For generations, Tribal Nations have cared for forests, grasslands, and rivers in ways that sustained both people and ecosystems. Today, as wildfires intensify and ecosystems strain under the weight of a changing climate, that wisdom is proving indispensable. Across the country, Tribes are stepping up as full partners in the stewardship of public lands, often filling gaps left by federal agencies stretched too thin. 

One tool for this collaboration is the Tribal Forest Protection Act (TFPA), which allows Tribes to initiate projects on neighboring federal lands. The Kalispel Tribe’s TFPA projects are examples of blending traditional knowledge with modern science to restore forest health, reduce dangerous fuel loads and ensure the land remains resilient for generations to come. In short, it’s about conservation that’s proactive, not reactive. 

But these efforts come at a time when the U.S. Forest Service (USFS), the agency responsible for managing much of the nation’s public forest land, is facing major headwinds. With reductions in force and budget cuts in natural resource management, the agency has fewer staff and fewer dollars to address the rising threats of wildfire, invasive species, and drought-driven stress on forests. 

That’s where co-stewardship comes in. By partnering with Tribes, the USFS and other agencies don’t just gain extra capacity; they gain centuries of place-based knowledge about fire, water and ecosystems. For Tribes, these partnerships represent more than just contracts or projects. They are a continuation of cultural responsibilities: to keep forests thriving, to maintain balance and to pass on healthy lands to the next generation. 

Yes, the budget challenges are real. But this is not a story of scarcity; it’s one of opportunity. Tribal Nations are ready and able to lead in sustainable forestry, from fuels-reduction projects that protect communities from catastrophic fire to habitat restoration that safeguards fish and wildlife. Our Sx^wuytn Kaniksu Connections Trail Project (a TFPA project) proves what’s possible when federal and Tribal partners work side by side. 

If we are serious about confronting the challenges facing America’s forests, we need to lean into these partnerships. That means honoring Tribal leadership, expanding co-stewardship agreements and ensuring that cutting budgets at the federal level does not create a landscape that is unable to support its people. 

Because in the end, what’s at stake isn’t just budgets or agencies; it’s the health of forests, the safety of communities and the legacy we leave for future generations. On that front, Tribes are showing us the way forward. 

The post Tribes Step Forward in Stewardship of America’s Forests  appeared first on Out There Venture.

Cover photo courtesy of Washington DNR

By Bri Loveall 

Think of a big fire. Pull it up in your mind. I can picture the Carlton Complex fire of 2014 in the Methow Valley, when the sun was a constant circle of fiery red, barely visible through the smoky sky, and the AQI (Air Quality Index) hovered in the 500s for weeks. My throat felt raw after only minutes outdoors. I kept Visine in my day bag to alleviate the constant grit I seemed to have in my eyes. The Carlton Complex fire burned a little over a quarter of a million acres in the course of its six-week burn, with almost 3,000 personnel working the fire. And, as you know, there have been many wildfires in the Inland Northwest since then. 

As devastating as it is, wildfire isn’t an inherently bad thing. In fact, fires are an essential part of a healthy forest ecosystem, recycling nutrients back into the soil and clearing out dead or diseased vegetation so that other healthy plants may grow. But the effects of climate change, increased human-caused fires, and other complex dynamics mean that many present-day wildfires are larger, more destructive and difficult to manage.   

Aside from some vague, Hollywood-esque images of firefighters running through a burning forest, I had no real knowledge about how wildland fires were fought. Nor did I understand the complex level of communication and collaboration that happened between multi-jurisdiction agencies, which are dependent upon a healthy working budget and adequate staffing. While budget cuts and seasonal employee layoffs are a routine fixture in any organizational setting, the recent financial decisions of the Trump administration have generated a lot of cause for concern for the coming fire season.  

Monkey Wrenching with Wildland Firefighting and Public Safety 

Initial hiring freezes ordered by the Trump administration in early 2025 sent shock waves of concern through many of the federal and state agencies we rely on to combat wildfires. While wildland firefighters were eventually deemed exempt due to their critical public safety duties, the federal workforce layoffs that followed led some federally funded public land agency employees to take to the internet with tweets, posts and videos lamenting layoffs of critical wildland firefighting support staff, a move they say will hinder wildfire preparedness and response. 

