SOUTHEAST BOISE, Idaho — Patrick Stoll has published a new book called An Abridged Natural History of the Bethine Church River Trail. It's a book that allows people to learn more about this popular trail along the Boise Greenbelt.
Stoll has been running on this trail for years, and after he started taking photos with his smartphone and doing research on the flora and fauna, he decided to write a book about this special trail between the Orange Bridge and Barber Park, where bikes are not allowed.
WATCH|Check out the video as Patrick Stoll takes us on a tour of this trail to show us what's included in his new book.
"Lots of people love the trail, and that’s the thing that I have found; it's such a good thing," said Stoll. "What I wanted to do is pick some of the things I thought people would find the most interesting."
Stoll reached out to me, and we met up to hike the trail in the morning. We could hear the sounds of birds chirping, people passing by with their dogs, and on my stroll with Stoll— he taught me about some of the plants he highlights in the book.
"A foundation species even goes beyond a keystone species because they really are the foundation of the whole ecosystem," said Stoll. "For this particular area, it's these black cottonwoods."
He showed me milkweed that feeds the monarch butterfly, the currant berries that a variety of species eat, three different types of willows, and even a grove of poison ivy to watch out for.
Stoll also showcased a spot that was popular for people to watch the activity of a bald eagle's nest. Unfortunately, the recent windstorm knocked down the limb the nest sat on, and it killed the baby eagles.
"In addition to destroying the nest, it killed the two eaglets, and people are really heartbroken about it," said Stoll. "It is interesting to see as people really kind of adopted them."
However, as things change in nature, the book also highlights the history of conservation that allows this natural area to thrive. The book also focuses on Bethine Church, the wife of former Idaho senator Frank Church.
"They were both so huge on protection and protecting the land and the resources," said Stoll. "This is a small example of some of the things Bethine really championed and was involved with.
The Bethine Church River Trail is only 1.6 miles long, but Patrick Stoll filled 188 pages of information and photos on this natural gem.
If you want to learn more about this area, there is so much more information in the book.
Right now, it is on sale at the MK Nature Center, Once and Future Books, and soon it could be coming to REI.
