2010

FAMILY GETAWAYS BASE CAMP DIABLO DOWNTIMES SOURDOUGH SPEAKERS ART RETREATS BACKCOUNTRY ADVENTURES AND MORE

2010

Connecting people, nature and community through education since 1986

Christian Martin

ŠJohn Scurlock

1

Christian Martin

©Jude Kavalam

Christian Martin

Amy Brown

Benj Drummond

North Cascades Institute •2010 Catalog Header H ead erT Text ext Welcome to North Cascades Institute’s 24th field season. We’re a conservation organization whose chosen tool is education. We believe an informed and caring citizenry is essential to protecting the integrity of these wondrous landscapes we are fortunate to call home.

Last year was tough for everyone, but with the support of our friends and fans, and using our naturalist’s skills of paying close attention in new ways, we were able to confront the challenges of the economy and thrive. Through concerted efforts by our staff and board of directors, we’ve made it through the storm and are operating smarter than ever.

And 2010 is a year full of opportunity and promise.

You can see our evolution in the pages of this catalog. We’ve asked you what you want, listened, and come up with new programs designed to provide you with more opportunities to get outside in the North Cascades on your own schedule. I’m excited to introduce Base Camp, a flexible and affordable opportunity to enjoy the Learning Center, relax, eat good food, connect with nature and share with others. See page 6 for details.

We’re concentrating our attention on our home ground, looking deeper in to the Learning Center’s immediate neighborhood, as well as the public lands of the Skagit River

watershed that connects two of the great ecosystems of the Northwest—the mountains of the North Cascades and the marine ecosystems of Puget Sound. We’re offering fewer specialized, far-flung seminars while strengthening our popular and more accessible Learning Center programs such as Family Getaways, Diablo Downtimes and the Sourdough Speaker Series. We’re continuing to offer art and natural history classes that are perennial favorites and inviting new instructors such as Cliff Mass, Nikki McClure and Lee Mann to join our mission.

We’ve condensed our catalog as we rely more and more on our website (ncascades.org), our blog (chattermarks.org) and social media outlets like Facebook, Vimeo and Flickr to communicate and share what we’re up to.

Other exciting developments in 2010 that you’ll want to take note of include a new Bring-a-Buddy discount, scholarships for college students and new opportunites for young adults (age 14+) to join our programs this year.

I hope to see you outside this season!

Saul Weisberg, Executive Director P.S. Sign up for a Learning Center program and there is a good chance you’ll experience Diablo Lake from our new 18-person Salish-style canoe!

We’re concentrating attention on our home ground, looking deeper... in to the public lands of the Skagit River watershed that connects two of the great ecosystems of the Northwest— the mountains of the North Cascades and the marine ecosystems of Puget Sound.

www.ncascades.org 360.854.2599

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Table of Contents

04/05 06/07 08/09 10 12 20 21 22 24/25 26/27

WELCOME TO THE NEIGHBORHOOD

BASE CAMP / FREE DAY TRIPS

FAMILY GETAWAYS / DIABLO DOWNTIME

SOURDOUGH SPEAKER SERIES

ADULT PROGRAMS

REGISTRATION INFORMATION

M.ED. GRADUATE PROGRAM

YOUTH ADVENTURES

MOUNTAIN SCHOOL / SUPPORT

GROUP RENTALS / RETAIL

www.ncascades.org 360.854.2599

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MAY 7-9 May Diablo Downtime

15-16

31

10–12

June Diablo Downtime

Free Day Trip at the Learning Center

28–30

Wildlife Tracking with Dave Moskowitz

AUGUST

Landscape Watercolor in the North Cascades with Molly Hashimoto

5–8

Sourdough Speaker Series III: Kurt Hoelting Bunchgrass dreams: High Desert Ecology with Mark Darrach

28–30

21–23

JULY

9-11

Hands to Work: Learning Center Stewardship Weekend

2-4

14

Fourth of July Family Getaway

Free Day Trip at the Learning Center

5-7

20-22

July Diablo Downtime

August Diablo Downtime

8–11

23–25

Creative Arts Retreat with Kristen Gilje, Melinda West and Ruthy Porter

Writing about the Outdoors with Nick O’Connell

16-18

23–25

22 Free Day Trip at the Learning Center

29-31 Memorial Day Family Getaway

JUNE

Lessons in Drawing in the North Cascades with Jocelyn Curry

4–6

Mid-July Family Getaway

Spring Birding Weekend with Libby Mills and Jim Alt

19–21

5

Donya Gorham

25-27

Pocket Camera Wildflower Photography with Mark Turner

Northwest Naturalists Weekend with Cliff Mass, Mignonne Bivon, Susan Prichard and Phil Higuera

Early August Family Getaway

Making a Paper Cut Story with Nikki McClure

1–3 Autumn Beauty and Bounty: A Watercolor Feast with Molly Hashimoto

8-10 16-17 29-31 Halloween Family Getaway

NOVEMBER 6-7

26–29

Sourdough Speaker Series VI: TBA

25-27

22–25

11–13

People and Places of the Upper Skagit with Gerry Cook and Bob Mierendorf

SEPTEMBER

30–Aug 1

3–5

Wilderness Navigation: Map and Compass Skills

Hikes, Camera Action!: The Wild and Scenic Environmental Film Festival

June Family Getaway

OCTOBER

Sourdough Speaker Series V: TBA

Free Day Trip at the Learning Center

18-20

September Diablo Downtime

October Diablo Downtime

Lookout Poets and Backcountry Tales on Ross Lake with Gerry Cook, Saul Weisberg, and Hannah Sullivan

Flowers and their Pollinators with Saul and Shelley Weisberg

24-26

Thanksgiving Family Getaway

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©Rick Allen

Benj Drummond

more info, videos, photos and learning center blog at www.ncascades.org

©Lara Swimmer

Cascades Environmental Learning Center is surrounded by 7,000,000 acres of protected public lands in Washington and British Columbia.

Forming the core of this mandala of protected landscapes is the 684,000-acre North Cascades National Park Complex, our wild and primeval neighborhood.

With 93 percent of its area designated as wilderness, the park is known for its steep mountains, plentiful streams and waterfalls and tremendous biological diversity. East and west of the Pacific Crest, several major watersheds flow from the North Cascades, including the Skagit River, the largest basin draining into Puget Sound. With more than 300 glaciers and countless snowfields, the North Cascades is one of the most rugged and heavily glaciated areas in the United States outside of Alaska.

We hope you'll join us this year to explore this wondrous, exhilirating place and imbibe its good graces.

©North Cascades Institute

The North

Jenny Lee Rae

Welcome to the Neighborhood!

ŠJohn Miles

Christian Martin

Christian Martin

5

www.ncascades.org 360.854.2599

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Base Camp

FLE XIBLE LE ARNING ADVENTURES IN THE NORTH C ASC ADES

Join the Institute

Flexible, affordable, enriching, fun: Base Camp is an exciting new opportunity to explore and learn about this magnificent mountain range from professional naturalists and instructors while enjoying the comforts of our campus in the heart of North Cascades National Park.

