Maintenance work at Lincoln Community River Park

Local volunteers got together July 17 to pull weeds and perform maintenance at the Lincoln Community River Park on Stemple Pass Road.

Weed control is one of the biggest challenges in the park and needs ongoing attention. This is where volunteers and park goers alike can be of assistance. While volunteer days are often scheduled on short notice due to the weather dependency of weed spraying, park goers can help by pulling weeds and disposing of them while they are visiting the park.

The property, which was purchased by Five Valleys Land Trusts in 2016, provides safe, public access by foot or bicycle to the Blackfoot River. The park is now managed by the Five Valleys Land Trust, but the maintenance performed there is all done through volunteers.

Improvements to the river park began in 2015, when Paul Roos purchased the property to help provide public access to the river. Roos installed a gate to prevent motorized access to the river, and in 2017 the Lincoln Volunteer Fire Department later helped with additional improvements including fencing of the parking lot.

Lewis and Clark County is currently conducting an analysis on the property, as it lies in the flood plain zone. Once that analysis is complete, and depending on those findings, the next big project for the park would be hardening the trails to make access to the river easier.

Ernie and Renee Lundberg, who helped organize the maintenance day, want to thank all the volunteers who came out to help last week and remind everyone that the park is there and available to those who want to access it. For those who would like to be added to a list to be called when work needs to be done at the park, contact the Lundbergs at 362-4072.