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sound mapping

Quietude

forest
May 11, 2014Katherine Renz

Highway 20 opened last Thursday at noon after six months of being closed — as it is every winter, due to heavy snows and avalanche danger over …
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Recent Articles

  • Tom Fleischner with Saul Weisberg 40th anniversary events this week
  • The Secret Skyway: Spring Bird Migration in the North Cascades
  • “Crossing the Threshold” with Tom Fleischner
  • From the Trail: Phenology and Climate Change in the North Cascades
  • Service Days in Action: How Institute Staff Are Showing Up for Community, Conservation, and Care

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ncascades

Inspiring environmental stewardship through education, exploration and connection since 1986.
⬇️ 🌲Help youth Take Root & Rise - DONATE TODAY🌲 ⬇️

Black Birders Week 2026 starts this Sunday May 24 Black Birders Week 2026 starts this Sunday May 24 and ends Saturday May 30!

🐥 This year’s theme, “Flyways & Freedom: Advocacy, Action, and the Future,” celebrates migration, resilience, community, and the powerful connection between Black communities and the outdoors.

🐥 Black Birders Week continues to uplift Black birders, scientists, and nature lovers while creating space for joy, healing, advocacy, and collective action in environmental spaces. 

🐥 Visit @blackafinstem for upcoming events, activities, and ways to get involved!

📸: @blackafinstem
Check out this great video from our archives! #thr Check out this great video from our archives! #throwback to our conversation with Institute co-founder and author Tom Fleischner 13 years ago... 

https://youtu.be/EIvxVKKieqQ?si=jknNIoSJNeSr93kJ

Keen for more thoughtful insights and natural history nuggets from Tom? Join us at one of these Nature of Writing events this week: 

📚 Thurs, May 21 | 7PM at Third Place Books, Seward Park
📚 Sat, May 23 | 6PM at Village Books, Fairhaven

Reserve your seat at ncascades.org/now
Sound on! 🏞️ Did you know the benefits of taking Sound on! 

🏞️ Did you know the benefits of taking a walk in the great outdoors coupled with the sounds of nature are beneficial to our physical, emotional, and mental health? 

🏞️ Benefits include improved circulation, increase in mood, as well as a decrease in anxiety, blood pressure, & stress! 

🏞️ There are over 400 miles of trails in the North Cascades National Park Service Complex.  You are bound to find something to enjoy and to hear the sounds of nature , while also acquiring those health benefits. 

🏞️ Enjoy the soothing sounds of cascading water (They don’t call ‘em the cascades for nothing) over mossy rocks. 

What are your favorite nature sounds?
This Saturday, May 23, Village Books and North Cas This Saturday, May 23, Village Books and North Cascades Institute welcome author and conservation biologist Thomas Lowe Fleischner to the Fairhaven Readings Gallery to share readings and reflections from his new book "Astonished by Beauty: A Field Guide to the Practice of Paying Attention". 

Offering simple, grounded steps to nurture our bond with nature, the book is part reflection and part guide, calling for a life lived with care, presence, and respect for the wild beauty that surrounds us. Ecologist and co-founder of North Cascades Institute, Saul Weisberg, joins in conversation. 

📚 Reserve your seat: https://www.villagebooks.com/events/4397720260523

🍻 Before the reading, you're invited to join Tom, Saul and friends of the Institute at Trackside on the Bellingham waterfront for happy hour from 3:30PM - 5:30PM.
On Thursday, May 21, join North Cascades Institute On Thursday, May 21, join North Cascades Institute and Third Place Books at the Seward Park store for the next installment in our Nature of Writing Speaker Series. Author, ecologist and conservation biologist Tom Fleischner will share readings and reflections on his new book "Astonished by Beauty: A Field Guide to the Practice of Paying Attention". 

Offering simple, grounded steps to nurture our bond with nature, the book is part reflection and part guide, calling for a life lived with care, presence, and respect for the wild beauty that surrounds us. Ecologist and co-founder of North Cascades Institute, Saul Weisberg, joins in conversation. 

Before the reading, all guests are welcome to join Tom & Saul for happy hour next door at Chuck's Hop Shop from 5-7PM. We hope to see you there! 

📚 RSVP for this free event: https://www.thirdplacebooks.com/event/tom-fleischner
In a few months the snow will be mostly melted out In a few months the snow will be mostly melted out of high elevations and early wildflowers could be beginning to appear in this magical place. 

As warmer temperatures approach remember to #RecreateResponsibly. Rivers, streams and creeks will be moving fast and water levels will be higher from snow melt. 

Snow bridges are more common as temperatures warm and snow begins to melt. Use caution when hiking on snow near water resources. 

Use caution when navigating trails as they will not be completely melted out and it can be easy to stray off course. 

📸: @mikereidphotography
If you are making road trip plans that involve cro If you are making road trip plans that involve crossing the epic North Cascades Highway, be aware that there is significant damage to State Route 20 east of North Cascades National Park and no timeline for when WSDOT will be able to repair and reopen the route. 

Here’s a story outlining some of the impacts of this unfortunate situation (as well as an update on the flood damage in Stehekin): 

https://www.sfgate.com/national-parks/article/north-cascades-park-summer-22249338.php

📸: Christian Martin
Here’s some springtime magic! Who can guess this b Here’s some springtime magic! Who can guess this beauty? Here’s some hints:

🌼 Their scientific name is Cornus nuttallii and is a member of the Cornaceae family

🌼 They grow from British Columbia to California and can be found primarily on the Western side of the Cascades and on the Washington coast

🌼They are highly flood tolerant and are common along streams banks in low elevation coniferous forests, with moist, but well-drained soils on gentle slopes 

🌼 It is a deciduous tree growing up to 66 feet (20 meters) tall with a smooth dark bark 

🌼 Trees flower from April-June and fruits ripen from September-October

🌼 Some Pacific Northwest indigenous tribes use it its bark for medicinal purposes like as a blood purifier, gastrointestinal aid, laxative and lung strengthened. The bark can also be used for dyeing. 

📸: @findingbeauty9
GiveBIG may have ended last week, but the Institut GiveBIG may have ended last week, but the Institute still needs your help with raising funds to get more young people outside in the year ahead. It’s not too late to support the next generation of environmental leaders. Together, we will deepen roots and build a brighter future!

🌲 GIVE TODAY at ncascades.org/givebig
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