Extend the length of your Institute class to enjoy more time in the mountains. Gather family or friends and hang out on Diablo Lake participating in fun outdoor activities led by passionate, knowledgeable guides and rangers. Stay with us after your hike in the national park and refuel with delicious meals made with local, organic ingredients, a hot shower and stimulating community. Reserve a spot for a rejuvenating stopover during your national park road trip, crosscountry motorcycle tour or Cascadian bike ride.

Every Base Camp registrant will enjoy overnight accommodations in our comfortable lodges, three meals and admission to our daily learning adventures on the natural and cultural history of the North Cascades.

Learning adventures will be offered three times every day and will vary day-by-day throughout the summer. Options may include guided hikes on nearby trails, canoeing on Diablo Lake, natural history instruction, games, art activities, presentations, campfires, night hikes, outdoor recreation, wilderness skills and more.

Register with a family or group and save: $95 for the first person, $50 for the second person and $25 each for the next two people sharing one room. In other words, a group of four sharing a room costs $195 a night, or less than $50 per person—program, lodging and meals all included! Individual, shared-room registration is $95 per person. Individual, private-room registration is $125 per person.

Sign up in advance by calling our registration desk at (360) 854-2599.

Register early—these programs will fill fast! (Sorry, but we cannot accommodate pets.)

this summer for a unique overnight educational experience.

Everyone is invited to stay for Base Camp at the North Cascades Environmental Learning Center, for as many days and nights as you’d like, on a spaceavailable basis, during our peak summer season from June 14 to August 20, 2010.

more info, faq and an online learning center tour at www. ncascades.org/basecamp

www.ncascades.org 360.854.2599

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HIKING, PADDLING AND LE ARNING CENTER TOURS

Ramble up a forest trail and see what is in bloom.

©North Cascades Institute

©Scott Leppert

©Jesse Kinsman

Paddle on emerald-green Diablo Lake with views of glaciers, tiny pine-studded islands and the impressive Skagit River gorge. Explore the Silver LEED-certified North Cascades Environmental Learning Center and learn more about the Institute and the wide variety of opportunities to connect with nature that we offer people of all ages and abilities. Day Trips are offered on a drop-in basis, first-come, first-served, and no advanced registration is offered.

Free Day Trips

Saturdays 8:30 am–4:30 pm May 22, June 5 and July 31 Institute naturalists and National Park Service rangers Free (donations welcome)

more info at www.ncascades.org/daytrips

www.ncascades.org 360.854.2599

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Family Getaways Connect with your family—and nature too—on the scenic shores of Diablo Lake at our award-winning Learning Center.

Families of all shapes, sizes and ages will enjoy spending quality time together while enjoying the invigorating mountain air, bracing views and starry night skies of North Cascades National Park, one of the most spectacular wilderness landscapes in all of North America. more info, faq and an online learning center tour at www.ncascades.org/family

GATHER YOUR FAMILY IN THE NORTH C ASC ADES

We invite you to spend a weekend in the mountains with North Cascades Institute, but leave your tent, inflatable air mattress and camp stove at home and let us take care of all the details.

We provide comfortable accommodations in our cozy lodges and delicious, healthful meals with the tastes of young diners in mind, served buffet-style in our lakeside dining hall.

The most difficult choice during your weekend may be what activities your family wants to join. Will you follow our skilled naturalists as they lead kids and adults alike on adventures on Diablo Lake and the surrounding network of trails? Do you want to take part in daily outdoor games, arts and crafts, storytelling and scientific exploration? Should you spend the day hiking to spectacular views of local glaciers or simply relaxing with a book in the Wild Ginger Library? With our inspiring slate of activities designed to introduce adults and children of all ages to the wonders of the natural world, you’ll be able to design your own itinerary to create the perfect weekend retreat for your family.

We welcome groups that include parents, grandparents, children, guardians, aunts and uncles and nontraditional families. Children ages two and younger can be added to the family registration at no charge. Children under the age of six must be accompanied by a parent throughout the program.

Make this summer’s close-to-home vacation one your family won’t soon forget. Call our registrar at (360) 854-2599 to reserve your spot in these unique programs and start a new family tradition. Family Getaways are popular and fill fast, so call today!

Memorial Day Family Getaway May 29–31 June Family Getaway June 18–20 Fourth of July Family Getaway July 2–4 Mid-July Family Getaway July 16–18 Early August Family Getaway Aug 9–11 Halloween Family Getaway Oct 29–31 Thanksgiving Family Getaway Nov 25–27 $225 per adult (18 AND OLDER) $155 per child (AGES 3-17)

AND

Price includes 2 nights lodging & 7 meals per person

www.ncascades.org 360.854.2599

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HIKING AND C ANOEING, YOGA AND SLOW FOOD

Diablo Downtime

Named for the emerald-hued, glacial-fed

©Stephen McGehee

Jason Ruvelson

©David Snyder Benj Drummond

©Jude Kavalam

lake that is the “front yard” of our Learning Center, Diablo Downtimes are opportunities for you and your friends to retreat to the North Cascades, unplug and unwind.

Mountains have long served humans as places of refuge, rejuvenation and inspiration, and we invite you to join us to connect with yourself, your friends and nature too. Whether your ideal day is spending a morning practicing asanas with our yoga instructor, hiking to majestic views of nearby glaciers with naturalist guides, reading and journal-writing in our library, exploring the lake by canoe or taking an afternoon snooze—or perhaps a blend of all of the above?—Downtimes are your weekend to spend as you choose.

“Diablo Downtime offers those with no particular agenda a chance to experience the nurturing side of nature,” Amy Kepferle of the Cascadia Weekly wrote after her visit last year. Daytimes offer an array of outdoor activities and yoga, while evenings feature fireside tales after leisurely dinners prepared with organic, mouth-watering fare from local Skagit Valley farms and producers.

Come on your own or gather a group of old friends for a reunion. Book clubs, passionate locavores, siblings, photographers and writers, day hikers, yoga fans—all kinds of interesting people end up at these unique retreats in the heart of one of the most spectacular landscapes in the country.

May 7–9, June 25–27, July 5–7, Aug 20–22, Sept 24–26 & Oct 8–10 $245–$485, depending on accommodations Price includes 2 nights lodging & 6 meals per person

more info and registration at www.ncascades.org/ downtime

www.ncascades.org 360.854.2599

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Sourdough Speaker Series Storytelling has been an important part of the cultural landscape of the North Cascades for centuries, from when the first native people searched for trading routes through the Crest to the colorful parade of explorers, miners, loggers, fire lookouts, climbers, rangers and dam workers that followed.

ONE-NIGHT GATHERINGS AT THE LE ARNING CENTER

Nestled at the foot of Sourdough Mountain, our Learning Center is a choice venue for intimate gatherings of Northwest artists, writers, naturalists and historians to share their own stories from the region.

