It was a beautiful spring day at Alki Beach. It was low tide, and groups of schoolchildren walked undaunted into pools of water, knelt down and ran their fingers through the mud. It was a perfect day at the beach, a perfect day to warm our Seattle-pale complexions in the sun, a perfect day to launch the MudUp campaign to save the shorelines of Puget Sound.

Yes, after over a month of viral teasing, it was finally time for the big reveal. And so, we can officially say that The Nature Conservancy, the Trust for Public Land, and People For Puget Sound have formed an historic alliance to protect and restore Puget Sound’s shorelines. It’s an enormous multi-year initiative with ambitious goals for the next three years and beyond, and we’re thrilled to be helping out these three non-profit groups with MudUp, a public engagement campaign that reaches out to people in the spirit of fun, community involvement, and the joy of getting muddy for a good cause.
Governor Chris Gregoire had officially declared this day MudUp day for Puget Sound, and the assembled crowds were abuzz with enthusiasm as a most unusual press conference was held. Jeff Compton of The Nature Conservancy spoke eloquently on behalf of the Mud Monster; Allison Rone, (Harvard Law student and Miss Emerald City 2007), spoke of her plans to MudUp this summer; and Bill Ruckelshaus, EPA legend and recently appointed chair of the Puget Sound Partnership, roused the crowds with a call to action. As the band Big Dirt launched into the campaign theme song, Ruckelshaus cut a fat strand of beach grass with large garden shears, and the crowds — all clad in rubber boots — began to cheer.

Festivities continued on the beach and inside the bathhouse. The crowd sipped Swamp Monster drinks, nibbled on Mud Morsel truffles, and watched demonstrations of all the different sorts of restoration activities — muddy and not so muddy — that people can find at MudUp.org.

After months of down-and-dirty preparations, it was exhilarating to finally launch this campaign. And yet, the hard work has only just begun. We invite all Puget Sound residents and wannabes to join us in our modern day take on a Guthrie classic:

THIS SOUND IS YOUR SOUND

Chorus:
This Sound is your Sound, this Sound is my Sound
From Golden Gardens, to the San Juan Islands
From Olympic forest, to the Narrows’ waters
This Sound was made for you and me

I’ve roamed and rambled and I’ve followed my footsteps
To the sparkling sands of our parks and beaches
And all around me a voice was calling
This Sound was made for you and me

Repeat Chorus

The sun came shining as I was strolling
The sailboats sailing and the rain clouds rolling
As the fog was lifting, a voice came chanting
This Sound was made for you and me

Repeat Chorus

As I was walking a ribbon of tideway
I saw above me an endless skyway
I saw below me a golden blue sea
This Sound was made for you and me