By Amy Gibson As autumn approaches, plants begin to ready themselves for winter. For plants, the change in temperature causes sugars to migrate and convert into different forms with a variety of …

From left to right: thimbleberry, cleavers, yarrow. By Amy Gibson For many, summer is a time to relax, slow down, and enjoy the warm season of our lives. One way I’ve found to enjoy these months …

Story and photos By Patrick Beggan For an easy night under the stars, it’s hard to beat car camping. Though Whatcom County doesn’t have a major mountain pass or an abundance of built-up …

By Amy Gibson As winter winds down, green life emerges in the forest once again. You may notice foragers off-trail, filling baskets with robust leaves, bright flowers and small berries. Perhaps …

  Story and photos by Audra Mercille When Rio and I set out for the North Twin Sister, some would have called us crazy – not just because of our familiar but challenging destination or the …

A tent on the Baker River. Andy Porter photo. Story by Oliver Lazenby I n 1994 when the Northridge earthquake knocked out power across Los Angeles, astronomers at Griffith Observatory, just north of …

Winter eagle watching on the Squamish, Nooksack and Skagit By Ian Ferguson Photos by David Riffle In winter, the riparian areas around northwest rivers provide prime habitat for nesting eagles. Three …

Photo: brendajphillips.com Grizzlies may be brought back to the North Cascades By Ian Ferguson I f an unarmed human and a grizzly bear enter the thunder dome, we all know the outcome: the bear leaves …

Wolves in Washington Lessons from the Yellowstone Wolf Project By Ilona Popper In 2008, I watched three wolves kill a bull elk in Yellowstone National Park. It was the first time I’d looked up …

Summer Night Skies By Pat Grubb In summer, these latitudes are marked by long days and short nights, at least until June 22 when the days begin to grow shorter again. Compared to southern latitudes, …

Witness the great migration Festivals to inspire your inner birder By Nathan Dalla Santa Photos by David Riffle For bird watchers, spring is a magical time of year in the Pacific Northwest. Hundreds …

Frost Flowers Magic happens on the forest floor Story by Sue Madsen Take a walk on a cold winter day in the Pacific Northwest lowlands and you are likely to see a phenomenon considered rare in other …

NEXT ARTICLE: Randonnée Repairs Between Land and Sea Springtime tide pools are full of life Story by Sue Madsen The space between sea and land is a mysterious and intriguing world called the …

Tracking wildlife on the Nooksack River By Mallory Clarke Photos by Andrew Grubb and David Moskowitz We park at a slight widening of the narrow Forest Service road. The bit of wetland we glimpsed at …

Eagle Watch By Kara Furr Photo by Gene Davis Hundreds of eagles from Alaska and northern Canada migrate to the Skagit River each winter to prey on the salmon spawning in the river. Catching a sight …

Cascade foothills offers premier hawk watching By Sue Madsen Photos by Joe Meche I get out of the truck in the slanting light of the late winter sun, and pull my collar up against the breeze. …

Liquid light Paddling in search of bioluminesence By Sue Madsen Bioluminesence! I’d heard of it but had never seen this liquid light. As we paddled along the floating docks that ring the marina, …

Shooting stars Prime viewing sites of the Perseids By Sue Madsen A rim of yellow fading to cerulean blue outlines the horizon to the west, but overhead the sky is a deep indigo with stars just …