Each Sourdough Speaker Series engagement begins Saturday around sunset with wine and hors d'œuvres on the deck of our lakeside dining hall before moving inside for an informal gourmet dinner of local and organic foods prepared by our renowned kitchen staff. A presentation by our guest speaker will follow, with ample time for questions and discussion. Following Sunday morning’s breakfast, we’ll offer an optional naturalist-led activity to get you outdoors exploring the Learning Center’s neighborhood.

Your $95 ticket includes a dinner of locally grown foods, a unique salon-style presentation by our guest speakers, overnight accommodations in our comfortable lodges, breakfast and a naturalist-led morning activity. All proceeds from these engagements benefit summer youth activities in the North Cascades, so eat, drink and be merry for a good cause!

more info and registration at www.ncascades.org/speakerseries, including fall series dates and speakers

Lee Mann March 27–28 A Photographer’s Journey through the North Cascades Renowned Skagit Valley-based photographer Lee Mann will share images and stories of a lifetime spent bringing people closer to nature through art.

He will share with us his long-range perspective on the North Cascades, including tales from growing up in a rural lifestyle in the Skagit, early mountaineering, his personal transformation toward a conservation ethic and his involvement in establishing North Cascades National Park. Join us as Lee shows his favorite images from a lifetime of photographing the Pacific Northwest and tells the stories behind the scenery.

Will and Mari Kemper April 24–25 A Celebration of Microbrewing in the Pacific Northwest When the Kempers chose Bellingham as their new home, our corner landed one of the most accomplished entrepreneurial beer-brewing teams in the world. From the original Thomas Kemper Brewery on Bainbridge Island in 1984 to the opening of Old Town’s Chuckanut Brewery and Kitchen in 2009, their story traces the rise of craft brewing in the Pacific Northwest. Join us for a night full of beer history and lore, insider stories from the frontlines of the Northwest’s microbrewing revolution and a special multi-course meal created to showcase several of the Kemper’s best brews.

Kurt Hoelting May 15–16 The Circumference of Home After realizing the gaping hole between his convictions about climate change and his own carbon footprint, Kurt Hoelting embarked on a yearlong experiment to rediscover the heart of his own home by the Salish Sea. Trading in his car and jet travel for a kayak, a bicycle and his own two feet, Kurt spent the year exploring an approximately 100-Kilometer circle drawn around his home on the map that enveloped the contours of the Puget Sound basin. Join us as Kurt shares the challenges and triumphs of his creative experiment and introduces The Circumference of Home: One Man’s Yearlong Quest for a Radically Local Life, the book that chronicles his challenge of living locally.

www.ncascades.org 360.854.2599

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Sourdough Speakers

ŠLee Mann

Barry Lopez On April 7, the Institute and Seattle Arts & Lectures welcomed Barry Lopez, the renowned Oregonian nature writer, to Benaroya Hall for a presentation entitled "Speak, Landscape." We hope you were able to join us and hear Lopez illuminate the connections between culture, language and landscapes.

www.ncascades.org 360.854.2599

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2010 Adult Programs

Cascades Institute continues a 24-year tradition of offering engaging, high-quality, hands-on natural and cultural history experiences for people of all ages. From the visual and literary arts to ecological studies to backcountry explorations, our popular programs connect thousands to the wild wonders of the North Cascades region.

the following programs are based at the north cascades environmental learning center. info and registration at www.ncascades.org/get_outside

NEW IN 2010 * Our new Base Camp program allows for more

*

* * *

flexibility in your stay at the North Cascades Environmental Learning Center. Come stay with us for as many days and nights as you like, on a space-available basis, during our peak summer season from June 14 to August 20, 2010. Details on page 6.

With our new Bring-a-Buddy discount, sign up for a program with a friend who is new to North Cascades Institute and you’ll both save 15 percent off tuition! See page 20 for details.

This year, we’re extending the invitation to register for our adult programs to young adults ages 14 and up.

Currently enrolled students can receive 50 percent off any Learning Center program with tuition over $100. See page 20 for details.

This year’s mix of adult programs includes past favorites like the Art, Spring Birding and Naturalists retreats, Ross Lake journeys on the Mule, digital photography, watercolors and the Sourdough Speaker Series, while also introducing new ideas: the 2010 Wild and Scenic Film Festival, Nikki McClure teaching her exquisite papercutting art, Cliff Mass explaining the secrets of our region’s weather and classes on wildlife tracking, basketweaving with natural materials and map- and compass-navigation skills.

Benj Drummond

In 2010, North

www.ncascades.org 360.854.2599

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2010 Adult Programs Hands to Work: Learning Center Stewardship Weekend

REGISTR ATION KE Y SEE PAGE 20 FOR COMPLE T E DE TAIL S

Suggested donation of $25-$50 for 2 nights lodging & 6 meals

Pricing and accommodations Benj Drummond

Over several seasons following the construction of the Learning Center, dozens of volunteer Plant Stewards planted more than 22,000 native shrubs and trees throughout the campus in an effort to rehabilitate the long-used site. This spring, the Institute extends the invitation to individuals eager to lend a hand and engage in a weekend of valuable stewardship work in the heart of the national park.

We’re offering volunteers the opportunity to form a relationship with this piece of earth by contributing to its well-being by way of shovel, shears and some elbow grease. We’ll have projects for all abilities and interests, from thinning and weeding to trail maintenance and mulching, and we'll provide all of the tools too.

Your hard work will be rewarded when our talented kitchen staff serves up hearty and delicious meals using locally grown, organic products. After a satisfying day of giving back to the earth, give yourself a treat and head out for a sunset stroll, relax in our library or spend an evening around the campfire sharing stories of this place.

Join National Park Service specialists Mike Brondi and Cindy Bjorklund, as well as Institute naturalists, as we tend to our native flora and the habitat surrounding the Learning Center. Everybody is welcome!

Christian Martin

Mike Brondi, Cindy Bjorklund and staff naturalists May 21–23 (FRI E VE–SUN) 15

Spring Birding Weekend: Migration and Song Libby Mills and Jim Alt June 4–6 (FRI E VE–SUN) $215, $295, $455

Flowers and their Pollinators

15 /1CP

Cost includes 2 nights lodging & 6 meals

Discover the diversity of avian life that wings into the Pacific Northwest every spring during the annual migration from Mexico and Central and South America to summer grounds in the north. Joining expert birders Libby and Jim, together we’ll gain deeper awareness of those wonderful creatures that bring beauty and song to our days. From our base in the North Cascades, we’ll explore forests, meadows and meandering streams in the Methow and Skagit valleys. Heading east to the Ponderosa pine and quaking aspen country, we may observe Clark’s Nutcrackers, Bullock’s Oriole or Meadowlarks. West, among the wetlands and pastures of the Upper Skagit, we’ll keep our eyes and ears open for passerines, raptors and waterfowl. All skill levels are welcome.

Saul and Shelley Weisberg June 11–13 (FRI E VE–SUN) $215, $295, $455

15 /1CP

Cost includes 2 nights lodging & 6 meals

Join a bug lover (who also happens to be the executive director of the Institute!) and a skilled botanist to explore North Cascadian mountain meadows and lakeshores to delve into the relationships between insects and flowers. Using field guides and hand lenses to learn common plant and insect families, we’ll explore the ways in which they are interconnected by learning about strategies for pollination.

