The Nature Nut

Published 12:30 pm Thursday, October 16, 2025

The fall colours are spectacular in the Bulkley Valley this year. On a recent trip down to Prince Rupert, we noticed that the colours were great until we got closer to Terrace. From there and most of the way along the Skeena River toward Prince Rupert, the cottonwood trees, normally a brilliant golden yellow in fall, were a drab yellowish-brown.

Many of the trees had already lost a lot of their leaves, and many of the leaves still on the trees were dry and bent out of shape.

I was particularly surprised at how drab the cottonwood forests growing on the floodplain islands looked, and we concluded that this was the result of the severe drought that hit the Terrace and surrounding area this year. It is hard to imagine that the water table level was so low, especially alongside the river.

We also have been subjected to drought in the Bulkley Valley, although this past year we had more rain, so it was not as severe as in previous years, and the Fall colours responded beautifully.

The drought is the result of climate warming and is predicted to get worse as global temperatures rise – unless there is a concerted effort made by all of us to reduce carbon emissions.

Recently, friends and I have been removing the introduced, invasive flowering weed common tansy (Tanacetum vulgare) from in and around Smithers in the hope that we can prevent it from taking over every roadside, vacant urban lot, garden, abandoned property, etc., as it has done in Terrace.

Recently, while digging tansy in Smithers along a roadside, we noticed that the soil was only wet for about 4-5 cm (even after torrential rain). Below that, the soil was bone dry, so even all the rain we have had this year has not remedied the effects of persistent drought in our valley in recent years.

It was a real shock for me to see how much tansy has spread all along the roadside going toward Prince Rupert. The road running down thea Skeen River from Hazelton all the way to Prince Rupert is noted for being one of the most beautiful, scenic and awe-inspiring trips in B.C.

My reaction to the lack of brilliant fall colours and the mess of tansy in Terrace and along Highway 16 is: “Why are we allowing this to happen – does anybody care?”