Bird Fest Registration is OPEN!

WRI and NCW Audubon Society are excited to present the 20th annual Leavenworth Spring Bird Fest! Join us in celebrating the return of migratory birds and take part in birding field trips, workshops, events, and more! This year, it is happening on May 19th-22nd with beginner birding activities happening the week leading up to Bird Fest weekend. Registration for all field trips and workshops is now open.

eBird Survey at WRI

Wednesday, April 13th

8:00AM-9:30AM

Join WRI's knowledgeable naturalists on a birding survey around the WRI Campus! eBird is the largest biodiversity-related community science project in the world. WRI will record your observations online. All skill levels are welcome!

Bird Here

Spring Saunter

Thursdays & Fridays beginning April 14th

10:00AM-12:00PM

Join WRI for a two-hour spring nature walk as the flower buds start to show and the wildlife shake off the cold of winter! You will learn about the natural and cultural history of Leavenworth and take in the scenic views!

Saunter Here

Trashion Show Registration

due Friday, April 15th

Join us for the 1st annual Trashion Show on April 22nd at 5:30PM! Create a team to build a wearable garment made with recycled materials and/or repurposed clothes. Your outfit will be modeled down the runway and you could win a prize. All ages are encouraged to participate! Attending the event requires no registration.

Get "Trashy" Here

River Clean-Up by Foot

Saturday, April 16th

10:00AM-12:00PM

Join us to clean up along the Wenatchee River! April is a great time of year for this work since we’ll be able to remove any garbage that has accumulated over the winter before the river rises and washes things downstream. We will go for 2 hours, but you may leave whenever you like!

Clean the River Here

TONIGHT

Composting with Red Wrigglers

Wednesday, April 6th

7:00PM-8:00PM

WRI, Waste Loop, and Sustainable NCW present an evening learning about indoor composting with Red Wrigglers! You will learn how to start composting with worms (vermicomposting) and how to turn your food scraps into nutrient-rich soil!

Vermicompost Here

Community Compost Program

Thursday, April 14th

7:00PM-8:00PM

Join WRI, Waste Loop, and Winton Manufacturing Compost Works to learn about the new community composting program coming to Leavenworth! You will hear about plans for the new program, including pilot programs with local restaurants and compost implementation in schools.

Compost Here

Community Garden Plots Available

There are 5 more plots available in the E. Lorene Young Community Garden! WRI welcomes new and experienced gardeners alike who seek opportunities to share garden space, celebrate community, and foster green thumb wisdom to join the E. Lorene Young Community Garden. Register below to secure your plot!

Field Day Programs

WRI's Field Day programs are back in full swing! Third grade students from St. Joseph's Catholic School visited WRI and got to explore the wild birds that live here. In the Wild Birds program, students learn about bird anatomy and behavior, conduct research on a real bird specimen, learn to use field guides and binoculars, and learn bird songs through fun games!

Kindergarteners and 2nd grade students from Peshastin-Dryden Elementary also participated in Field Days. Kindergarteners were Nature Explorers here at WRI. They spent a full day exploring WRI looking for bugs and signs of spring. They learned about seeds and got to know a special tree by using most of their senses. Second grade students were Habitat Detectives at their school. They learned how to look at a tree as a habitat for plants and animals on their school property.

Thank you to our volunteers who have helped with Field Days in the last two weeks: Tim Abel, Kathy Prentice, and Susan Thomas.

Traveling Naturalist Field Days

WRI's Traveling Naturalist Classroom Program reaches 4th and 5th grade classrooms across North Central Washington. Currently, WRI visits 24 classrooms across 5 schools. This program includes monthly classroom visits and a Field Day. In the last two weeks, WRI staff have been busy delivering Field Days to several classrooms!

So far:

Fourth grade students from Brewster Elementary had a Field Day at Bridgeport State Park
Fifth grade students from Brewster Elementary had a Field Day at Confluence State Park
Students from Morgen Owings Elementary had a Field Day at Lake Chelan State Park
Students from Manson Elementary came to WRI for a Field Day

In these Field Days, students got to explore the area and learn about the wild birds that live there! More classrooms will have their Field Days in April & May.

Volunteer with Youth Programs this Spring

We have many volunteer opportunities coming up this spring working with students outside in our Field Day and Traveling Naturalist programs! If you'd like to volunteer, check out the list of opportunities and dates by clicking the link below. Please register for your desired date(s) and program(s) to volunteer. We couldn't do what we do without the help of our dedicated volunteers - thank you!

Volunteer Here

FireWise Work at WRI

This spring, WRI will be doing some FireWise work and hazard tree removal. We are motivated to do this for several reasons:

Fire risk – not only for WRI, but for our neighbors
Risk of trees falling on people or structures
Tree health (dead trees, pine bark beetle infestation, etc.)
Removing some trees will improve the health of the trees that remain

More work will be done this June. Thank you to Cascadia Conservation District for coordination and the 20+ crew of volunteers from Team Rubicon! A local contractor is removing and limbing trees. We are excited to work with them to improve the health of our existing trees and reduce fire risk.

Are You FireWise?

We are hiring for seasonal and permanent positions!

Join the WRI Education Team! We are seeking to hire both seasonal and year-round positions. Click the link below to read more about the positions and how to apply. Applications are being accepted and will be reviewed on a rolling basis.

Learn More Here

Thank you to our donors from the last 2 weeks!

John and Judy Beebe

Lynn Dickinson - Sustaining

Laura and Greg Reichlin - Sustaining

The Hooter Fund, Oregon Community Foundation

Christine Emmel - Sustaining

Janice Martinez Carroll and Mark Carroll

Orin and Lisa Melvin - Sustaining

Gro Buer and Bruce Williams - Sustaining

Mark Weick and Carole Ann Borshard - Sustaining

Molly Kent

Linnea and Matthew Augustine

Leavenworth Chamber of Commerce

Munchen Haus

Richard Carlson

Karla Gustafsson