We’ll travel together and explore wild areas between the Learning Center and the crest of the Cascades, with a possible side trip to the Methow Valley.

Bringing our newfound knowledge to bear upon the places we live, we’ll examine the role that insects, attracted by a variety of native plants, can play in our own backyards. Join Saul, Shelley and staff naturalists in the mountains to slow down and learn to look deeply into the natural world.

Classes at the Learning Center offer several enrollment options, and pricing varies according to sleeping arrangements. The campus includes 23 rooms in three guest lodges, each with two sets of twin bunk beds, and shared genderspecific bathrooms. Depending on availability, you may choose one of the following: Single occupancy is a room for one person.

Double occupancy is the tuition for sharing a room with one other person. Triple occupancy is sharing a room with two other people. This may require use of an upper bunk, accessible by an easy-to-climb ladder. Shared occupancy is assigned on a gender-specific basis unless a particular roommate(s) is requested at the time of registration. Single occupancy is limited and offered on a space-available basis.

All Learning Center classes include meals prepared by our kitchen staff and feature local and organic foods. To learn more about our accommodations, visit www.ncascades.org/learning_center.

Academic credit and clock hours Many Learning Center programs are offered for optional academic credit (CP) through Western Washington University and/or teachers clock-hour ( ) certification approved by the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction.

www.ncascades.org 360.854.2599

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2010 Adult Programs Drawn to the Wilderness: Lessons in Drawing in the North Cascades Jocelyn Curry June 28–30 (MON–WED) $275, $355, $515

18 /1CP

Christian Martin

Cost includes 2 nights lodging & 7 meals

Glaze, Wash and Brushstroke: Landscape Watercolor in the North Cascades Molly Hashimoto June 28–30 (MON–WED) $275, $355, $515

18 /1CP

Cost includes 2 nights lodging & 7 meals

With Molly as your mentor, learn an entire repertoire of watercolor painting techniques to represent the beauty of the North Cascades. We’ll glaze the endless light of summer skies, drybrush the late afternoon waves on Diablo Lake, carve out the deep shadows of early morning on towering Pyramid Peak and dab our brushes wet-on-wet to express the mid day chartreuse of vine maples in the majestic forest of the Learning Center. Working each day outdoors in the company of an intimate group, you’ll not only gain new techniques for painting, but reinvigorate your inspiration too.

Connecting eye to heart to hand, moving from the external subject to the internal interpretation, art is a powerful way to connect with nature. Drawing requires us to pay close attention and take special notice of distinctions of light, perspective and relationships. Our dramatic surroundings for this midweek art retreat will provide subject matter for beginning and advanced students alike, from the smallest objects on the forest floor to the massive stone peaks towering over Diablo Lake. Popular instructor Jocelyn Curry will lead carefully sequenced lessons that will move us from small object studies to sweeping landscapes captured quickly. Specific lessons in shading, highlighting and calculating correct perspective will be followed by the addition of color to our drawings. We’ll explore scientific rendering techniques as well as some looser, spontaneous techniques with brushes and handmade tools. By the end, you’ll feel more in tune with your muse as well at this special repose in the North Cascades.

Diablo Creative Arts Retreat: Illuminated Journals, Silk Painting and Basket Making Kristen Gilje, Melinda West and Ruthy Porter July 8–11 ( THU–SUN) 24 /1CP $305, $385, $545 (A materials fee may also apply) Cost includes 3 nights lodging & 10 meals

In the heart of the Cascadian summer, renew your artistic inspiration at our sixth-annual retreat for aspiring and experienced artists. Gather with a community of creative minds at our inspiring lakeside getaway in North Cascades National Park.

With grand views of Diablo Lake and Colonial and Pyramid peaks, our campus offers many inspiring vistas as well as ready access to Thunder Creek’s deep green woods, the wildflower meadows and pink granite spires of Washington Pass and the tawny fields and pine forests of the upper Methow.

Upon registration, you’ll choose one instructor and her area of concentration for the duration of the retreat. We’ll share meals and evening presentations as a large group. Group sizes are limited and all skill levels welcome. This year’s options include:

www.ncascades.org 360.854.2599

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2010 Adult Programs

©Kristen Gilje

Keeping an illustrated fi eld journal inspires closer observations in the field and helps you carry your outdoor experiences back home. Make these connections even more personal by creating your own pocketsized journals. Using mat-board remnants, decorative cover papers and quality watercolor papers, we’ll create one or two simple mini-journals—perfect for capturing the essence of your travels and explorations. Once our journals are made, Ruthy will introduce various illustration techniques and styles in pen and ink, watercolor and watercolor pencils. You’ll have ample opportunity to put your new journal to work during individual forays into our spectacular mountain setting. All journal-making materials will be provided.

©Melinda West

©Ruthy Porter

Silk Painting with Kristen Gilje: Come and play with luxurious silk and beautiful bright dyes to make colorful scarves or wall hangings. The techniques are easy to learn and fun to practice. We’ll employ simple painting techniques, as well as wax and gutta resists and salt, alcohol and other texturing agents. Walks in the forest and along the lakeshore will provide inspiration for color and design. Whether you keep it simple or get creatively complex, you’ll leave the Learning

Center with at least four painted scarves.

Additional $47 material fee will cover cost of supplies to make four finished scarves.

Baskets from Northwest Landscapes with Melinda West: How do you create a beautiful container out of branches, roots, barks, vines and grasses? Together we’ll take a close look at Pacific Northwest landscapes and learn to see the wealth of basket-making materials our local ecosystems yield. Meet the plants and trees that regional First Nations cultures have long recognized to be rich in fiber: western red cedar, cattail, stinging nettle and more. Learn how to grow, gather, prepare, cure, store, mellow and weave using native and non-native plants alike. As we walk the trails to identify plants, prepare materials and construct our large gathering baskets, we’ll engage an ancient art form that comes to us from thousands of years of native traditions with local plants. By the end of our weekend together, the beautiful baskets we’ve created will reflect the Northwest landscape and celebrate our connections to it.

Additional $30 material fee will cover cost of pre-gathered, cured materials, including inner cedar bark, cedar branches and roots and an assortment of branches, roots, grasses, leaves and vines to create one medium/ large-sized ribbed harvest basket.

©Mark Turner

Illuminated Field Journals with Ruthy Porter:

Pocket Camera Wildflower Photography Mark Turner July 19–21 (MON–WED) $215, $295, $455

15 /1CP

Cost includes 2 nights lodging & 7 meals

Do you have a pocket digital camera but aren’t quite sure how to make the most of it? Join photographer Mark Turner to better maximize what your camera is capable of, identifying what features you really need, what you can ignore and what your camera’s strengths are. Best of all, we’ll focus on the North Cascades’ annual bloom of wildflowers as our artistic subject.

