Summer is winding down in the North Cascades — as everywhere else in the Northern Hemisphere — and we're giving thanks for the drizzly days, cooler temperatures and smoke-free skies this season. It's such a relief after last summer's sooty skies! Of course, September is some people's favorite month for getting out in to the mountains for backpacking, paddling, day-hiking and other forms of exploration. We hope you are making plans to get outside before the rains really return and Winter settles in.

Youth Leadership Adventures have wrapped up another successful year (see story below), and our Graduate M.Ed. students are transitioning from their summer Leadership Tracks to the campus portion of their studies, moving from the North Cascades to Bellingham to attend classes at WWU.

September 2019

▸ UPCOMING CLASSES & EVENTS

▸ NATURE OF WRITING SPEAKER SERIES IN BELLINGHAM

▸ RESTORING THE GRIZZLY BEAR & FISHER

▸ NORTH CASCADES VOLUNTEER DAYS

▸ FUNDRAISER AT CIAO THYME IN BELLINGHAM

Meanwhile, as some programs wind down, others are cranking up. Instructor staff at the Environmental Learning Center are training for Mountain School, our overnight environmental education program that kicks off the Fall season next week with students from Bellingham, Friday Harbor and Port Townsend. Conferences & Retreats are hosting two weddings (lucky couples!), a classic car meetup, reiki and yoga retreats and the 3rd annual Environmental Equity Weekend with youth from Latino Outdoors, Outdoor Asian, Outdoor Afro, InterIM Program Wild and the Duwamish River CleanUp Commission. Young people from these diverse groups are coming up to Diablo Lake for a couple days of connecting with one another and this special, wild place.

There are still a couple of weeks left of Skagit Tours — including a handful of Diablo Lake & Lunch Tours and Afternoon Cruises — as well as a digital photography retreat, fall mushroom excursion, birding the Salish Sea cruise and other small-group classes. And last but not least, we are looking forward to hosting multi-generational families at the Environmental Learning Center for a Thanksgiving Family Getaway, complete with a special feast made up of foods from our region.

Upcoming Classes & Events

September — Last call for Skagit Tours!
Sept 6-8 — Adventures NW Photography Workshop (ELC)
Sept 27-29 — Baker Lake Cleanup with RE Sources and Mount Baker Sierra Club - info
Sept 27-29: North Cascades Environmental Equity Weekend — by invitation
Sept 28 — North Cascades National Park Volunteer Day (see info below)
Oct 5-6 — Harvest Dinner Celebration at the Environmental Learning Center
Oct 19 — Mushrooming in the North Cascades
Oct 25-27: Kulapalooza Adventure Retreat for Women — sold out!
Oct 26 — Birding the Salish Sea with Joe Meche aboard the Snow Goose
November 19: "Our Wild Calling" - Richard Louv at Seattle's Town Hall
Nov 29-Dec 1 — Thanksgiving Family Getaway

2020 Family Getaways: Now open for registration ⤑

SIGN UP TODAY

Scholarships, student and military discounts and teacher credits may be available.
More info at info@ncascades.org or (360) 854-2599.

Nature of Writing Speaker Series in Bellingham

As the days grow shorter and nights stretch out, head into Fall with new books that explore and celebrate the natural wonders of the world! Join Village Books and North Cascades Institute in welcoming award-winning writers to Bellingham to share their latest works. From memoir to natural history, travelogue to nature poetry, regional history to environmental issues, you'll learn more about our wondrous planet through the voices of our country's most gifted authors in this series of free readings.

Sept 14 — Fred Brown's The City is More Than Human: An Animal History of Seattle

Sept 20 — Heather Hansman's Downriver: Into the Future of Water in the West

Sept 24 — Karl Marlantes' Deep River
at the Whatcom Community College

Sept 26 — David Guterson's Turn Around Time: A Walking Poem for the Pacific Northwest

Sept 27 — Caroline Van Hemert's The Sun is a Compass: A 4,000-Mile Journey Into the Alaskan Wilds

Sept 28 — Monika Shields' Endangered Orcas: The Story of the Southern Residents

October 2 — Adrienne Lindholm's It Happened Like This: A Life in Alaska

Oct 6 — Jack Nisbet's The Dreamer & the Doctor: A Forest Lover & a Physician on the Edge of the Frontier

Nov 1 — Tim Egan's A Pilgrimage to Eternity: From Canterbury to Rome in Search of Faith
at Bellingham High School ($)

Nov 16 — Tess Gallagher's Is, Is Not

Presentations are free! Most take place at Village Books in Bellingham, times vary.