When I spoke with Ryan Rodruck, Public Information Officer with the Washington Department of Natural Resources (DNR), he assured me that local teams of wildland firefighters would have no trouble managing the fires in their jurisdiction (smaller fires that begin on DNR land) this year.  

Since the DNR is a state agency and adheres to a state budget, it is not affected by federal cuts. In the last three years, 90% of fires in the northeast Washington region have been contained to fewer than 10 acres. This is thanks in large part to the DNR’s aggressive fuel management efforts, forest health management, prescribed burns and other wildfire prevention programs. The concern, Rodruck told me, is in the larger, multi-jurisdiction fires that exceed 10 acres. 

These larger fires are assigned to an incident management team (IMT), a group of people from various agencies: DNR, the Bureau of Land Management, USFS, local fire districts, and even the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The people who serve within these organizations typically have day jobs that are unrelated to their roles in fighting wildfires, but they are crucial to the functioning of complex interagency wildfire response teams. With the projected layoffs and budget cuts that multiple public land agencies are experiencing, it’s unclear if the employees with dual roles will be there when they’re needed.  

On the Job as a Wildland Firefighter 

Andrew Stenbeck is a veteran DNR wildland firefighter. During the off season he works with the DNR managing state lands, which includes timber harvest, planting trees, fuel reductions, and firefighting training. During the fire season, Stenbeck is a part of a Type 3 team, one that specializes in responding quickly to local fires and taking over the fire management from local resources.  

As Stenbeck described his 35 years as a wildland firefighter to me, I was surprised by the level of communication happening between multiple public land agencies. At the incident command post, or base camp, a slew of operations management teams (all staffed by members from different agencies) gather morning and night to create an Incident Action Plan, a detailed list that discusses safety, logistics, finances, and media plans. An incredible amount of planning happens before a firefighter ever steps foot onto the fire line, with multiple agencies working together to create a cohesive plan to safely contain a wildfire.  

At an incident command post (ICP) camp, firefighting personnel spend 14 days at a time (but sometimes up to 21 without reprieve), sleeping on cots, in tents, or on the ground as they work nonstop to fight fire. ICPs are usually located a safe yet practical distance from the wildland fire, though Stenbeck says he has been stationed as many as 45 minutes away. “It isn’t ideal,” Stenbeck tells me.  

Rodruck agrees, explaining that driving is the second most dangerous thing firefighters will do during fire season as they move back and forth from base camp to the fire line. Increases in wildlife movement, narrow (and often) gravel roads, as well as general fatigue on behalf of the drivers puts personnel at increased risk for accidents.  

When I ask Stenbeck what he likes about this job, he smiles and says he likes to be outdoors. I try to imagine what the fire line looks like before Stenbeck confirms that yes, it is hot, but the weather is still happening as a fire is raging. During the last fire of the season in 2024, Stenbeck awoke to find frost covering his tent. He then donned his gear—a heavy ensemble that includes Nomex pants and jacket, fire-resistant boots like Nick’s or Whites, as well as a hard hat, water, hand tool, first-aid kit, and fire shelter—and got back to work fighting fire.  

Fire bugs, the nearly 40 species of insects that are drawn to heat and smoke, pose another added risk to firefighters on the line. In the last season alone, Stenbeck watched three firefighters airlifted to medical facilities after entering anaphylactic shock from stings. In one summer, he counted 37 stings himself. Bears, displaced, fatigued, and sometimes injured, remain outside the perimeter of the fire as they search for food, often in the form of a firefighter’s lunch sack. As firefighters traverse on foot toward the fire line, mosquitoes are a near constant whine, and among the litany of precautions a person takes every day, they’ll also be checking for ticks each night.  

Uncertainty as Wildfire Season Approaches 

With recent layoffs across multiple federal agencies, there might be fewer boots on the ground facing those hazards as the summer progresses. For instance the return of Incident Management Team staff meteorologists—team members supplied by the NOAA who are essential to fighting fire—may also be in jeopardy. The meteorologists work closely alongside the DNR and other agencies to give accurate predictions of when fire season might start and how the weather will influence a fire incident.  

