If you were to get in your car and drive just five minutes from downtown Chilliwack, you may be surprised at what you hear.
Or, perhaps, what you don’t hear.
You’ll find the peaceful sound of silence.
“I mean, the sounds of the forest are so magical,” said Chilliwack Park Society board member Graham Houlker.
“I do think we’re really lucky to be surrounded by so much outdoor space that is currently untouched, but it’s something that we take for granted.”
Chilliwack is known for its stunning scenery, and world-class hiking in and around the city limits. And according to the park society, the ongoing efforts to continue transforming the city’s greenspace into recognized trails is reflected in the growing community using them everyday.
The Progress took a short hike with four members of the park society (Houlker, board member Chrystal Gillingham, president Pollaris Raymond, and vice-president Dr. Marc Greidanus) at the top of the Little Mountain Stairs – a project they played a large part in developing. It wasn’t until recently that the City of Chilliwack recognized Little Mountain as a city trail, before the 300 steps up to the top – made from recyclable materials – was completed in early 2023.
The park society – established in 2014 – spends its time overseeing most of the city-run parks and trails, including the likes of the Community Forest, as well as the more recently developed Lexw Qwò:m Park.
In addition to the Little Mountain Preservation Project, the park society has spearheaded the growth of the Community Forest. In the eastern hillsides of Chilliwack, the Community Forest sat as over 130 acres of mostly untouched mature forest. But in 2014, the park society received permission from the city to cultivate trails, and with the help of hundreds of volunteers, it now boast more than 20 kilometres of passages through the greenery.
The park society then turned its attention to the newly opened Lexw Qwò:m Park in 2019. Located just a few kilometres from the Community Forest, the park society, once again with the help of volunteers, developed a system of trails through the park that connect to it the Community Forest.
Like with many of their projects, the group emphasized the important role that volunteers play in the upkeep of the municipal spaces.
“People can volunteer. Anybody can come out and help with the trailbuilding,” said Gillingham. “We’re always happy to teach people new skills and even just come out and hang out in the forest and see what we’re doing. No experience is necessary.”
“People are often intimidated,” said Greidanus. “They say ‘I don’t know how to trailbuild.’ That’s okay you don’t need to. We know how to.”
“Bring your kids, bring everybody. This is what we do in trailbuilding with the family,” added Gillingham.
The growth though, isn’t one just coming in the physical form of trails through the forests. All four members spoke candidly about the changes they’ve noted in the community. The City themselves have also acknowledged the growth as verified by the trail counters that exist at many of the city-run trails/parks.
According to city stats, many of the municipal trails have seen an increase in daily usage, with areas like the Vedder Campground seeing over 250 daily users in 2023 — an almost 50 per cent jump in daily usage from when the city first started tracking it in 2020. Others like the Vedder Rotary Trail are seeing more than double that with an average of more than 560 daily users in 2023.
Greidanus — who is also an ER doctor here in Chilliwack — sees this as a win for the park society, but also the city as a whole regarding the collective health of residents.
“I wouldn’t be able to give you numbers, I can’t quantify that,” said Greidanus. “But what we’ve created is a community of people that care about the space, and absolutely want to make it better. It’s a huge driver of personal health, right? Like it’s more important than what you eat. It’s more important than the drugs you take to lower your cholesterol.”
The park society fosters a powerful sense of community. Aside from partnering with schools to encourage volunteers to help with trailbuilding, they have also run a field trip program since 2015 for elementary-aged kids.
They’ve offered field trips to the Community Forest and Lexw Qwò:m Park, free of charge, primarily to students in Grades 2 to 5. In recent years, they’ve looked to expand field trip opportunities from Kindergarteners, all the way to Grades 7 and 8.
Things have shifted this year.
The park society relies heavily on donations and grants, both federal and provincial, to ensure a continued ability to fund their operations. Ahead of this season though, they have yet to receive the full amount in grants that they have come to expect in years past.
“We’ve been really lucky up until now to get some base funding, from the City of Chilliwack, and Tourism Chilliwack as well, to do some trail maintenance because we work on city parks,” said Greidanus.
“And then we’ve been funding the rest of our activities, including our field trip program, just by applying for grants. We’ve been lucky to slowly grow over the past decade, but things just aren’t lining up this year.”
“Our grants aren’t hitting, and we’re about $15,000 short.”
But interest in the program is still as high as ever. They have seen all their available field trips for the upcoming season already completely booked up.
Amid some speed bumps, the park society still looks onward, pleading for any volunteers who are willing to aid in their efforts to continue the preservation of the beautiful space that fills and surrounds the city of Chilliwack.
Residents can support the park society’s fundraising efforts through their website, chilliwackparksociety.ca, as well as volunteering for trailbuilding days which are often posted to their social media accounts and signing up for their newsletter.
To see this story as it ran in our special section on April 26, 2024 see our e-edition here: Chilliwack in Progress