From our home base at the Learning Center, we’ll travel to different natural areas along the North Cascades Highway, shooting in field locations offering a wide range of subject matter. Mark will teach us how to photograph plant portraits full of beauty and natural history information, as well as lead visual explorations of the interrelationships of several wildflower species and their habitats.

www.ncascades.org 360.854.2599

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2010 Adult Programs Wilderness Navigation: Map and Compass Skills

Ross Lake By Boat and Boot: People and Places of the Upper Skagit Gerry Cook and Bob Mierendorf July 22–25 ( THU E VE–SUN) $255

21 /1CP

Cost includes 1 night shared lodging & 4 meals at the Learning Center, shuttle, campsite & boat transportation

Experience the wilderness setting of Ross Lake, a fjord-like jewel in the heart of the North Cascades, and learn about the cultural history that has crisscrossed this remote terrain for eons. From a comfortable perch aboard our boat, at our lakeside camp and on hiking trails, you’ll hear vivid accounts spanning 10,000 years of indigenous presence in these mountains, as well as more recent stories from explorers, miners, fire lookouts, rangers and Beat poets. With more than 60 years of National Park Service employment between them, Gerry and Bob maintain a treasure trove of local knowledge and intimacy with the North Cascades. The generosity with which they impart their wisdom will make this a backcountry adventure you’ll never forget.

15

Cost includes 2 nights lodging & 6 meals

Cliff Mass, Mignonne Bivon, Susan Prichard and Phil Higuera Aug 5–8 ( THU E VE–SUN) 21 /1CP $305, $385, $545 Cost includes 3 nights lodging & 9 meals

Washington State is blessed with vast reaches of protected public land—millions of acres of mountains, desert, shoreline and forest available to us to explore by boat, boot and bike. Your adventures will be more rewarding, as well as safer and more predictable, if you have practiced navigation skills using a map and compass—two wilderness tools that never go out of style. The ability to interpret a map in relation to the surrounding landscape is one of the most valuable assets one can depend on while traveling on or off the beaten path.

Join us for a weekend of honing the craft of map and compass reading, topography and GPS navigation. With seasoned Institute naturalists as our teachers and guides, we’ll learn essential concepts such as declination, true north, triangulation and how latitude and longitude differ from a UTM grid.

From our home base at the Learning Center, we’ll venture forth and spend our days exploring the incredible wilderness areas of North Cascades National Park. At the end of the class, you’ll get a chance to test your newfound skills by working in teams to navigate a specially designed course that will introduce you to our wild neighborhood.

Get to know the powerful, time-tested tools that will become valuable allies as you continue to explore the wild places of this region and beyond.

Spend an enriching weekend exploring North Cascadian landscapes and gaining understanding of the dynamic ecological processes that fuel their lush biodiversity. With leading experts guiding us and sharing insights from their interconnected disciplines, you’ll gain a greater appreciation for the natural phenomena of the Pacific Northwest. From our comfortable base at the Learning Center, we’ll venture out on daily field trips to some of the most interesting areas the North Cascades have to offer.

University of Washington professor Cliff Mass, the most widely known weather guru of our region and author of the best-selling book The Weather of the Pacific Northwest, will enlighten us about the complex weather phenomena of the Northwest, which are dominated by the effects of the Pacific Ocean and the mountain ranges of this region.

Fire ecology specialists Susan Prichard, research scientist for the Pacific Wildland Fire Sciences Laboratory, and Phil Higuera, fire ecology professor at the University of Idaho, will introduce us to the rich mosaic of flora and fauna created by the historic cycles of wildland fires. We’ll visit fresh burn sites inside North Cascades National Park and have the opportunity to compare them to older, recovering burn sites.

©Brett Baunton

Christian Martin

Staff naturalists July 30–Aug 1 (FRI E VE–SUN) $215, $295, $455

Northwest Naturalists Weekend: Weather, Wildfire and Biodiversity

Longtime National Park Service botanist Mignonne Bivin, with help from by David Sibley’s latest book, Guide to Trees, will guide us from lowland to subalpine forests to discover the abundance of plant life in our local mountains. The North Cascades’ weather patterns, fire history, varied topography and elevation changes create one of the highest diversities of plant species anywhere in the nation.

Weather, wildfire, botany—we invite you to the Learning Center this August to find out more about the fascinating elements that combine in surprising ways to make our region the amazing place that it is.

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2010 Adult Programs

The Spirit of Place: Writing about the Outdoors

Cost includes 2 nights lodging & 7 meals

The jagged summits of the North Cascades.

The black sand beaches of Hawaii. The sun-baked sandstone of the American Southwest. How can writers conjure a sense of particular places in their work? This workshop will teach you how to recreate the world on the page through use of concrete language, vivid imagery, dramatic scene and point of view. We’ll read travel and nature writing from Paul Theroux, Edward Abbey, Brenda Peterson and others and discuss how these authors manage to capture a sense of place in their work. Through writing exercises and discussion, we will complete a short story of our own evoking a strong sense of place. The Learning Center staff of chefs, naturalists and graduate students will support us and make us feel at home all weekend as we exercise our powers of creativity. Writing beneath the towering spires of Pyramid and Colonial peaks, we’ll find out how awesome settings can inspire awesome prose.

Nikki McClure Aug 23–25 (MON–WED) $275, $355, $515

18 /1CP

Cost includes 2 nights lodging & 7 meals

©Nikki McClure

18 /1CP

Christian Martin

Nick O’Connell Aug 23–25 (MON–WED) $275, $355, $515

Crafting Memory: Making a Paper Cut Story

Join Nikki McClure, the Olympia-based artist renowned for her intricate and beautiful paper cuts, for her first art retreat with North Cascades Institute as the long days of late summer stretch before us.

Using an X-Acto knife, Nikki cuts out her images from a single sheet of paper, creating a bold language that translates the complex poetry of parenthood, nature and activism into a simple and endearing picture. Her art is ubiquitous in our region, gracing best-selling calendars, T-shirts, cards and, more recently, books, including All in a Day, a recipient of the 2010 Pacific Northwest Booksellers Association award.

Starting with landscape and field sketches—as well as muscle memories of places lodged in our psyches—we’ll begin to craft our stories. Moving to single sheets of paper, we’ll cut images using X-Acto knives and carve out stories rich with the memory of this time and place.

In between working on our art projects, there will be opportunities to hike in the woods, splash around in the lake, nibble berries and walk in the moonlight.

Our outdoor adventures over the course of three days will inspire the crafting of our paper cuts.