“We don’t know what the status of these employees are going to be during this round of layoffs,” Rodruck says. It’s these “small, downstream-type effects,” that will ultimately determine how well agencies are able to fight fires this summer. What will those downstream effects mean for our public lands? According to Rodruck, it’s too early to tell.  

Stenbeck, along with others on his team, will be preparing for the 2025 fire season with the mentality that it isn’t a sprint, but a marathon. “It isn’t a matter of if it starts, but when,” Stenbeck says.  

Will those who are needed make it to the fire line this season? Let’s hope so for the sake of our communities, wildlife and the forests and trails we love. 

Until completing this interview, Bri Loveall had never considered what wildland firefighting looked like. She wishes all firefighting personnel a safe fire season.  

The post Smoke Signals from the Fireline  appeared first on Out There Venture.

Cover photo courtesy of Derrick Knowles

Honestly, the musical genre barely registered when Out There Venture publisher Derrick Knowles invited me and several other riders to bikepack from Spokane to Medical Lake, Washington, for the 2024 Blue Waters Bluegrass Festival in August. It takes very little for me to say “yes” to bikepacking, and since my weekend was free, it was a no-brainer. But the promise of a homegrown, small-town feel with some of the best bluegrass bands around added to the appeal. And I discovered that a music festival has some great perks as a bikepacking destination.

The Blue Waters Bluegrass Festival in Medical Lake, WA, has welcomed musicians and fans from across the U.S. since 2022. World-class bluegrass music is offered at this modest but memorable festival, with camping fees that spoke to my dirtbag heart. The festival’s proximity to Spokane’s urban core promised a pleasant, scenic pedal to buzzing Medical Lake Waterfront Park.

While it would be easy enough to load up the bikes with gear and pedal straight to Medical Lake, there are enough scenic options between downtown Spokane and the lakefront to encourage gravel-centric bikepacking routes through the West Plains and around nearby lakes. Our bikepacking route from Spokane took us south on the Fish Lake Trail, then west through Cheney and Four Lakes, popular areas for gravel biking in Eastern Washington. While spending hours on Ride with GPS finding the best routes isn’t my cup of tea, I’m grateful to have lots of adventure buddies who love this aspect of trip planning and always find interesting, challenging, beautiful routes to take.

Approaching Silver Lake from the east was sobering, as evidence of the 2023 catastrophic wildfires greeted us. Though many homes are being rebuilt, the blackened trees and scorched earth were a stark contrast to the sparkling lake. It’s easy to pedal along, spinning out about the increasing impact that wildfires are having on our beautiful, pedalable home.

With four riders, lots of gear, and plenty of time, we took snack and drink breaks and paused to enjoy wildflowers. I’m assuming the others waited patiently for me to catch up. While much of the weight on my bike was vital camping gear (tent, sleeping bag, festival chair), I needn’t have packed so much food. The best part of bikepacking to a music festival was discovering the diverse food trucks at the venue—an unexpected culinary bonus after a long ride. From Feast World Kitchen’s tofu pad thai to a truck selling hot coffee in the morning, my freeze-dried meals just couldn’t stack up, so they stayed packed away. Since Medical Lake is a delightfully small town with wide streets, it wouldn’t have been hard to pedal into town for a bite or beverage if needed.

Live bluegrass music filled the air all day, from regional acts and local players in the afternoon to national headliners in the evening. The Saturday night headliners, New Dangerfield, were introduced by the festival organizer who calmly assured the audience that in 22 years, they’d never been rained out … even as the inevitable thunderclouds that follow me everywhere gathered on the horizon and rumbled over the rolling hills. My travel companions glared at me as they pulled out their rain jackets. But, I did warn them.

Knowing at least some rain was on the way, our cozy campsite right on the water’s edge was secured with rain flies zipped and bags packed away. We kicked back, enjoyed the music, and watched festival staff and volunteers scramble to right the canopy sheltering the sound system as gusts of wind brought the storm ever closer. The musicians, professional performers, carried on with their set, bringing the audience to their feet with toe-tapping tunes and classic sounds of Appalachia.

