April 17th E-Newsletter

Programs

An illustration of a woman wearing a recycling symbol as a dress

The 3rd Annual Trashion Show

THIS FRIDAY, April 19th

5:30-7:30PM

It's nearly here! Gather your lawn chairs, blankets, and snacks because it's nearly time to watch this year's assortment of environmental ensembles strut down the Green Carpet (the River Haus lawn). No registration required, just show up to join in on the fun. Be sure to bring a chair or blanket for the full viewing experience. Beverages will be available for purchase.

Catwalk Here

LAST CHANCE: Pre-Order Your Bird Fest Souvenirs!

Orders close May 1st!

Want to show your love for Bird Fest? Grab yourself a Bird Fest souvenir! Take home a shirt or sweatshirt from Evergreen Gift Shop, or a hat from Recaps if that's more your style. Thank you to Evergreen Gift Shop and R Digital Design for creating a beautiful graphic! Pre-order yours today and pick up at WRI any time during Bird Fest. Please note that merchandise will not be available for purchase at Bird Fest, you must pre-order your souvenir by May 1st.

Order Here

Red Barn Event: Fish are Friends

Tuesday, April 23rd

7:00PM-8:00PM

Gather in the Red Barn to hear about the Leavenworth National Fish Hatchery's updates on campus projects including major work on the Icicle River. Hatchery Manager, Mathew Maxey, will provide an overview of the hatchery and its operations. He'll provide insights into a variety of projects, tribal fisheries improvements, and projections for the future.

Keep Swimming Here

Photograph of people looking at birds with binoculars

Wednesday Wenatchee Birding

Wednesday, April 24th

7:30AM-9:30AM

Go birding with knowledgeable WRI staff around Walla Walla Point Park and the Horan Natural Area in Wenatchee! All birding skills are welcome. This is a FREE event and no registration is needed.

Bird Here

Illustration of 2 birds on a blue background

Birds Up Close: Ornithology Weekend

Saturday, April 27th AND Sunday, April 28th

Learn about birds like never before with this 2-day, hands-on exploration with ornithologist, Suzanne Tomassi. This class will focus on bird biology, evolutionary history, field techniques and more. Participants will even have an opportunity to set up mist nets to see live, wild birds up close! There is still financial aid available for this weekend. Don't let cost be a barrier to this amazing experience. Register online below.

Get Close Here

Plant Foraging Workshop: Horsetail

Monday, April 30th

6:00PM-7:30PM

Introducing a new workshop series: Plant Foraging! Join us for these instructional evenings where instructors will teach about identification, harvesting, and medicinal uses of various native plants. This workshop, with Sarah Michels of Infuse Organics , will focus on Horsetail and it's medicinal potential.

Forage Here

Small bird on a log with a white backdrop

22nd Annual Leavenworth Spring Bird Fest

May 16th-19th

Don't freak out, but Bird Fest is getting closer by the minute! We are so excited for another year of celebrating the return of Leavenworth's migratory birds. Birders of all levels are encouraged to explore one of our 40+ birding trips, workshops, and other activities. Trips are filling up fast, but there are still many trips with space! Learn more and register below.

BIRD FEST!!

Illustration of mother and child birding

Bird Fest Family Day

Saturday, May 18th

10:00AM-2:00PM

Looking for an easy way to drop by Bird Fest? Gather the whole family and visit Bird Fest Family Day on the WRI Lawn! This free vendor fair will feature local businesses, organizations, artists, and live music from Eric Link.

Family Activities Here

Youth Programs

Field Day Fun

A child wearing a patterned sweatshirt looking at a tree

Palisades Elementary

The entirety of Palisades Elementary visited WRI for the first of their 2 spring field trips! TK - 2nd graders were Habitat Detectives and explored the trails looking for signs of animals and their habitats. They learned about camouflage using beanie babies through a scavenger hunt and habitat building activity. 3rd - 6th graders were Earth Explorers. They explored the trails around our campus and learned about Fire Ecology and Erosion Control using the scientific method to isolate what variables cause fire and erosion danger.

St. Joseph's Catholic School

3rd grade students came to WRI to learn all about birds! Using stuffed birds, they got up close and personal to learn more about avian anatomy. They then practiced their bird watching skills using binoculars to identify wooden birds in the "What's That Bird" activity. They also learned some bird songs and calls. Then, we went on a bug hunt to learn more about the crawly critters on WRI's campus.

Place

Welcome to the WRI Team, Jack Jefferds!

After spending most of his childhood competitively swimming and playing soccer in Madison, Wisconsin, Jack was ready to move to the mountains. With a B.S. in Environmental Science & Sustainability from The University of Montana, he has been fortunate to teach people of all ages about the natural world in various places across the country. Jack is excited to bring his enthusiasm for the outdoors to WRI and hopes to inspire everyone who visits to find the joys all around us in nature. In his free time, Jack loves hiking, running, and Nordic skiing with his Australian shepherd, Riley.

Visit WRI in the Wild!

Want to see WRI outreach in action? We are excited to connect with our community at some upcoming events. We had a great time at the Sustainable NCW Earth Day Fair last week. We can't wait to see you at Waste Loop's Earth Day Fair in Enchantment Park on Sunday, April 21st.

Partner Event: Biochar and Burn Pile Workshop

Saturday, April 27th from 10:00AM to 4:00PM

Diary of a Land Steward #5

If you’ve been around WRI recently you might have noticed the large piles of trees and branches scattered across the landscape. It’s sad to take down all these trees, but we’re doing so for the sake of reducing the likelihood of a catastrophic upper-canopy fire. We are very lucky that the Fire Department can turn this material into soil-building and evaporation-reducing wood chip mulch that we will then spread throughout the landscape. Our general rule of thumb is to prune evergreens to 10’ above understory vegetation and no more than 50% of tree height. Trees under 8” in diameter at chest height we thin to about 8’ of spacing between canopy edges. Of course, these are all relative numbers, and we try to carefully observe the land before acting in an extractive way.

Entry and photo by Sean Eriksen, Land Steward

Thank you to our donors from the past 2 weeks!

Martha Bean and Ralph Haugerud - Sustaining

Kevin Murphy

Constance Cogburn and Andrew Day - Sustaining

Hillary and Chris Clark - Sustaining

Annette Jouard and John Taylor - Sustaining

Russ and Cordy Backstead

Chuck and Candace Egner - Sustaining

David Stoller and Diane Patterson - Sustaining

Kamuron Gurol - Sustaining

Das Sweet Shoppe