by Mt. Adams Institute | Oct 23, 2019 | Land Stewards
Going into this field season with previous experience in plant monitoring, I thought I knew what to expect. But my time as a Public Lands Steward at the Tualatin River National Wildlife Refuge has far surpassed any expectations I had; I have found a renewed...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Oct 23, 2019 | Land Stewards
Turn and Fall Fog hangs heavy In the valley Animals find solace In their hiding places I wonder how the three-legged elk is faring Fall is Coming Bull’s bugle After a long summers absence Three points and five points Sparing for practice Cranes congregate...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Oct 23, 2019 | Land Stewards
“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, …” – Wilderness Ranger, quietly muttering to himself. I could tell you about everywhere I...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Oct 23, 2019 | Land Stewards
My one person tent and the Alpine Lakes Wilderness have become my home and I am not ready to let either of them go. These past few months have been a whirlwind of adventures. There are only a dozen or so lakes that I have yet to visit and only a few trails that I have...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Oct 16, 2019 | SOP 10
Each year, tribes in the Columbia River Basin celebrate the return of the salmon. It is part of an annual First Foods ceremony that honors the tribes’ Creation Story and their unique connection to the Pacific Northwest. This relationship has spanned thousands...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Sep 26, 2019 | Field Notes
This year marks the 25th anniversary of AmeriCorps, a program of the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS). Since the program’s launch in 1994, more than 1 million Americans have served, strengthening national service and volunteering in communities...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Sep 26, 2019 | VetsWork
Hello everyone. The amount of projects, people, and friends I have met and made in Tillamook County because of Mt. Adams Institute’s VetsWork AmeriCorps program has been extraordinary. From day one until now I have kept myself busy digging in the dirt, planting trees...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Sep 10, 2019 | Land Stewards
Upper Lyman lakes in the Glacier Peak Wilderness area is a truly sublime glimpse into Washington’s high alpine. As little as one hundred years ago, these lakes were nonexistent, and instead were covered by the Lyman glacier, now almost completely receded onto...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Sep 6, 2019 | Land Stewards
Water is Life May, water is abundant Meandering through channels and Man-made ditches It comes up to your chest Don’t top! July, water is disappearing Forced to a stop By the disputes of men Mud and duck tracks are reminders Of what once was Some strongholds remain...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Sep 6, 2019 | Land Stewards
It has been barely over a month since I began the internship with Mt. Adams Institute. After spending a winter in Bozeman, MT, I became accustomed to so many luxuries that I didn’t realize how detached I was becoming to the natural world around me. I slept in a...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Sep 6, 2019 | Land Stewards
Hello from the southern coast of Oregon! My name is Rachel Carlson and I am the coastal resources intern working with Oregon Parks and Recreation Department in Brookings, Or. In the beginning of 2019 I was looking for work that was more fulfilling than what I...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Sep 6, 2019 | Land Stewards
My first month at the Tualatin River National Wildlife Refuge began with lots of training and learning. For the last couple of weeks I have been surveying at Wapato Lake for two main invasive species – Lythrum salicaria (purple loosestrife) and Iris...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Sep 6, 2019 | Land Stewards
I was kind of nervous for my very first day of summer camp season, I had been at Cascade Mountain School for nearly two months now and all the build-up to the summer was pretty intense at that point. We had been doing some trail-clearing, cutting down trees,...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Sep 6, 2019 | Land Stewards
I am stationed on the Entiat Ranger District of the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest as a backcountry ranger. Due to training and the terrain of my district, I have been loaned to the Chelan Ranger District for my first two tours. Lake Chelan, the main...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Sep 6, 2019 | Land Stewards
Conboy Lake is not really a lake. Mice can maneuver into the inside of cars and eat emergency ramen rations. Use one hand to catch bullfrogs. Toads breed in hordes. Bring a plank for crossing streams. And lastly, unless you’re over 50 years old, don’t even try to play...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Sep 6, 2019 | Land Stewards
The sun shines high above the Pacific Crest Trail. Spinola Creek tumbles through basalt rock worn by millennia of meltwater. A northern harrier hawk crests over Cathedral Ridge looking to make a meal of a vole. It is noon – and like the predator above, I search...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Sep 6, 2019 | Land Stewards
The first time I crossed over Highway 20 and into the Methow Valley I was in a strangers truck hitchhiking from Bellingham, WA to Glacier National Park. Our driver pulled off the road at Washington Pass where Liberty Bell, Early Winters Spires and the Needles...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Sep 6, 2019 | Land Stewards
It’s a quiet June evening here in the Methow Valley and I’m slowly soaking in the last few days off before heading back out into the Pasayten Wilderness. This hitch I’m headed out with a few members of the trail crew to put my newly earned crosscut certification to...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Sep 6, 2019 | Land Stewards
About two months in and every day is still unique, keeping me on my toes. I have predominantly been helping the Cle Elum Ranger District’s Trail Crew by clearing out trails in the front country. I had not been on a single trail in the Cle Elum Ranger District before...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Sep 6, 2019 | Land Stewards
I am serving in the Mt. Adams Institute’s Public Lands Stewards program in Eugene, OR with the Willamette Resources and Educational Network (WREN). WREN is part of the West Eugene Wetlands partnership and we work out of a shared office space, the Red House. The...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Aug 6, 2019 | VetsWork
I’ve been working for about two months now and have yet to find an aspect of this job that I have not liked. I wanted to be outdoors, learning about wildlife and getting familiar with the local forest. I have been thrilled with the work I have been doing so far and my...