Most people camping for the weekend were using trailers and RVs, but those of us sleeping in tents were relieved when Mother Nature left just a few drops and carried the thunder and lightning north instead of raining on our parade. The next morning, as we packed to leave, I was pleased to see musicians young and old gathering at picnic tables and under trees for a series of music workshops—generations sharing their art and carrying on the language of string-based bluegrass for new audiences to discover.

Pedaling away from the bustle of the campground reminded me that bikepacking truly is my favorite way to adventure. The freedom of circumventing crowded parking lots and lines of vehicles, carrying everything I need on my bike, pedaling until I’m tired, then sleeping, then pedaling again, is my perfect adventure. Sharing conversation, suffering, and camaraderie with others turning pedals with (or usually far ahead of) me—there’s just nothing like it.

The 2024 Blue Waters Bluegrass Festival (August 8–10 in Medical Lake, WA) is just one of many bikeable music festivals in the Inland Northwest. The region boasts a lineup of events for various genres, schedules, camping experiences, and price points. These festivals are well-supported, with camping, restrooms, concessions, and other comfort amenities. They offer community and something to look forward to during your miles of pedaling—and they’re typically close enough to “somewhere” that you can access an easy exit strategy if things go sideways.

If bikepacking has been on your “want to try” list, find a fun, local festival, pull whatever bike you have out of the garage for a quick tune-up (at least lube the chain and pump up the tires), throw a tent and a sleeping bag in a backpack or some panniers, and get out there—bikepacking to festivals is the perfect blend of adventure, music, and outdoor culture.

Carol Corbin is looking for ways to monetize the rain that follows her on all her outdoor adventures, having recently achieved international notoriety by breaking an unseasonable dry spell with four days of biking in England.

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According to the Outdoor Alliance, the new administration has implemented thousands of staffing cuts across land management agencies that are expected to hurt outdoor recreation access. In mid-February, at the direction of the new administration, the Forest Service, BLM, and National Park Service (NPS) laid off over 5,000 people, including several park rangers. These reductions will make it harder for agencies to care for public lands and ensure safe, enjoyable outdoor experiences.  

Over the last 10 years, staffing at land management agencies has steadily declined even as visitation has increased. Since 2010, the NPS has seen a 20% reduction in full-time staff, despite a 16% increase in visitation during the same period. The Forest Service has been facing ongoing budget shortfalls as well, which include a recent hiring freeze for seasonal workers, further straining its ability to maintain trails, campgrounds, and recreation sites. 

These additional cuts will have significant consequences for outdoor recreation that could include long lines or closures of popular trails, parks, forests, and other recreation infrastructure. Contracts for trash removal, toilets, and campgrounds have also been stalled and could prevent Americans from getting out and enjoying their public lands safely this summer. Outdoor recreation advocacy groups also worry that these cuts could hamper emergency response efforts and wildfire prevention, as seasonal employees play an essential role in wildfire preparedness by clearing hazardous fuels and assisting with initial wildfire attack efforts. Reducing their ranks could increase the risk of uncontrolled wildfires on public lands and in nearby communities this summer.  

Louis Geltman, vice president for policy and government relations at Outdoor Alliance says, “We are deeply sorry to hear about the staffing cuts rolling in across federal land management agencies. Land managers do incredibly important work, often for long hours at modest pay. They are at the front line for stewarding the resources we all care so much about, and the loss of these workers will have real, tangible impacts on our public lands and waters, outdoor recreation, and community safety as we start to move into fire season.”   

Without adequate staffing and resources, our experiences outside, the health of public lands, and the outdoor recreation economy will suffer. Outdoor Alliance has established a quick-action form to help the public send personalized letters to their lawmakers. You can ask your members of Congress to take urgent action to protect the workforce that keeps America’s public lands safe, accessible, and well cared for. Visit www.outdooralliance.org for more info and to submit your letter. 

Outdoor Alliance is the only organization in the U.S. that unites the voices of outdoor enthusiasts to conserve public lands. A nonprofit coalition comprised of 10 national advocacy organizations, Outdoor Alliance’s members include American Whitewater, American Canoe Association, Access Fund, International Mountain Bicycling Association, Winter Wildlands Alliance, the Mountaineers, the American Alpine Club, the Mazamas, the Colorado Mountain Club, and the Surfrider Foundation.

