by Mt. Adams Institute | Aug 30, 2021 | Field Notes, Land Stewards
I realized pretty quickly after graduating from the University of Missouri – Columbia that an office job just wasn’t going to do it for me. Languishing inside during the most beautiful days of the year was just too painful for me to continue with. Then I found...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Aug 11, 2021 | Field Notes, Land Stewards
The Umatilla National Forest (UNF) recently restricted access to the public due to unfavorable fire conditions. The unprecedented heatwave that washed over the Pacific Northwest in June set record-breaking high temperatures causing fire season to come early. Until the...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Aug 11, 2021 | VetsWork
Alaska has been called the last frontier, and for good reason. It embodies the spirit of frontier living, where people hunt, fish and gather, an ode to how our ancestors lived. Its beauty is still intact thanks in large part to the people that oversee the land, and...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Aug 11, 2021 | VetsWork
Over the last five months I have been working as a Recreation, Education, Community Engagement Specialist with Tillamook Estuaries Partnership (TEP) and its numerous partners out of Garibaldi, Oregon. TEP is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, with the mission to...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Aug 11, 2021 | VetsWork
This Picture is a great example of the weather in Ketchikan Alaska. A beautiful and sunny day turns cloudy and rainy, then turns back to sun. If the weather is going to deter your spirit, then Southeast Alaska isn’t the place for you. I for one have fallen in love...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Aug 11, 2021 | VetsWork
I am halfway through my second term with VetsWork and I’m feeling grateful for the opportunity that Mt. Adams Institute has given me. I’m serving at Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area in Kentucky and Tennessee. My first term was spent bouncing around...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Aug 11, 2021 | Field Notes, VetsWork
Greetings, welcome to the concise memoir of Patrick Ford, an AmeriCorps intern at the Andrew Pickens Ranger District (AP). Walk with me as I take you on a journey through the mountain range of South Carolina and the incredible time I’ve had while working with the...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Aug 11, 2021 | Land Stewards, Summer Camp
When the pandemic hit, I was living in Minneapolis, MN and working as a corporate copywriter in the healthcare industry. I slowly realized that I needed a change. A year and a half later, my life could not be more different. I never thought I’d be working in the...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Aug 11, 2021 | Land Stewards, Summer Camp
During the last day of the eight- to twelve-year-old camp, Outdoor Explores, we took the Campers to the Ice Caves nearby campus. Taking a large group of this age group into a pitch-black cave with slippery ice as flooring, meant we had to be absolutely positive that...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Aug 11, 2021 | Field Notes, Land Stewards, Summer Camp
This summer I truly feel like I’m the lucky one – I get to go to camp all summer long!After a very isolating past year filled with many uncertainties, I feel very grateful to be constantly surrounded and supported by a cohort of fantastic co-educators and...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Aug 11, 2021 | Land Stewards, Summer Camp
Although this is my second year serving as an AmeriCorps intern at Mt. Adams institute, this is my first experience working here at the camp, in-person with the campers and fellow counselors. I began my time with the program last summer, right in the middle of the...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Aug 11, 2021 | Field Notes, Land Stewards
The WREN office is located in the West Eugene Wetlands and a large part of our curriculum focuses on wetland ecology. Over the last few months, I have learned about the importance of wetlands: they improve water quality through filtering sediments and pollutants, they...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Aug 11, 2021 | Field Notes, Land Stewards
“I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived.” (Thoreau, 1854) It didn’t play out so eloquently in...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Aug 2, 2021 | Field Notes, Land Stewards, Summer Camp
Howdy! In late May, I packed up nearly all of my belongings and traveled 2,200 miles to the Pacific Northwest. Little did I know that I could flourish and challenge myself in this new environment to develop different strategies to help campers get a better glance at...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Jul 29, 2021 | Field Notes, Land Stewards
Growing up, the seven Leave No Trace principles, accompanied with mnemonic gestures, were instilled in me as a set of reminders to guide my behavior both in and out-of-doors. As I got older, I learned the ecological and ethical basis for upholding Leave No Trace (LNT)...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Jul 23, 2021 | Field Notes, VetsWork
Our Outreach Coordinator had a chance to chat with Amanda Williams, Public Outreach Specialist on the Chugach National Forest in Alaska. Tell me a bit more about your position. I am the Public Outreach Specialist at the Cordova Ranger District on the Chugach National...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Jul 19, 2021 | Field Notes
My reflections of the last twelve weeks of the Mount Adams Institute (MAI) VetsWork Green Corps Program are that hard work can be fun with a good attitude and a few friends to share it with. Before arriving my expectations were that I would complete certifications for...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Jul 19, 2021 | Field Notes
During these past 12 weeks regained and sharpened the skills I need to become a successful wildland fire fighter. I have been re-certified for and relearned how to utilize pumps, use tools for cutting lines, and using chainsaws to fall, limb and buck trees. This has...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Jul 6, 2021 | Land Stewards
Ellen grew up in Arcata, California surrounded by redwoods and close to the ocean. During her free time, Ellen enjoys exploring the forest and surfing the waves of the Pacific. She loves visiting National Parks where she has seen amazing rock structures, giant trees,...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Jun 17, 2021 | Field Notes
Congratulations to former Public Lands Stewards (PLS) Intern Robyn Reeder! She is the new Biotechnician at Conboy Lake National Wildlife Refuge. Our Outreach Coordinator Trevor was lucky enough to sit down and talk with Robyn about her new position and how PLS helped...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Jun 17, 2021 | Field Notes
In honor of Great Outdoors Month, our AmeriCorps Program Director Aaron Stanton shared this thrilling story of his rescue on the river. “In 2018 I had the good fortune to raft and kayak the Grand Canyon. The trip did not end the way I would have liked, but it...
