Seattle Weekly reports on fisher reintrouduction

"Good news for those who care for endangered species, or just those who like to know there is an abundance of small, furry animals running around in our woods: we’re bringing back the Pacific fisher (hopefully)."  more...

Input sought on Sustainable Roads on the Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest

MBSNF is conducting a study of their road system with a view to declining budgets which will only allow them to keep open about 25% or 623 miles of the current 2500 miles. MBSNF is making an effort to involve the public users of the roads in identifying those roads that the public believes are important to be kept open for recreation.

NCCC friends - please attend one of the meetings below and express a strong preference for environmentally responsible road closures and decommissioning. There are another five public meetings, Tuesday in Issaquah is next. If you can't attend a meeting go to the website linked below and give your input!

 

PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT SCHEDULE

Tell us what roads are important to you and why at one of the upcoming meetings. Please RSVP to    sustainableroads@gmail.com, space is limited. 
Give your input online at www.mbssustainableroads.com.

Questionnaire direct link: http://mbssustainableroads.wordpress.com/questionnaire/

 

NCCC member is Artist in Residence in NCNP this summer

Here's how NCCC member Ethan Welty describes his work in North Cascades Park this summer:

Precipitous granite faces, tree-drenched valleys, lofty alpine basins host to most of the glaciers in the lower 48. Although within sight of Seattle, the North Cascades comprise one of the most intact, inaccessible, and least visited wildlands in the contiguous United States. Raised in Seattle, I am thankful to have once called these mountains home. Standing among them, my intellectual and aesthetic fascination for the natural world converged and found a voice. Among them, I aspired to become a mountaineer, a glaciologist, and a photographer.

Although I now live in Colorado, I return often to celebrate the mountains that first inspired my camera. My goal, which will surely take a lifetime, is to assemble a spatially comprehensive, photographic portrait of the shy and beautiful range. On my last visit, I focused on landscapes lying just outside the National Park, hoping to assist American Alps Legacy Project in their battle to expand Congressional protection in the region. This summer, as artist-in-residence at North Cascades National Park, I train my camera on the rugged landscapes lying both within and beyond the park, researching and photographing as many objectives as time allows. In late August, I plan to share my experiences and my craft in an evening slideshow and in a one-day photo workshop (dates and location to be determined).

http://www.weltyphotography.com/galleries/home-range/

"Keepers of the Beat" N. Cascades glacier film now online!

The North Coast & Cascades Science Learning Network (SLN) is pleased to announce a new film on glacier monitoring. "Keepers of the Beat" features Dr. Jon Riedel, NPS glaciologist at North Cascades National Park showing how and why he takes the pulse of glaciers. The title refers to the fact that glaciers respond to environmental conditions and keep a record of their past history, the "beats" of time. 

Glaciers in all Northwest national parks are shrinking fast. “Keepers of the Beat” shares Dr. Riedel’s findings, ties in related work at Mount Rainier, and explains how the projects are linked together. In the film we see the scientists going about their work and we also learn of their personal motivations and concerns. “Keepers” is 18 minutes long and streamed in HD video at http://www.nwparkscience.org.

“Keepers” and the other short videos at the site are products of the SLN, a National Park Service program serving all the Northwest national parks. Its mission is to encourage park research and to disseminate results of  that research. Please contact the program’s director, Dr. Jerry Freilich, for more information (jerry_freilich@nps.gov, 360-565-3082).

The Wild Cascades, Spring 2013 coming soon!

Here's a preview of what's to come in the current Spring issue of The Wild Cascades!

(If you're a member, your copy will arrive in about a week. If not, join NCCC and we'll mail you a copy!)

Meet the new NC Park Supe at REI on 6/14!

YOU'RE  INVITED!

Explore Your
North Cascades National Park
(it's closer than you think!)
and meet the new Park Superintendent

When:  Friday June 14, 4:30 pm – 8:00 pm
Where: REI flagship store, 222 Yale Avenue N, Seattle
Hosted by:  North Cascades Conservation Council (NCCC)

• Chat with Karen Taylor-Goodrich, new Superintendent of the North Cascades National Park Complex.
• Meet outdoor enthusiasts, catch up with NCCC members, board members, and volunteers, as you meet other Park staff.
• Update your summer outdoor recreation plans as you learn more about hiking, backcountry camping and trails, mountaineering, wildlife (wolves! bears! wolverines!) and other natural and cultural resources from Park staff.

 A North Cascades National Park information program will be presented at 5:00, 6:00 and 7:00 PM, with plenty of time in between for complimentary food and beverages, meeting National Park staff and NCCC board members.

Left: Karen Taylor-Goodrich, NPS photo
Above: Mt. Logan from North Fork Bridge Creek, Philip Fenner photo (c)2012

Snow report May 11, 2013 N Fork Cascade River

I have visited the N Fork Cascade River each of the past three weekends for overnight campouts to enjoy avalanche viewing and to assess the snowpack.  I have been viewing avalanches for the past 25 years or so in this area, and this Spring shaped up to provide for plenty of action (see previous blog entry about this being one of the cooler Springs with temps only hitting 70 F in the past three weeks).

Only problem is, there were hardly any avalanches this year (at least that I saw/experienced)!  Depending on snowpack and temperatures, avalanche viewing takes place any time from late March through June.  This year the freezing level only overtopped the high peaks of the North Cascades in the last three weeks, so I figured my timing was good.  Indeed, the past week has seen consistently and unseasonably warm weather, with temps in the 80sF much of the time.

Don't get me wrong--there have been avalanches, and some big ones, but in each of the three 30 hour sessions I was there, the frequency of all events (my scale goes:  small, moderate, respectable, big, and THE BIG ONE) was about 17% of what I usually experience.  The waterfalls were really roaring--the big meltdown is on, and the rivers are up up up.  The Skagit looked as high as I've even seen it--all from snowmelt.

I suspect the warm weather resulted in the snowpack essentially melting/evaporating in-situ--it has basically melted faster than it could avalanche!  I am shocked at how fast the low-elevation snowpack has disappeared.  I camped seven days ago on more than one-half meter of snow covering slide alder.  Now, the slide alder is completely snow-free and leafing out--check this out--my tent was here on two feet of snow and I was skiing this section of road just last week!

The road is snow free to above Boston Basin TH, and even at the parking lot at the end of the road, the signs have all melted out and there is pavement visible.  I did see one event come off Cascade Peak last week that nearly reached the road--very nice, and a reminder to maintain situational awareness.
Oh, the bear was out last week on the other side of the valley, but other than a couple of deer on the drive this time, no animals save for one coyote in the distance, a mouse or rat trying to come in the tent, and of course plenty of birds (thrush, woodpecker, grouse).
Saw about 10 people last week, and only four this weekend, though there were about 10 vehicles at the road end/gate.  It is amazing how many more people have been getting to the backcountry over the past seven years or so--due to the profusion of high tech, light-weight ski gear and the popularity of adventure activities.



Here's a pic of camp with the Sill Glacier beyond.  The Sill, like many glaciers of the North Cascades, is avalanche fed.

If you look closely, you'll see a bit of cornice gone from the left side of the below image--I saw it avalanche, but it didn't even reach the lower valley.  This is how avalanche fed glaciers survive moderate elevations at this latitude--or how they don't survive....

Note I've now visited three National Parks in 2013, including three visits to North Cascades National Park.  Now it is time to travel to higher elevations and do some climbing and exploring on behalf of conservation efforts for USFS Wilderness (Cascades Wild) and National Park (American Alps).