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2010 Adult Programs Hikes, Camera, Action!: The Wild and Scenic Environmental Film Festival The Beats Goes On: Lookout Poets and Backcountry Tales on Ross Lake Gerry Cook, Saul Weisberg and Hannah Sullivan Aug 26–29 ( THUR E VE–SUN) 21 /1CP $255

Christian Martin

Cost includes 1 night lodging & 4 meals at the Learning Center, shuttle, campsite & boat transportation

Venture up Ross Lake and immerse yourself in the literary history of the North Cascades while taking in the beauty of peak summer glory. Traveling by boat with 3 great storytellernaturalists with decades of backcountry experience among them, we’ll read poetry and lookout journals, go swimming and hiking, practice yoga and tour the lake’s hidden canyons. The highlight of our adventure will be hiking to the top of Desolation Peak where Jack Kerouac, the reluctant “King of the Beats,” lived the life of a mercurial fire lookout—an experience he famously documented in his novels The Dharma Bums and Desolation Angels. We’ll gather Thursday night at the Learning Center to share lodging, meals and camaraderie. Friday, we’ll head to Ross Lake to board the 30-foot, open-decked Mule, the perfect floating venue for easy backcountry explorations. Base camping for two nights at Lightning Creek, we’ll hike up to the historic Desolation Peak fire lookout. Finally, Sunday, we’ll tour the lake and make our reluctant way back to the Learning Center. Don’t miss this annual expedition of books, rucksacks, campfire tales and jaw-dropping views!

Learning Center Naturalists Sept 3–5 (FRI–SUN) $215, $295, $455 Cost includes 2 nights lodging & 6 meals $20 commuter rate includes 1 dinner & 1 evening of films

We’re thrilled that the Learning Center will be a host venue for the 2010 Wild and Scenic Environmental Film Festival. Join us for a weekend that celebrates the conservation community around us, addresses the challenges we face, explores the late-summer glory of the North Cascades and inspires us to work for change through two evenings of environmentally charged films.

We’ll spend the daylight hours exploring Cascadian wildlands at the tipping point between summer and fall. Gorge on wild blueberries as we hike up Cutthroat Pass for epic views. Explore Skagit Valley farms with our chef when harvest is in full swing. Or let our naturalists guide you across Diablo Lake in our new 18-person Pacific Dancer canoe.

Friday and Saturday nights, sit back and relax as we present the latest environmentally themed films, ranging from extraordinary outdoor adventures to poignant environmental justice battles to sensitive eco-awareness shorts. Throughout the weekend, you’ll enjoy delicious meals, comfortable accommodations and opportunities to enjoy free time. We’ve also invited conservation groups from both sides of the Cascades to join us and share information about what they are up to in 2010.

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2010 Adult Programs Complete registration info on next page » Wildlife Tracking: Bears, Cougars and other Cascadian Mammals Dave Moskowitz Sept 10–12 (FRI E VE–SUN) $275, $355, $515

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Cost includes 2 nights lodging & 6 meals

Autumn Beauty and Bounty: A Watercolor Harvest Molly Hashimoto Oct 1–3 (FRI–SUN) $275, $355, $515 Cost includes two nights lodging and seven meals

18 /1CP

Paint the vivid hues of autumn in the North Cascades with Molly, one of the Northwest’s most gifted and generous art instructors. We’ll paint on location at the Learning Center and experience the beauty of maples and other forest colors, and then travel to higher elevations in search of glorious golden larches. In ©Molly Hashimoto

Watching wildlife comes easily in many landscapes, but the Northwest is a different creature. Just like our mountain views, you often need to put in extra effort to see an animal in the Cascade woodlands, especially reclusive mammals such as bears, cougars, coyotes and bobcats. But the effort is worthwhile: learning to track wildlife can open your eyes to the many unfolding stories that are going on all around us. Such skills hone your senses and help you identify the ever-present but often-hidden thread of animal life woven throughout our wildlands, towns and backyards. Join Dave, a longtime tracker, teacher and author, to study tracking fundamentals such as trailing, timing and identifying diverse signs including prints, scat, tree scrapes and food caches. We’ll get a firsthand look at the habitats of these animals as we canoe to silty deltas on Diablo Lake and scour the marshy lowlands of the Skagit River, while learning about many animals and the complex ecosystems they inhabit.

the evenings (and during any rainy spells), we’ll paint in the classroom, using a harvest cornucopia—squash, pumpkins and more of the Skagit’s autumnal bounty—designing still-life sketches, studies and paintings, looking at favorite works from Old Masters and learning from their design principles. Always one of our most popular instructors, let Molly help you to improve your watercoloring skills while basking in the fleeting glory of fall in the mountains.

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Registration Information Registration and Tuition Register for Institute programs online at www.ncascades.org, by phone at (360) 854-2599 or by email at nci@ncascades.org.

Online registration is not available for Family Getaways or Base Camp programs—please call for assistance. Mail-in registration forms are available for download online or by phone. Tuition is on a per-person basis and includes a non-refundable registration fee (see Cancellations). No discounts for alternative lodging.

Bring-a-Buddy Discount Help us engage more people in exploring and celebrating the natural and cultural history of the North Cascades by introducing us to new friends. When you sign up for a program with someone new to the Institute, you’ll both receive 15 percent off your registration.

Offer valid for most programs with tuition over $100 (Family Getaways and Base Camp not included). “New to the Institute” is defined as never having attended a paid program with us. Participants must sign up together and pay in full at the

time of registration to receive discount. This discount cannot be combined with any other offer.

Cancellations If a registration is cancelled 21 days or more before a program starts, we will refund the tuition minus a registration fee. Fees are: $25 for tuition of $99 or less; $50 for $100-299; $75 for $300799; $125 for $800 or more.

Cancellations that occur less than 21 days before the start of a program will not receive a refund.

If we are forced to cancel a program, participants will receive a full refund or transfer option.

Academic credit and clock hours Many Institute programs are offered for optional academic credit through Western Washington University. The number of credits available is listed near the title of each seminar preceded by a “CP,” denoting credits pending approval. WWU will bill you $48/credit.

The Institute is approved by the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction to grant teach-

ers clock-hour certification. The number of clock hours available per program appears with a clock symbol ( ) near the title of each seminar. The Institute will bill you $3.50/clock hour.

Scholarships Scholarship funds are available for pre-service teacher education students, teachers, seniors over 60, environmental educators, conservation professionals and lowincome participants. Applications are available online or by phone.

Young adults Responsible youth 14-17 years old that have an interest in learning about natural and cultural history are welcome in Learning Center programs with the exceptions of Diablo Downtimes and the Sourdough Speaker Series (these programs are reserved for adults). Any youth in an Institute program must be accompanied by a participating adult.

Student Discount Students ages 14 and up can receive 50 percent off most Institute programs with tuition

over $100 (Family Getaways, Diablo Downtimes and Base Camp not included). Students must provide a copy of current student ID and pay balance in full at time of registration. Students ages 14-17 must be accompanied on programs by a participating adult. Discount cannot be combined with any other.

Accommodations and meals The Learning Center has three guest lodges, each with shared, gender-specific bathrooms with showers. Guest rooms contain two twin bunk-bed sets and pricing varies according to the sleeping arrangements—see program descriptions for rates.

Participants are asked to bring their own bedding and towels, but linens can be rented on site if needed. Overnight accommodations are for paid registrants only.

We cannot accommodate pets.

More information on accommodations, including frequently asked questions and a photo tour, is available at www.ncascades.org/ learning_center.

