Kokanees 2023-2024
Welcome to Explorers Club Season 6! Mentors are excited for our penultimate season and hope that it is filled with nature connection and group bonding. This season, our technical skills focus will be wilderness travel and deepening our carving skills by learning several new techniques. Our socio-emotional skill focus will be reflection and communication.
All outings, including dates, times, locations, and staffing are subject to change due to unforeseen circumstances and without notice. We will notify you of any changes as soon as possible.
Resources
Explorers Club Pack List
Mentor Contact Info
Adam Brayton (he/him) | adamb@wildwhatcom.org
Anna Friederich (they/them) | anna@wildwhatcom.org
OUTING 1 | Saturday, September 30 | 10:00-3:00PM
SKILLS | Nettle Harvest and Basket Weaving | Northridge Park
To begin our year, we will head to a patch of urban wilderness on the north side of town. On this outing, we will have the opportunity to get to learn more about one of our most useful local plants, stinging nettle, and one of the most invasive, English ivy! We’ll begin our nettle cordage projects on this outing but will need to let them cure over the year. After harvesting + processing nettles, we’ll move on to ripping out English ivy and testing our hands at basket making. Don’t worry if this is tricky at first, this is a skill that takes practice! On our last outing of the year, we will utilize the nettles that we harvest this outing to create our own cordage. Please bring garden gloves if you have them.
Directions: 3773 E McLeod Rd. From I-5, take exit 255 and head east on Sunset Drive for 1.7 miles. Turn R onto E McLeod Rd. After .4 miles pass the first entrance to Squalicum High and turn left into the Squalicum High School student parking lot. You’ll see tennis courts on your left and mentors will be waiting in the top parking lot. Map.
OUTING 2 | Saturday, November 4 | 10:00-4:00PM
EXPLORATION | Butter Knives | Bowman Bay
Today, we'll be working on our backcountry cutlery sets by starting to carve butter knives and spoons! We'll travel to Bowman Bay, where we'll make camp under a big pavilion with an indoor fire pit. The group will use their fire by friction skills to make us a roaring campfire that will keep us warm and help with our spoon carving. Please bring warm layers, a blanket or sleeping bag, a hearty lunch, and an empty mug for tea.
Directions: 3424 Meridian St., Bellingham. From I-5, take exit 256A (Meridian St). Head south on Meridian St. for three blocks and turn north at the Squalicum Parkway intersection entrance. Map.
OUTING 3 | Sunday, December 3 | 10:00-3:00PM
EXPLORATION | Coal Blown Spoons | Birch Bay State Park
*Please note this outing has been switched with January’s outing due to bad weather*
Birch Bay is the northwest edge of Whatcom County and the United States. This coastal state park is a beautiful place to observe eagles, heron, and seals. We'll spend the day practicing our fire-building and carving skills and exploring this site that has seen human habitation for thousands of years. The goal of this day will be to start (and maybe finish?) carving spoons. We’ll use a method that involves coal blowing to create the spoon's basin. The motto Slow is Fast will be very important on this day, as spoons are a difficult tool to carve and will often split if the coal is blown too hot.
Directions: 5105 Helweg Rd. From I-5, take exit 266 for WA-548 N/Grandview Rd. Turn west onto WA-548 N/Grandview Rd. After approx. 6 miles, continue on Grandview Rd at the traffic circle for 1 mile. Turn right onto Jackson Rd. for 1 more mile. Turn left onto Helweg Rd. and the main entrance to Birch Bay State Park. Drive through the campground and arrive at the main campsite parking lot. If you’ve driven out to the beach, you’ve gone too far. Map.
Reminder: A Discover Pass is required for all parking at State Parks. If you do not have a pass, please stay with your vehicle and plan to make drop-off and pick-up quick.
OUTING 4 | Sunday, January 21 | 10:00 - 3:00 PM
SKILLS | NETTLE CORDAGE | Lake Padden - East Entrance
*Please note that this outing has been switched with May’s outing due to previous outing changes*
The fresh nettles we harvested and processed at the beginning of the year are now dried, cured, and ready to be twisted into strong and durable rope. What this cordage can be used for is up to the Explorers’ imagination! We hope that this process of creating something from harvest to finished product will be a powerful experience of mindfulness, accomplishment, and tangible connection to nature. In tandem with our usual routine of free exploration and games, this will be a perfect way to round out our penultimate year in Explorers Club. Please pack warm layers!
Directions: 4882 S. Samish Way, Bellingham. From I-5, take exit 252 (Samish Way). Drive south on S. Samish Way for approx. 2.4 miles. Turn west onto Lakeshore Dr. (same as Lake Padden Golf Course entrance). Continue to park and the first shelter near the playground. If you’ve gone to the dog park and road end, you’ve gone too far! Map. Or Ride WTA.
