The following is excerpted from the current Padilla Bay Newsletter http://www.padillabay.gov/newsletter.asp
… When we take groups of kids to the mudflat, we supply them
with shovels, jars, trays, and a very specific job: Find as many
different types of plants and animals as possible. Our goal is
not for the students to be able to identify everything they
collect or remember what each animal eats and how long it
lives—we could do that in a windowless classroom. While
digging through the mud, we hope they will discover something
new and interesting. Something surprising and question-
raising. Something that sparks their curiosity to explore
their own backyard or schoolyard or the vacant lot down the
street. Students do not comb the beach casually here; they are
encouraged to (literally) dig in. With the tickle of a polychaete
worm, the quick encounter with the mud monster, the sting
of salt water in a cut, students are building connections to and
finding joy in this place…their place…without being told by
an adult what to think. I’m not sure how long a kid remembers
the facts that we spew at them (like “plankton provide 50% of
the oxygen we breath,” but I am certain that the experience
(and other ones like it) has a long-term impact. …
If kids can DIG IN, so can you!!!
What a party up at Rockport at the Howard Miller Steelhead Park last Saturday, Sept. 6 – The Skagit River Family Fest hosted by The Nature Conservancy and The Skagit Fisheries Enhancement Group. Beautiful weather, a beautiful setting , lots to do, some good eats, and that music – wow. It was a group called Finney Creek … with many stringed instruments doing blue grass, country, folk, … if you would like that kind of entertainment at one of your events or functions, get contact details from
During the past few weeks I have talked to folks who remember dead cows floating in the Samish River, Joe Leary slough flowing green from pea-harvest remnants, and Brickyard Creek turned from pristine salmon habitat to a gully of waste from logging slides. Let’s not go back there.
The Local-Organization-You-Might-Want-To-Be-Involved-With this week is the Skagit Conservation District http://www.skagitcd.org This outfit is covered well in the NaturalSkagit Blog Post of April 2, 2008 … you can go back and check it out for details.
Their big program coming up now is Watersheds Masters, with the first training session on Wed. evening, Sept 24. See below for details and to sign up. This is one of the very few NaturalSkagit – type classes that provides many hours (40) of training and does it on evenings and weekends. Yours truly is enrolled. Join me Digging In!
Here are some near-term activities to consider:
Sat., Sun. Sept. 13/14 Sourdough Speaker Series – Saul Weisberg and Peter Jackson North Cascades Institute Learning Center at Diablo Lake $95 Call 360 856 5700 ext. 209 to register
Mon. Sept. 15, Wed. Sept. 17, Mon. Sept. 22, (9:00am – 1:30pm) AND Wed. Sept. 24, (9:00am – 4:00pm) Climate Stewards Volunteer Training Program Padilla Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve, Bayview-Edison Rd.
http://www.padillabay.gov/ClimateStewards.html to register online by Friday, September 10
Wed. Sept. 17 Marine Mammal Stranding Network training for Island, Skagit or No. Snohomish County volunteers 6pm - 9pm Fire District #5 on Race Road, just south of Coupeville Fee is $20 for the NOAA Fisheries stranding resource book. Please contact Susan Berta at 1-866 ORCANET ( ) or Sandy Dubpernell at 360- 678-3765 ( ) to register.
Fri. Sept. 19 Construction Stormwater Management Practices Seminar 10:00am – 2:00pm Skagit Train Station, Mt. Vernon For builders, contractors, public officials, and citizens as well. Lunch included – no cost. Register at
Sat. Sept. 20 Open House at Skagit River Interpretive Center 1:00pm – 6:00pm See the new facility at Howard Miller Steelhead Park in Rockport. Refreshments!
Sat. Sept. 20 Fidalgo Bay Days 11:00am – 3:00pm Seafarers Park in Anacortes. Food, Fun, and Education all about the Padilla Bay. Free.
Sat. Sept. 20 Cascade Pass Revegetation Work-party 9:00am – 4:00pm Meet at Cascade Pass parking lot. Info – or 360 854-7275
Wed. Sept. 24 Watershed Masters Training begins. 6:00pm – 9:00pm Padilla Bay Interpretive Center on Bayview-Edison Rd. Register Note: Class sessions every Wed. through Nov. 12, and Saturday field sessions on Sept 27, Oct 11, and Oct 25.
Sat. Sept. 27 Puget Sound Kids Day 1:00pm – 3:00pm Padilla Bay Interpretive Center on Bayview-Edison Rd. Just show up!
Many similar events and activities and opportunities are posted on the GoSkagit Event Calendar. Check it often!
(This blog is a service of the Skagit Conservation Education Alliance (SCEA) http://www.skagitwater.org Your comments will be helpful. New ideas to consider, and changes we should make are especially welcome. Corrections and further enlightenment will help as well. You can email to . Thank you.)