Delicious, healthy meals incorporating local and organic

foods whenever possible are provided for paid registrants in Learning Center programs. If you have special dietary requirements or food allergies, we will gladly attempt to accommodate them with advance notice.

Risk and responsibility Many of our programs are conducted in the field and are led by staff trained in risk management and safety. Participants should be in good physical condition and prepared to spend full days outdoors. The Learning Center is more than one hour from definitive medical care, and those with medical conditions should consult their physicians before enrollment. We may encounter insects, wild animals, inclement weather and other unpredictable circumstances. Participants assume full responsibility for their own safety and must provide their own health and accident insurance. You will be required to provide emergency health information and to sign an assumption-of-risk/hold-harmless waiver before the course begins.

Please read and follow pre-trip letter instructions carefully.

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LIVE, LE ARN AND TE ACH IN THE NORTH C ASC ADES

©North Cascades Institute ©Erin Fowler

©W WU

©North Cascades Institute

Learn in a community of the Pacific Northwest’s best and brightest environmental educators, field scientists, writers, naturalists, artists, conservationists and visionary leaders in the nonprofit sector.

more info, academic schedule and learning center tour at www.ncascades.org/ graduate

M.Ed. Graduate Program

Explore a wild landscape featuring towering peaks, cascading waterfalls, meadows full of wildflowers and more glaciers than anywhere else in the contiguous United States.

Live and work in an award-winning, green-built educational facility in the heart of North Cascades National Park Complex with a staff of passionate environmental educators and nonprofit professionals.

Grow in an academic environment that combines the rigorous standards of a university, the hands-on experience of teaching, the art of nonprofit organizational management and the personal insights born from outdoor explorations.

Envision yourself as a graduate student with North Cascades Institute and Western Washington University, earning your Master’s in Environmental Education and a Certificate in Leadership and Nonprofit Administration while enjoying the very best the Pacific Northwest has to offer.

Working in partnership with Huxley College of the Environment at WWU, the Institute offers an integrated Master of Education program

that blends leadership and nonprofit administration, curriculum development and instructional strategies, natural and cultural history and residential program operations. During the course of our unique sevenquarter program, you’ll live and work at North Cascades Environmental Learning Center on the shores of Diablo Lake, pursue coursework at WWU’s Bellingham campus, teach kids and adults from all backgrounds, survey Northwest environments ranging from high alpine trails to the coast and make lifelong friends and professional contacts in our close-knit community.

The professional residency at the Institute is the only one of its kind that is fully integrated into a degree program. At the end of your academic journey, you’ll have secured your M.Ed. degree from WWU, a venerable institution that, for 10 years in a row, has been rated second among Western region public universities that grant Master’s degrees by U.S. News & World Report. Perhaps more important, you’ll be ready for an exciting, enriching position in the field of environmental education.

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Youth Adventures

CONNECTING THE NE XT GENER ATION TO NATURE

North Cascades

1. Cascades Climate Challenge,

Institute works hard to serve as an antidote to a troubling contemporary crisis: kids are not spending enough time outside playing in and bonding with nature.

When you sign up for any Institute program, your tuition dollars help us connect hundreds of young people more closely with the natural world. A few of our notable summer youth programs include:

a partnership with North Cascades National Park and Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest. High school youth from communities in Oregon and Washington will study climate change and leadership on park and forest land for three weeks as resident scholars. While here, the youth will explore climate change field science with experts and learn about energy conservation, public lands and stewardship. After leaving our mountains, they’ll return to their local communities as youth ambassadors and lead others in service projects in their local national parks and forests. (Hear the students tell their story at www.ncascades.org/multimedia.)

2. North Cascades Wild, a backcountry canoe, backpacking and conservation service program for underserved youth on Ross and Baker lakes in North Cascades National Park and Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest. During the course of 12 life-changing days, high school students from the Seattle area, Skagit Valley and Whatcom County complete service projects, learn Leave No Trace principles, outdoor camping and leadership skills and study wilderness, stewardship and the natural and cultural history of the region with the Institute, National Park Service and United States Forest Service.

3. Kulshan Creek Neighborhood Kids Program, We offer these exciting outdoor experiences to local youth for free. If you are interested in helping the next generation of young people learn about our local environment, contact our development program at (360) 854-2596 or amy_wilcox@ncascades.org

a program that began in 2007 in partnership with Mount BakerSnoqualmie National Forest, Mount Vernon Police Department and North Cascades National Park. This outreach initiative engages youth from one of the Skagit Valley’s most diverse neighborhoods in a variety of outdoor activities through all-day field trips. Since its inception, more than 100 youth have learned about bears, mountain goats, marine biology, migratory birds and the natural history of the Skagit Valley through visits to local public lands with a variety of educators.

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ŠNorth Cascades Institute

Youth Y outAdventures h Programs P Youth

2 Amy Brown

Christian Martin

Jenny Lee Rae

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BRING YOUR CL ASSROOM TO THE NORTH C ASC ADES

North Cascades Institute believes children exposed to nature and educated in the natural sciences gain a valuable connection that will serve them their whole lives. Mountain School, which has served more than 16,000 children since 1989, is our nationally recognized residential environmental education program offered in cooperation with North Cascades National Park. Mountain School students come to the North Cascades for three days and two nights with their school class to learn about ecosystems, scientific investigation, geology and the natural and cultural history of the mountains through hands-on, experientialbased activities.

for more info on how your child’s classroom can experience the transformative effects of Mountain School, visit www.ncascades.org/school

North Cascades Institute offers Mountain School programs for upper elementary through high school students at our expansive Environmental Learning Center, a wilderness campus located on the shores of Diablo Lake that includes well-equipped classrooms and labs, a library and experienced staff and hike leaders. Mountain School students come with their classmates, teachers and chaperones to learn why Northwest mountains are important to our plants and wildlife, our rivers and sea, and our communities and cultures. A unique network of trails and shelters surrounding the Learning Center provides quick and easy access to the surrounding wilderness and incredible outdoor learning opportunities.

Participants stay in guest lodges and fresh, delicious and nutritious meals featuring local, fresh foods are served in the lakeside dining hall.

The multi-disciplinary Mountain School curriculum is aligned with Washington State’s EALRs and GLEs to better facilitate the integration of information learned at Mountain School into the classroom curriculum and into each student’s daily life. In addition to academic lessons, students develop important social skills and a sense of respect for one another and their surrounding environment as they live and work together in a cooperative community.

©Rick Allen

Mountain School

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Support Us

©Rick Allen

©Rick Allen

CONSERVE AND RESTORE NORTHWEST ENVIRONMENTS Thanks to the support of people who care about our environment, our programs are working. We’re connecting young people more closely with nature right here in the Northwest.

This past year, we taught thousands of kids about this special place. They know more about the environment; now they’re taking better care of it.

Here’s what donors helped us accomplish in 2009: North Cascades Wild led 47 underserved teenagers onto Ross Lake via canoes. These amazing kids from a broad diversity of cultural backgrounds spent 12 days on Ross Lake doing arduous, hands-on stewardship work and learning about the environment.

