Well, in some ways anyway …

We heard all of the candidates for County Commissioner speak earlier this week.  Every one of them supports preserving farmland and also absorbing as much population growth as possible (at least 80%) within existing urban growth boundaries.  There was recognition that to do this we must have attractive, vibrant, and livable city centers – which are few and far between around here right now.  It would have also been nice to hear more talk about how to help our farms remain profitable and competitive.  It’s not farmland without farmers.

Here’s another bright spot.  You know all graduating high-school seniors have to do a “Culminating Project.” The details about that are pretty much between the individual student and his/her school.  This week there was a class at the Padilla Bay Interpretive Center called “Natural Resource or Environmentally-related Senior Culminating Projects Mentor Training Workshop.” The purpose was to show environmental groups how they can recruit students, help them design and perform projects, and mentor the whole activity successfully.  If done well, a real win-win situation.

The example projects, and the tools and methods for recruiting, designing, and performing, were meaty, challenging, and beneficial.  Students who followed through had a valuable experience and a jump-start into a possible career field.  Examples included Monitoring and recording threatened-bird nesting habits, a Video about litter and recycling, and Building a Rain garden.

The class was attended by more than 25 representatives from various “environmental’ groups and organizations, many from right here in Skagit County.  From the tone and energy of the work-sessions and discussions, quite a few Skagit County seniors are going to have the opportunity to Dig In and do some serious work in interesting environmental fields. They will give, and get, a great deal.

If you know of a student wanting a Culminating Project in an environmental field, contact .  That’s the clearinghouse for connecting local students with potential project sponsors!

I’m attending the Watershed Masters Class on Wednesday evenings.  This week we met at the Taylor Shellfish Farm on Chuckanut drive.  We got a nice outside tour on a beautiful evening and then an amazing inside show-and-tell about shellfish farming, beginning in the 1880s.  Bill Dewey and Marco Pinchot, both from Taylor’s, did the talk.  If you ever get a chance to see this presentation, it is well worth it.  Much interesting and valuable information most of us did not know, with plenty of time for questions.

While Marco was doing his part of the presentation, Bill was in the back of the room cooking up oysters and clams along with all the trimmings.  When they were ready we took a break and had a feast!  What a nice touch. 

The Local-Organization-You-Might-Want-To-Be-Involved-With this week is the North Cascades Institute http://www.ncascades.org There are many programs to check in to at their web site, and the learning center where many are held is up at Diablo Lake.  If you are looking waaaay ahead and thinking snow, there is an all-day snowshoe excursion, in the upper Nooksack region, planned for January, and reservations are being taken now.

Closer in, think EAGLES!  That time is approaching and here is a great opportunity to both learn and help …..

Eagle Watchers 2008
It is almost time for Eagle Watchers, a volunteer program coordinated in partnership between North Cascades Institute and the Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest that helps manage the many winter visitors along the Skagit River viewing the hundreds of Bald Eagles taking advantage of the winter salmon run.

Eagle Watchers receive two days of training on December 6 & 7, and an informational binder that covers eagle biology and the natural and cultural history of the area. In return, they are expected to work three days staffing eagle-watching stations along the Skagit River corridor. Applications are available now at our Stewardship Application page and will be accepted through November 26, 2008.  More information at http://www.ncascades.org/stewards or by calling (360) 856-5700 ext. 209.

Here are some near-term activities to consider:

Sat. Oct. 11 Friends Of The Forest annual Benefit 6:00pm – midnight Fidalgo Bay Resort Tickets $50, event sells out fast.  http://www.friendsoftheacfl.org for more info

Mon. Oct. 13 Skagit Co-op Speaker Series – “Healthy Farms – Healthy Puget Sound: Traditional Foods of the Pacific Northwest” 6:30pm – 8:00pm Skagit Valley Co-op (Bring your own bowl and spoon and have some “Skagit Soup” – monetary donations accepted.) or 360 336 1931 to rsvp

Sat. Oct. 18 Plant the Berm 9:00am – 2:00pm Falls Creek Rockfall Mitigation Berm on Rte 20 east of Newhalem.  Meet at the North Cascades National Park nursery office near the greenhouse.  Then carpool to work site.  Please sign up in advance …

Sat. Oct. 25 Planting 300 native plants at Anacortes Ace of Hearts Rotary Park 10:00 – Noon Bring tools like shovel, pick, bar, gloves – families encouraged.  Sign up in advance: or 299-2579

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.)

In Search Of The Perfect Pumpkin!

My wife and I decided that we needed a few pumpkins to put on the porch to lend our place to the season and to greet the Trick or Treaters who always stop by.  I drove out to one of the local pumpkin patches and picked out 4 nice pumpkins and paid for them. (wow there is money in pumpkins!) As I was getting ready to leave I heard a lady yell, “Tom I need 6 just like these in the magazine.” As the lady was trotting across the parking lot with a magazine to show to Tom.  The discussion then ensued to they had to be like the picture in the book, no mistakes or blemishes.  I thought to myself, ah ha!  Another group of people that believe that Mother Nature makes only perfect food to eat.  You know the type, they feel that farmers only grow what “they” demand and their farms must look picture perfect from the road and God forbid what it should look like from the air!!

I had to stick around to see this and I was rewarded for my efforts.  Tom and the lady picked over the pumpkins in the bin like they were lollypops in a big jar.  Just had to find the right one.  Never mind that they broke the stem off of 3 of them and were told to back off by someone there.  In their desperation they could not find a perfect pumpkin.  Try as they might Mother Nature was not being helpful.  After much to do about it they picked 4 close to perfect ones.  Complained to the check out person about perfection and headed to their car.

As right on cue, they opened up the back of a Subaru that had 2 bikes on the roof and the lady began using, get this, orange paint to cover the blemishes.  I about died!  Then after blowing on them for the paint to dry she sprayed them with Pledge dusting wax and dusted them to a dull shine!  I couldn’t believe my eyes. 

What a sad state of affairs.  City people who have no idea of what a farm is really about.  Kind of like the people you see being just plain stupid around the “Wild” animals at Yellowstone.  And yes, Tom, was wearing socks with his sandals.  But at least they weren’t Birkenstocks, they were some other thing that I think was made of old tires.

Well another fine example of California Huggers, that know just about everything about anything.  Don’t you just love “agritainment?”