The State of the Birds
Springtime is slowly and reluctantly arriving in the North Cascades. I’ve been delighted to hear some familiar bird songs returning; brightening up the forest and telling me …
Read More of The State of the Birds
Springtime is slowly and reluctantly arriving in the North Cascades. I’ve been delighted to hear some familiar bird songs returning; brightening up the forest and telling me …
Read More of The State of the Birds
Puma, Mountain Lion, Cougar…regardless of nomenclature this incredible animal is synonymous with elusive. Many could spend a lifetime in cougar habitat and never glimpse even a sign …
Read More of Tracking the Puma concolor
A winter weather advisory is currently in effect for the west slopes of the Cascades, the trails around the learning center are covered with deep, crusty snow …
Read More of Twig tracking: a sport for the impatient
I went exploring last week, just to see what I could discover on a cold winter day in February. What I found was abundant evidence of one …
Read More of Middens abound
I’ve recently taken up a new hobby, I like to call it twig tracking. I started twig tracking to feel more connected, to feel at home in …
Read More of Twig tracking
Anyone that has spent much time at the ELC has seen, or at least heard stories, of the waterfall. Every Mountain School student secretly hopes to visit …
Read More of The destructive forces of Mother Nature
Last week I asked my fifth grade Mountain School students how they would describe the color of a Vine maple leaf. This is not a question I …
Read More of Fall colors
……they grow on everything. They come in all colors, shapes, textures and sizes; orange, yellow, brown, spotted, purple, red, smooth, white, black, shaggy, cupped, and fringed. Every …
Read More of Mushrooms are everywhere…..
I had an unexpected natural history moment a few weeks ago when the first group of Mountain School students arrived. They were restlessly waiting in the amphitheater …
Read More of Squirrels eat mushrooms?