News

An alarming factoid has been floating around for a few years now: In a “business as usual scenario,” by 2050, plastics will outweigh fish in the ocean. This figure was first presented at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, and is based on a study released in 2015 by the Ocean Conservancy. It says something about plastics, but it …

  “If we approached rivers, mountains, dragonflies, redwoods and reptiles as if all are alive, intelligent and suffused with soul, imagination and purpose, what might the world become?” “Who would WE become if we participated intentionally with such an animate earth?”                                       …

Back in May, as the COVID-19 pandemic was sweeping the planet and lock-downs and quarantines had those of us in the Pacific Northwest isolated, apprehensive and discouraged, I began to think about the healing power of nature. In reading about the Japanese concept of ‘forest bathing’, I found that an accumulation of data about the benefits – physiological, psychological, even …

If you’re a fan of the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival, you might have passed through charming La Conner, WA. At first glance, you might think it’s little more than a tourist stop. But that’s where you’d be very, very wrong. La Conner was once home to a rustic artists’ colony, Fishtown, where creatives sought the solitude and spiritual connection to …

The era of dam building is over. In the past 30 years, 1275 dams have been torn down, according to the nonprofit American Rivers.  The United States has been experiencing an ecological revival, illustrated in Washington by the hugely successful dam removal on the Elwha River. Yet flooding, exacerbated by climate change-fueled storms, aggressive logging in the headwaters of the …

The orca population of the Pacific Northwest is dying. There isn’t much debate about this; every expert in marine biology agrees. The local orcas, known as the southern resident killer whales (SRKW), have had population fluctuations since the 1970’s, but the latest data shows a population in permanent decline. This is really bad news. As apex predators, the orcas are …

If you’ve ever taken a hike, bike or paddle in gorgeous Whatcom County, WA, it’s likely that you’ve stood on land that’s been permanently protected by the Whatcom Land Trust (WLT). Since 1984, this humble nonprofit has tirelessly pursued its mission to preserve and protect wildlife habitat and scenic, agricultural and open space lands in Whatcom County for future generations. …

After a quick burn on Galbraith or hike up in the North Cascades, Sarah Finger is likely to be the one across the bar from you slinging your après trail beer. But she also has a strong connection to that magnificent landscape you can’t stop staring at on the can of IPA you’re slugging down. She’s the artist who created …

Imagine, if you will, a pleasant afternoon of tranquil rambling in the green meadows of the North Cascades. But then you begin to be aware of a high-pitched buzz above you. Not a mosquito. A drone, hovering just overhead. Approximately the size of a toaster, with four rotors spinning rapidly and a high-definition camera slung beneath it. The spell is …

  Lost things can be hard to find in the wilderness of the North Cascades, so when aerial photographer John Scurlock spied the rough angles of a man-made structure among a zone of alpine krummholz, that last green gasp of stunted subalpine fir at tree line, he must have thought himself lucky. Remembering the comment of a climbing friend who …