LEARN MORE

Institute News

Another season of Youth Leadership Adventures is coming to a close. This summer, we served 36 students, and almost every student was awarded a scholarship to increase access to these transformative 12-day backcountry experiences to young people who otherwise couldn't afford them -- thanks to our generous donors and funders. A lot of strong connections, deep learning and reflection took place in the wilds of the North Cascades this summer, as the next generation of conservation leadership takes shape.

"I learned so much about myself and about the environment of my home, going back from Native Americans to the present of climate change," one student reflected after her trip.

"Youth Leadership Adventures changed me to become a better person for this obstacle course called the real world," shared another. "I saw that anything is possible no matter your size, shape, color or height."

One of our favorite moments from the summer was when a student shared his big takeaway from his trip: realizing that there are other people his age who have similar values surrounding the environment and climate change. The students said his group had many long conversations in the backcountry sharing ideas about what they can do to take meaningful personal actions.

"To me, this summarizes the amazing space we create through YLA," our staff member reflected. "Space for students to create connections with their peers and discover empowerment to tackle challenges in their own lives and in the environment."

Read more about Youth Leadership Adventures and how the impacts they are having on local students — many going backpacking and canoeing for their first time — in this great story from the Skagit Valley Herald.

SUPPORT GRIZZLY BEAR REINTRODUCTION

Grizzly bears roamed the North Cascades for thousands of years, yet by the mid-20th century, hunting and habitat loss nearly wiped them out. Today, fewer than 10 of these iconic species remain in the ecosystem. The National Park Service are accepting comments — again — on a Draft Environmental Impact Statement to guide restoration of the endangered grizzly bears in the North Cascades.

North Cascades Institute strongly supports reintroduction and we hope you'll submit your comments of support by October 24. Take Action Now ⤑

NORTH CASCADES NATIONAL PARK VOLUNTEER DAY SEPT 28

The NOCA Volunteer Day is a great way for organizations, groups, and individuals of all ages and abilities, to get outside, meet new people, and revitalize the park we all love. Projects include exotic plant removal, trail maintenance, fallen debris removal and more. Volunteers will meet at the Wilderness Information Center in Marblemount. Pre-register by September 13. For more information and registration, contact Jessica.

There is also a volunteer Baker Lake Cleanup weekend September 27-29; more info here.

Grizzly bears epitomize wildness. Where these iconic animals can live and roam, there is clear air, clean water and wild country. What’s good for bears is good for people, too.

— Chris Morgan, ecologist, filmmaker and bear advocate

Naturalist Note

The Return of the Fisher

The Reintroduction of a Carnivore in the North Cascades

What’s fierce, agile, and doesn’t hunt fish? A Fisher! The Fisher (Martes pennanti) is a medium-sized member of the weasel family that despite its name rarely eats fish. These carnivores can be found throughout temperate forests in North America, from the Northwest Territories down to Oregon. While you many have not have heard of this animal before, they have made local headlines over the past year because — after several decades of being absent from the North Cascades — they were finally brought back into this ecosystem last December!

LEARN MORE

Fundraiser at Ciao Thyme Commons

Join us and "share a meal for shared experiences in nature" on October 10 in Bellingham. Enjoy Ciao Thyme’s unique seasonal appetizers and dinner, along with local wine and beer, to raise money for school programs in Whatcom and Skagit County.

RSVP

Photo of mountain goat near Cascade Pass by Elevate Pro Photo. Nature of Writing artwork by Joe Anderson. Bear photo by Thomas Mangelsen. Stewardship by Benj Drummond / iLCP. Fisher release courtesy of National Park Service.