ARLINGTON – Almost within sight of his “pet cedar” – a 10-foot-wide behemoth – U.S. Navy forester Walter Briggs stopped short.
Michael V. Martina / The Herald
A bog had caught his interest.
Dropping to his knees, Briggs plunged his right arm into the black peat. He kept going, past his elbow, reaching as deep as he could.
Muscling out a fistful of black goo, Briggs said, “You know what this will do in your garden?”
The teachable moment was just one messy example of the enthusiasm that helped Briggs save this old forest, which looms over Twin Lakes at Naval Radio Station Jim Creek several miles east of Arlington.
The 57-year-old forester just received an honor as rare as the massive Sitka spruces that guard the lakes’ boggy shores. The Navy has named this 225-acre stand the Walter R. Briggs Old Growth Forest.
The honor is unusual because Briggs is still alive and still working. The Navy usually names things only after admirals or presidents, typically after they have either died or at least retired, said Cmdr. Steve McLaughlin, executive officer of Naval Station Everett.
Rear “Admiral (Len) Hering and those of us involved felt like this was one of those exceptions,” McLaughlin said.
The reason is Briggs’ exceptional dedication to preserving this forest. He worked for 15 years to persuade paper companies to spare the stand in 1993. He leaned on top brass in the Navy to fork over $3 million, winning them over with guided tours that included soggy hikes through beaver marshes.
Whether he was stepping into the pond up to his waist or delicately pointing out a tiny saxifrage flower, Briggs’ enthusiasm was contagious during a visit Friday. Although the Poulsbo-based forester is in charge of 15,000 acres of Navy timberland across nine western states, none is as special as the stand at Twin Lakes, he said.
Leading the way to one particularly enormous Sitka spruce, he said the tree probably was 800 years old, growing out of a nurse log that was at least 200 years older.
“You’re looking at 1066, the Norman conquest of England, King Arthur and the boys,” he said.
Most lowland stands of huge, old Sitka spruce have been logged or protected in places such as Olympic National Park.
Briggs’ forest is accessible only to Navy families or retired military personnel and their families, not the public. Naval Radio Station Jim Creek’s primary purpose is to maintain the giant antennas and transmitters that communicate with the Pacific submarine fleet, but it also has recreational facilities, including canoe rentals and hiking at Twin Lakes.
Now, the trail on the lakes’ eastern shore also has a sign and aluminum plaque memorializing Briggs.
He said he was touched by the honor.
“I’m not dead, and I didn’t have to be president, and I get this extremely pleasant forest named after me,” he said, grinning.
It can come in handy, too. Occasionally, people try to wander into a part of the stand he has set aside for wildlife and bird nesting habitat. If they challenge him, he’s got a ready answer.
“Now I can say, ‘It’s my forest,’ ” he joked.
Reporter Scott Morris: 425-339-3292 or smorris@heraldnet.com.
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