OUTING 5 | Saturday, February 10 | 10:00-3:00PM
Hike | Lookout Mountain
On this outing, we’ll continue honing our skills in wilderness travel with a nice loop hike on Lookout Mountain. We’ll test our hiking skills and use the motto, Slow is Fast and Fast is Slow, to make our way up this truly iconic Bellingham trail. There are plenty of time-honored trail games that we can employ to keep our legs and minds moving. Make sure to eat a big breakfast and pack a good lunch, warm layers, rain gear, and wear hiking shoes!
Directions: Lake Louise Rd at Gate 9. From I-5, exit 253. Drive east onto Lakeway Dr for ~3.4 miles. Turn R right onto Austin Street and drive for ~.5 miles. Follow onto Lake Louise Rd and drive for ~2.5 miles. Lookout Mountain Preserve parking lot will be on the right. Map.
OUTING 6 | Saturday, March 9 | 10:30-2:30PM
SERVICE | Connelly Creek Restoration Sites
Explorers Club has two official restoration sites that we work on every year in partnership with the Bellingham Parks Department. In the decade-plus that EC has worked at Connelly Creek trailhead and Happy Valley park, the landscape of each site has changed dramatically. Explorers of all ages have helped to remove Himalayan blackberries and dig out their persistent roots. We’ve planted over 100 native plants, shrubs, and trees. Existing plant life has been freed of ivy, reed canary grass has been covered in mulch, and morning glory has been dug out by the root. Explorers have removed hundreds of pounds of trash and hauled almost 100 yards of mulch.
With the help of Bellingham City Parks and Nooksack Salmon Enhancement Association (NSEA), we are contributing to the very important work of salmon habitat restoration. Salmon are keystone species of the Northwest, playing important roles in every ecosystem and community they interact with. They are economically, culturally, and spiritually significant to Indigenous peoples, including our Lummi and Nooksack neighbors. Our restoration work creates a positive ripple effect that is felt in communities beyond just salmon and gives us an incredible opportunity to be part of a legacy of stewardship and protection. Please remember to print, sign, & bring the Park and Recreation’s Risk and Liability form to drop off.
Directions: South Bellingham Park and Ride (West). From I-5, take exit 250 (Old Fairhaven Parkway/Chuckanut Dr). Head west on Old Fairhaven Parkway for 0.1 mile. Turn north onto 30th St for 0.3 mile. Turn east on Donovan Ave. and drive for 0.1 mile. Turn south onto 32nd Ave. and drive for 0.2 of a mile. Turn east into Bellingham Park & Ride (WSDOT) westside lot. Map.
OUTING 7 | Saturday, April 13 | 10:00-3:00PM
EXPLORATION | Edible Plants | Hundred Acre Woods
Today, we’ll revisit an old favorite location - the Hundred Acre Woods. We’ll employ our well-honed naturalist skills and review the tenets of the Honorable Harvest, all with the hopes of harvesting wild edibles! After gathering big leaf maple blossoms, nettles, dandelions, and lots of other wild foods, we will use backcountry cooking stoves to prepare these wild foods in a sweet way - fritters! Please bring an empty mug for forest tea!
Directions: 107 N. Chuckanut Dr, Bellingham. From I-5, take exit 250 (Old Fairhaven Parkway/Chuckanut Dr). Head west on Old Fairhaven Parkway. Turn south at 12th St, then veer east again at next light onto Chuckanut Drive. Turn east into the Fairhaven Park entrance. Turn right into the second parking lot at the end of the road. Map.
OUTING 8 | Sunday, May 19 | 10:00-4:00PM
SKILLS | Chuckanut Ridge Traverse
This journey along Chuckanut Ridge is a fantastic hike through the heart of the Chuckanuts Mountains. Along the way, we’ll practice our hiking skills, review trail etiquette and navigation, witness fantastic views, and revel in the abundance of a healthy forest. There is nothing quite like traipsing through a natural setting with a group of close friends to revitalize the soul. We should cover four miles or so, so eat a big breakfast, pack a hearty lunch, and wear good footwear.
Drop-Off Directions: 224 Cleator Rd. From I-5, take exit 250 (Old Fairhaven Parkway/Chuckanut Dr.). Head west on Old Fairhaven Parkway to 12th St. Turn south on 12th St, cross the bridge and veer left onto Chuckanut Dr. for 3.8 miles. Turn east onto Hiline Rd., cross Interurban trail and continue up Cleator Rd. (dirt road) for 1.7 miles. Map.
Reminder: A Discover Pass is required for all parking at State Parks. If you do not have a pass, please stay with your vehicle and plan to make drop-off and pick-up quick.
Pick-up Directions: North Chuckanut Trailhead. From I-5, take exit 250 (Old Fairhaven Parkway/Chuckanut Dr.). Head west on Old Fairhaven Parkway. Turn left onto 30th St. for approx. 1 mile. Turn right at Old Samish Rd. to Chuckanut Dr. then turn left onto Chuckanut Dr. and the North Chuckanut Mountain Trailhead parking lot will be on your left. Map.
Questions
Please contact your group’s mentor(s) listed above or explorersclub@wildwhatcom.org.