On Oct. 28, the Orcas Island High School Environmental Club planted Sitka Spruce trees at the Mt. Baker Mitigation site.

It was a beautiful fall day, crisp and sunny, and perfect timing for transplanting trees.  The 2 -to 3-foot Sitka Spruce were nurtured in the Orcas Island School Garden this past year, but a spruce can grow up to 70 feet tall, so they needed to move.

Wetlands consultant Mindy Kayl and Farm to Classroom teacher Mandy Randolph thought the Mt. Baker Mitigation site would be a perfect home for the 20 young trees.

With support from San Juan County Public Works and the high school administration, four Orcas teens helped transplant the young spruce. They have mapped the approximate locations of the planted trees and hope that future club members will be able to visit the site and measure the growth of the trees.

The trees were initially donated by John Evans after Arbor Day in 2012.