Recreational Opportunities

Recreational Opportunities

The Oak Creek Watershed is about 300,000 acres. It has long been celebrated nationally and internationally as a year-round destination. Trails for hiking and horseback riding, campsites, and settings for wildlife-watching abound. Cool shady pools of water provide an ideal setting for water recreation and a refuge from the dry, hot, prehistoric surroundings. There are two federally designated wilderness areas…

Clean Water Starts with Me

Clean Water Starts with Me

The objective of the Oak Creek Community Outreach Program (OCCOP) is to raise the awareness level, particularly of those living or recreating in the proximity of Oak Creek, regarding the consequences to littering and pollution, as well as changing the outdoor behavior of all visitors to Oak Creek. Keeping Oak Creek Clean and Healthy The objective of the Oak Creek…

Ambassadors: Year-by-Year Breakdown

Ambassadors: Year-by-Year Breakdown

Ambassadors 2021 The Oak Creek Watershed Ambassadors offer educational and volunteer experiences to engage groups and individuals in the critical work of protecting Oak Creek. Through stewardship events, educational outreach, and stream-side contact with recreators, the Ambassadors promote watershed protection through responsible recreation. They also maintain pet waste stations to reduce pollution and monitor water quality. Ambassadors 2019-2020 In 2020,…

Leave No Trace

Leave No Trace

Oak Creek Watershed Council embraces the philosophy of Leave No Trace. According to Wikipedia, Leave No Trace is a set of principles for participation in outdoor recreation that seeks to minimize the impact on the natural environment. Proponents of Leave No Trace believe that individual impacts caused by recreation can accumulate to degrade the land. Therefore, the Leave No Trace…

Macroinvertebrate Surveys

Macroinvertebrate Surveys

Soil erosion is impacting the ecological health of Oak Creek. When excessive sediment settles on the stream bottom it suffocates aquatic insects (a.k.a. benthic macroinvertebrates) that are key food prey items for fish and other wildlife. Sediment also serves as a reservoir for fecal contaminants (E. coli bacteria). Sedimentation occurs from erosion, which can be contributed to over-use of swimming…

2018 Water Quality Field Days

2018 Water Quality Field Days

On October 23-25th 2018, Oak Creek Watershed Council hosted Verde Valley students at Red Rock State Park for Water Quality Field Days. Six middle school classes, a total of 160 Verde Valley students, attended WQFD and participated in being “Citizen Scientists” and environmental stewards for their local waterways. Oak Creek Watershed Council partnered with the UofA Cooperative Extension Mobile Water Quality Lab.…

Water Sampling

Water Sampling

One of Oak Creek Watershed Council’s most important projects is water quality sampling. Oak Creek is one of the last remaining undisturbed riparian systems in the desert southwest and is crucial habitat to many native species, along with providing thousands of visitors every year with a place to cool off and enjoy the scenic beauty of this pocket of Northern…