We are currently experiencing technical difficulties with our registration system. You may receive an error message after you submit your registration form. Don’t worry! You ARE registered and all set to participate in the Clean-Up. We apologize for the confusion.

The Johnson Creek Clean-Up IS HERE! This is our wettest wildest, dirtiest, sweatiest, and FUNNEST stewardship event of the year. Since 2007, volunteers like you have jumped into Johnson Creek and pulled out 65 tons of trash from the water. That’s right: 65 tons! This is a unique opportunity to actually get in the creek and remove litter from where it matters the most. You won’t want to miss it!

Arrive at your site at 9:00 am to meet your team and Creek Captain and learn how to be safe in the water. Spend ~3 hours in the creek picking up trash, then travel to Mill Park in Milwaukie for a delicious burrito lunch at 12 noon.

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What: Remove trash from Johnson Creek! Get in the water or stay on land and help remove tons of trash from in and around the creek. Stick around afterward for FREE lunch and community bonding.

When: Saturday, August 20th, from 9:00 am – 12 noon (updated start time!), followed by FREE lunch

Where: About a dozen sites throughout the watershed! See site descriptions below. Detailed directions to your site will be emailed to you before the event. Lunch will be at Mill Park (6201 SE Overland St.) in Milwaukie.

How to register: Registration is open now!!

1. Carefully read the site descriptions below. Each site is different and some are more physically challenging than others.

2. Pick the site at which you want to volunteer.

3. Register for ONLY the specific site at which you will volunteer.

4. If you are coming as part of a group, each person in your group needs to register separately.

How to prepare: This event will happen rain or shine, so dress for weather: rain coat, warm layers, sun hat, and sunscreen as necessary. Wear shoes and clothes you don’t mind getting wet and muddy. You will be walking in the creek in your shoes. We recommend light-weight shoes like sneakers, running shoes, or breathable hiking boots that will drain easily, rather than heavy boots that will stay water-logged. Do not wear sandals, crocs, etc.–it’s not safe! However, you may want to bring an extra set of footwear to change into at the end. Bring a filled water bottle and a snack.

We will provide: Gloves and all necessary tools, plus free lunch at the end of the event. We can also provide bus fare to and from the event. Please contact gwyn@jcwc.org to arrange bus fare. Sorry, we cannot provide waders for this event.

Children unfortunately are not permitted. This event involves wading in deep water and contact with potentially harmful materials, such as broken glass, and is not suitable for children. Youth 14 years old and older are welcome if accompanied by an attentive adult.

Accessibility: This event may require wading in water greater than 2 feet deep (see site descriptions for details; not all sites require wading), standing for long periods, walking over uneven ground, going up or down steep slopes, bending, and lifting heavy objects. Each site has different requirements so we can accommodate most physical ability levels. If you have questions about the physical requirements of the event, please contact gwyn@jcwc.org. Plus, we have jobs for every level of physical ability! If you don’t want to get your feet wet but still want to help, check our our Special Jobs section below.

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Special Jobs

If you don’t want to get in the creek and pick up litter, but still want to help, that’s great! We need everyone’s help. Special jobs start later in the day, as the main event is winding down, and continue into the afternoon. Join us for lunch along with the rest of the volunteers, then get to work! Special jobs include:

– Directing traffic for the post-Clean-Up celebration at Mill Park. Time commitment: approximately 11:30 am – 12:30 pm. Requires: standing.

– “Trash royalty” who monitor and sort the trash delivered to dumpster (one of our most important jobs!). Time commitment: 1:00 – 5:00 pm. Requires: standing, lifting, bending

– Trash loaders who ride along with Portland Parks & Recreation staff and help them load trash from sites. Time commitment: 1:00 – 5:00 pm. Requires: standing, sitting, lifting, bending

– Transporting “special” trash (like tires) to designated disposal sites. Time commitment: 4:00-5:00pm. Requires: a truck, lifting, bending

Click here to register for special jobs!

We are currently experiencing technical difficulties with our registration system. You may receive an error message after you submit your registration form. Don’t worry! You ARE registered and all set to participate in the Clean-Up. We apologize for the confusion.

Sites & Registration

Zoom and pan the map above to see the locations of the sites and read descriptions of each site’s working conditions.

Willamette Upstream

Approximate location: McLoughlin Blvd & Harrison St (Milwaukie)

Description: Access creek from bank, variably deep water (<6 to >12 inches), bedrock exposed, some steep banks

Number of volunteers needed: 5+ This site needs more volunteers!

Thank you to OTAK for adopting this site!

Click here to register for Willamette Upstream!

Milport Downstream

Approximate location: McLoughlin Blvd between Hwy 224/Milwaukie Expy St and Milport Rd (Milwaukie)

Description: Walk fully in the creek, mostly shallow water (<6 inches), smooth bottom may be slippery. Placed logs may have deeper pools (>12 inches). Limited access points to get in and out of the creek.

Number of volunteers needed: 5+ This site needs more volunteers!

Click here to register for Milport Downstream!

Milport Upstream

Approximate location: McBrod Avenue between Ochoco St and Milport Rd (Milwaukie)

Description: Walk fully in the creek, mostly shallow water (<6 inches deep) with a couple of deeper pools (>12 inches deep) that can be avoided, smooth bottom may be slippery. Limited access points to get in and out of the creek.

Number of volunteers needed: 5+

Thank you to Treecology for adopting this site!

Click here to register for Milport Upstream!

Johnson Creek City Park Upstream

Approximate location: McLoughlin Blvd between Umatilla St and Marion St (Sellwood)

Description: Walk fully in the creek, some deeper pools (>12 inches) that can not be avoided, some angular rock on creek bottom. Relatively good access points.

Number of volunteers needed: 10+

Click here to register for Johnson Creek City Park Upstream

Berkeley Place Downstream

Approximate location: Tacoma St west of  32nd Ave (Sellwood)

Description: Walk fully in the creek, some deeper pools (>12 inches) that can be mostly avoided, smooth rock on creek bottom. Limited access points.

Number of volunteers needed: 5+ This site needs more volunteers!

Click here to register for Berkeley Place Downstream

Tideman Johnson City Park – On Land

Approximate location: Tideman Johnson City Park (inner SE PDX)

Description: Clean up park grounds, mostly staying on paths with some walking through brush. Some paths are relatively steep.

Number of volunteers needed: 5+

Click here to register for Tideman Johnson City Park!

Tideman Johnson Upstream

Site full! Thank you to Precision Castparts for adopting this site.

Mill Park Downstream

Site full! Thank you to Precision Castparts for adopting this site.

Springwater Corridor Trail (Linwood-Bell) – On Land

Approximate location: Springwater Corridor  Trail between Linwood Ave and Bell Ave (inner SE PDX)

Description: Walk on land along the Springwater Corridor Trail. Beware of fast-moving bicycles.

Number of volunteers needed: 5+ This site needs more volunteers!

Click here to register for Springwater Corridor Trail!

Mill Park Upstream

Approximate location: Johnson Creek Blvd between Linwood Ave and Bell Ave (inner SE PDX)

Description: Walk fully in the creek, mostly shallow water (<6 inches) with some deeper pools (>12 inches) that can be avoided. Smooth rocks on creek bottom may be slippery and angular rocks may be present. Limited access points.

Number of volunteers needed: 5+

Thank you to PGE for adopting this site!

Click here to register for Mill Park Upstream!

Bell Station Upstream

Approximate location: Johnson Creek Blvd east of Bell Ave (inner SE PDX)

Description: Walk fully in the creek, moderately deep water (~6 inches deep) with some deeper pools (>12 inches) that can not be avoided. Smooth rocks on creek bottom may be slippery and angular rocks may be present. Limited access points.

Number of volunteers needed:Sorry! This site unfortunately has been cancelled due to unforeseen circumstances.

Luther Road

Approximate location: Luther Road Natural Area (inner SE PDX)

Description: Walk on land along the Springwater Corridor Trail. Beware of fast-moving bicycles.

Site full! Thank you to Northwest Family Services for adopting this site.

Luther Downstream

Approximate location: South of Luther Road (inner SE PDX)

Description: Walk in the creek and access from the banks. Moderately deep water (~6 inches) with deeper pools (>12 inches) that can be avoided. Smooth rocks on creek bottom may be slippery and placed logs may have deep pools. Good access points.

Number of volunteers needed: 10+ This site needs more volunteers!

Click here to register for Luther Downstream

Thank you to Boys Team Charity of Happy Valley for adopting this site.

82nd Downstream

Approximate location: Between Luther Rd and 82nd (inner SE PDX)

Description: Walk fully in the creek, moderately (~6 inches deep) with some deeper pools (>12 inches) that can be avoided. Smooth and angular rock on creek bottom may be slippery. Limited access points.

Number of volunteers needed: This site has plenty of volunteers! There’s room for more if you really, really, really want to join this site, but please consider signing up for a different site so each site can have enough volunteers.

Thank you to the PDX Single 30 & 40 Somethings Meetup group for adopting this site!

Click here to register for 82nd Downstream!

82nd Upstream

Approximate location: 82nd Ave to Lambert St (outer SE PDX)

Description: Walk fully in the creek, moderately deep water (~6 inches) with some deeper pools (>12 inches) that can not be avoided. Smooth and angular rock on creek bottom may be slippery. Limited access points.

Number of volunteers needed: This site has plenty of volunteers! There’s room for more if you really, really, really want to join this site, but please consider signing up for a different site so each site can have enough volunteers.

Thank you to the Rotary Clubs of Clackamas and Happy Valley for adopting this site!

Click here to register for 82nd Upstream!

92nd Downstream

Approximate location: Lambert St to 92nd Ave (outer SE PDX)

Description: Walk fully in the creek, moderately deep (~6 inches) water with some deeper pools (>12 inches) that can not be avoided. Smooth and angular rock on creek bottom may be slippery. Limited access points.

Number of volunteers needed: 10+ This site needs more volunteers!

Click here to register for 92nd Downstream!

92nd Upstream

Approximate location: 92nd Ave to Knapp St (outer SE PDX)

Description: Walk fully in the creek, moderately deep (~6 inches) water with some deeper pools (>12 inches) that can be avoided. Smooth and angular rock on creek bottom may be slippery. Limited access points.

Number of volunteers needed: 10+ This site needs more volunteers!

Click here to register for 92nd Upstream!

We are currently experiencing technical difficulties with our registration system. You may receive an error message after you submit your registration form. Don’t worry! You ARE registered and all set to participate in the Clean-Up. We apologize for the confusion.