New Partnerships on Our Riparian Walks
This summer, GWC’s ongoing nature walk series highlighted wonderful community partnerships while guiding participants along a variety of local riparian corridors. Dr. Jacob Zimmerer led our fourth excursion of 2026, the Cultural Relationships to Watersheds Tour. Members of the Gallatin Water Collaborative met along Sourdough Creek, the source of Bozeman’s drinking water, to reflect on reciprocity in our relationships with the land through fiber, food, water, and culture. Beneath the forest canopy, we examined our personal ties to the watershed and discussed the values that guide how we connect with our environment and community.
Our fifth outing brought us to Mandeville Creek, a small urban waterway flowing through the MSU campus, beneath Main Street, and into the East Gallatin River. Connor Parrish from Trout Unlimited joined community members to share the impressive restoration efforts under way on the creek’s lower reach, illustrating the benefits of giving urban streams room to meander. Walking the site, we observed newly developing habitats supported by beaver dam analogs that spread streamflow, flourishing native tree saplings, and rooting willow stakes.
For our sixth walk in August, participants gathered early over hot cups of locally roasted coffee provided by Russell Smith, Project Coordinator for the Bozeman Stormwater Department and our guide for Cattail Creek. Our discussions centered on native plants, wetlands, and stormwater management, providing an inside look at how our city and community care for the urban streams flowing through our neighborhoods. Check out KBZK’s coverage of our Cattail Creek walk!
These walks have been a joy to host, and we have three more to go this year! So, if you’re interested in getting in on the fun, join us at 5:30pm on September 22 at Lindley Park, and keep an eye out for more information about our walks in October and November. Let’s meander together!!
Connor Parrish explains restoration efforts at Mandeville Creek.
Written by Ben Buescher