The life-changing results were dramatic. One 16-year-old wrote, “I now realize that the environment needs my help.”

In Mountain School, more than 1,800 young people spent three days at the Learning Center learning about our local ecosystems. A fifth-grade teacher wrote us, “Six months later, my kids are still talking about what they learned about glaciers, plants and water—even lichen!”

The Kulshan Creek Neighborhood Kids Program connected dozens of young residents of this urban Hispanic community in Mount Vernon with nature, right in their own backyard. These enthusiastic kids and their families—most of them new residents who speak Spanish as their first language—are hungry for safe, stimulating experiences in nature.

Our current economy is presenting tough challenges for everyone, but our dedication to our mission remains as strong as ever.

With your support, we intend to come through this time a stronger organization poised to achieve our mission to a greater degree than ever before.

Please help us conserve and restore Northwest environments through education. Give today!

Your support makes our work possible. Return this form to North Cascades Institute, call us at (360) 854-2599 or donate online at www.ncascades.org/give.

n ame

ad d r ess

c it y

state

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emai l ad d r ess

donation amount  $25  $500

 $50  $1,000

 $100  Other _________

I would like to pledge $_______ per month for _______ years, for a total of $_______.

 I would like information on naming North Cascades Institute as a beneficiary in my will

method of payment  Check, payable to North Cascades Institute  Visa  MasterCard

c r ed it c ar d n umb er

ex pi r ati on date

sec u r it y code

s i gn atu r e ( as n ame ap pears on c ar d )

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Group Rentals

RETRE ATS AND MEETINGS IN THE NORTH C ASC ADES

Bring your group to the North Cascades and host a meeting, training or retreat at the Learning Center.

Our unique wilderness campus inspires reection, understanding and connection to the natural world, as well as to each other.

GROUP RENTALS INCLUDE:

* * * * * *

info, booking options and tour of the learning center at www.ncascades.org/rentals.

Call (206) 526-2565 for rates and availability

Lodging for as many as 92 guests Delicious catering with local and organic foods Conference rooms, trailside shelters and a library Internet access, projectors and other supplies Naturalist-led activities like canoeing and hiking exclusive to your group Inspiring community, green facilities and sustainable practices

The Learning Center serves as a home base for North Cascades Institute’s educational programs. However, as our calendar allows, we open our doors to welcome groups who want to experience the North Cascades through their own retreats and meetings. Conference fees help subsidize our youth education programs and scholarships for low-income participants.

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Christian Martin

©Lara Swimmer

©Lara Swimmer

SHOP AND SUPPORT CONSERVATION AND RESTOR ATION OF NORTHWEST ENVIRONMENTS

When you explore the North Cascades this year, be sure to check out the visitor stores during your journey. Beginning in 2010, they are operated by North Cascades Institute in a new partnership with the National Park Service and Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest.

The stores are conveniently located within the North Cascades National Park headquarters in Sedro-Woolley (where you’ll also find lots of information about enjoying public lands), the Wilderness Information Center in Marblemount, Visitor Center in Newhalem, the Golden West Visitor Center in Stehekin and the Learning Center at Diablo Lake.

At all of these diverse locations, staffed by knowledgeable naturalists and friendly rangers, you’ll find books, maps, passes, trail guides, gifts, educational toys for kids, posters, postcards and other resources to help you explore, understand and enjoy the North Cascades. And you’ll be shopping for a good cause, too: your purchases will help fund North Cascades Institute education programs for young people on public lands.

Park Stores

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Catalog Credits

www.moontrolling.com Designer: Jesse Kinsman www.kinsmancreative.com Printing: Lithtex Northwest www.lithtex.com

Cover Artist: Cover art by Thomas Wood; “View from Slate Peak,” 2003, oil, 12 x 18 inches. Courtesy of Lisa Harris Gallery.

Born 1951 in Eastern Washington, Thomas studied fine art at Western Washington University and Fairhaven College in Bellingham. In 1976, he purchased an etching press and has been a working artist since. In spring 2000, he was a visiting instructor at

Il Bisonte School of Graphic Arts in Florence, Italy. In summer 2009, Thomas installed his mural for The Porch stage in Boulevard Park on the shores of Bellingham Bay. His work is featured at the New York Public Library, Portland Art Museum, Museum of Northwest Art, University of Washington Medical Center and elsewhere and has been shown in exhibitions all over the Pacific Northwest.

Artists and Photographers: We are also grateful to have the opportunity to reproduce the artwork of Nikki McClure, Molly Hashimoto, Ruthy Porter and Melinda West, and the photography of Rick Allen, Benj Drummond, Kristen Gilje, Jude Kavalam, Jesse Kinsman, Scott Leppert, Lee Mann, Stephen McGehee, Lara Swimmer, John Scurlock, David Snyder, Mark Turner and Institute staff and graduate students.

Copyright 2010 North Cascades Institute. All rights reserved. Art and photo copyrights remain with creators and are used by permission.

©North Cascades Institute

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Carolyn Waters

Editor: Christian Martin

3 ©Benj Drummond

Major Partners: 1. The traditional “passing of the paddle,” when the outgoing cohort of graduate students passes their journey on to the new cohort. Congratulations Kelly, Emily, Jenny, Aneka, Sara, Katie, Nora and Meghann!

2. Chip Jenkins, North Cascades National Park superintendent, David Hall, Henry Klein Partnership partner, Jorge Carrasco, Seattle City Light Superintendent and Saul Weisberg, North Cascades Institute Executive Director celebrate the Learning Center’s LEED Silver and Designing & Building with FSC awards.

3. This catalog is dedicated to the memory of Jim Harris, a historian, conservationalist, storyteller and mentor to North Cascades Institute.

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ŠDavid Snyder

Hope to see you soon!

BaseCamp new opportunity to explore and learn about the North Cascades from professional naturalists and instructors while enjoying the comforts of our campus in the heart of the national park. Everyone is invited to stay at the North Cascades Environmental Learning Center, for as many days and nights as you’d like, on a space-available basis, during our peak summer season.

Details on page 6 and www.ncascades.org/basecamp

visit us online:

Special deals, photography, nature quizzes and more at www.facebook.com/ncascades

NORTH CASCADES INSTITUTE 810 State Route 20, Sedro-Woolley, Washington 98284

360.854.2599 • www.ncascades.org

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PRINTED ON RECYCLED PAPER MANUFACTURED WITH ELECTRICITY OFFSET RENEWABLE ENERGY. B Y CHOOS I NG R ECYCL ED F IBER, WE SAVED 36 TREES, 7,762 GA LLO NS O F WAT E R , 17 MILLIO N B T US O F E NE R GY, 1 , 698 POUNDS OF S OL ID WASTE A ND 2,869 PO UNDS O F GREENH O US E GAS ES.

©North Cascades Institute

Flexible, affordable, enriching, fun: Base Camp is an exciting

Chattermarks: Visit our blog about living, learning and teaching in the North Cascades at www.chattermarks.org