Through Time,” written by The Birmingham Historical Society tells this story and more with over 365 photos and 216 pages including the above photo and story. Books are still available for only $30. Above photo is from the Alvin Hudson Collection, BPL Archives.
>More book information and how to order a book:
Shades Creek Watershed Management Plan
The Management Plan is here! Shades Creek is beautiful, yet has challenges caused by urban runoff. The Nature Conservancy in Alabama (TNC) has taken leadership to develop a watershed plan to restore the Creek. The Shades Creek Watershed Management Plan uses EPA’s 9-step watershed planning process.
>Slides from the first stakeholder meeting in 2020.
The Middle Way
The Homewood Valley Hotel, Curio Collection by Hilton displays a mural painting in the lobby by local artist, Tres Taylor, called “The Middle Way.” The painting tells a story about local history and features salamanders with flora and fauna from the Homewood and Shades Creek area.
>Find the story here.
2021 Tree Planting on Shades Creek with Centennial Trees
300 Centennial tree seedlings were planted on Shades Creek along the Shades Creek Greenway Trail on Saturday, Nov. 13. Nearly 100 participants helped representing several local groups.
>See more plus photos.
Centennial Tree seedlings are propagated from local seed sources of trees descended from the original native forest surrounding Shades Creek. The seedlings have been grown at Birmingham Botanical Gardens. Friends of Shades Creek conducts annual tree plantings.
>See more details about seedlings: