The Cumberland Community Forest Society is honoured to work with the family of the late Doug Waterfield to establish this memorial fund in his name.

Doug was born in Campbell River but his family has roots in Cumberland and he grew up loving the people and places of the Comox Valley.  Some of his earliest memories were of Comox Lake.  Although life sometimes took him far away from the countryside of his birth, he returned often and spent a great many happy days on Comox Lake with his family.  He loved hiking in the forests around the lake, picking berries and mushrooms and getting out in the boat to fish, often lingering near the outlets of the Cruikshank for the evening bite.

He taught his children how to walk carefully on steep slopes, to follow the tracks of deer over the hills around the lake and to identify plants which were good to eat. He also taught them something of the history of Cumberland, the stories of miners and strikes, logging camps and submerged trains and he took them to see places which were important to the history of the town and their family.

Even as he travelled around the world, he never found another place more beautiful than the landscape he called his paradise on earth.

His family believes that he would have been proud to be involved in the work of preserving and protecting the forests and waterways that he loved.

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Cheques can be sent to:
Cumberland Community Forest Society
Box 1239
Cumberland BC
V0R 1S0
attention: Doug Waterfield Fund

About Cumberland Forest

Since the year 2000 the Cumberland Community Forest Society (CCFS) has been purchasing and protecting privately held forest lands scheduled for logging adjacent to the Village of Cumberland.

Guided by the shared belief that this forest is now worth more to our community standing than as timber, the society is supported by individuals, families and businesses from Cumberland, across the Comox Valley and beyond. Protected lands become part of the Village’s Cumberland Community Forest municipal nature park.

This beautiful forest is part of both the Trent and Puntledge watersheds (the Comox Valley’s drinking water supply) and forms an important link in an extensive habitat corridor that connects mountains and lakes to the Salish Sea. The area is part of an interconnected system of forests, creeks, wetlands and riparian areas and is home to Little Brown Myotis and Townsend’s Big-eared Bats, Roosevelt Elk, Western Screech-Owl and Red-legged Frogs.

Over the years, this forest has given a great deal to our community. The Village of Cumberland was built on logging and mining and the Cumberland Community Forest was a base for both activities. Today an extensive trail network winds its way through the area that contributes significantly to Cumberland’s
economy and quality of life. This area is enjoyed by local and visiting hikers, mountain bikers, runners, children and families, school groups and many others.

With purchases in 2005 and 2016 totaling over 110 hectares (270 acres), the society is set to make another major purchase this year of 93 hectares (230 acres) along Perseverance Creek which is a tributary that flows into Comox Lake. This new purchase area contains trails like Bronco’s Perseverance, Hai Gai, Short and Curly and China Creek