The post Public Lands Workforce Cuts to Impact Outdoor Recreation   appeared first on Out There Venture.

By Crystal Atamian

Trails near Camp Caro look very different lately since Spokane County Parks has been thinning the forest (smaller trees less than 8 inches in diameter). The goal is to clear out the underbrush and prune lower limbs to create a more open environment consistent with the historical fire tolerant ecology. The benefits are reduced fire risk; healthier trees that do not have to compete for limited water; and improved visibility for trail users, which can prevent unwanted encounters with wildlife and other people. 

Ruth Gifford, executive director of the Dishman Hills Conservancy emphasized the importance of safety awareness during this process. “Do not go into areas where there are orange fences,” she says. Heavy equipment can throw wood and debris long distances, and workers wearing hearing protection may not see or hear people nearby. She also urges visitors to leave orange flagging in place, as it marks boundaries. Removing it could cause equipment to encroach on unintended areas. 

The fuels reduction work will continue to be visually impactful for a while, says Gifford, adding that the end goal is well worth it. “The result is that the forest will be more open than in the past. It’s shocking now, but the appearance will continue to improve season to season, year to year.” This new openness will aim to keep wildfires on the ground, improve access for firefighters, and reduce the intensity of the fire, protecting the critical ecology. 

Dishman Hills is managed jointly by Spokane County, the Department of Natural Resources, and the Dishman Hills Conservancy. With fires in and around the area becoming more frequent — including the Cimmaron Fire in September 2024 — Spokane County has created a Wildfire Mitigation Coalition comprised of fire districts and land managers all over the county to reduce the risk of catastrophic wildfires in an all-lands collaborative approach.  

Gifford encouraged visitors to explore Dishman Hills’ other 22 miles of trails and four additional trailheads for the time being. From the Camp Caro entrance at East 8th Avenue and South Edgerton Road, visitors can still safely access the Ponds Loop, Eagle Peak, and Nimbus Knob trails. Other trail closures will continue for several months, with work near the Glenrose trailhead expected to begin in late winter and spring. 

The post Dishman Hills Fuels Reduction in the Works  appeared first on Out There Venture.

The conference creates a unique gathering space where those who may be relatively new to arboriculture and seasoned professionals will learn from speakers and one another and take new ideas and information home to their yard, private forest, business, organization or agency. Beginners can dive into essential topics like tree selection and basic insect and disease diagnosis, while experts can refine their skills with advanced sessions led by James Komen, covering tree law, TRAQ improvement, and tree appraisal.

The Inland Tree Conference, organized by the Spokane Conservation District, unites forward-thinking forest landowners, managers, and top green industry experts to explore the latest trends and innovations in tree care and forest management.

Firewise and Urban Wood Utilization Topics Friday Jan 9

There are two specialized tracks to choose from on Friday.

The Firewise Track will present cutting-edge research on how to protect your home from wildfires and explore the ecology of forests after fire. The Urban Wood Utilization Track will focus on the growing urban wood economy, highlighting how to connect key stakeholders and leverage urban wood for sustainable solutions.

Featured speakers include James Komen, a consulting arborist in California specializing in risk assessment and tree appraisal; Dana Brennan, a Forest Health Specialist for the Northeast Region with the Washington Department of Natural Resources; Ralph Bloemers with the Green Oregon Alliance who has worked with scientists, tribes, conservation groups and land managers throughout the Pacific Northwest on the conservation of our forests, including burned landscapes; and Jeff Carroll, a strategist, leader, and storyteller focused on using social and environmental innovation for the public good.

Other conference sessions of special interest to everyday tree lovers and amateur arboriculturists include “The Natural History of Hangman Creek” presentation by Northwest author and historian Jack Nesbit and the showing and follow-up discussion of the documentary “Elemental: Reimagining Wildfire.” The conference also offers 10 Continuing Education Units (CEU’s) for recertifying as an International Society of Arboriculture (ISA) certified arborist.

Check out the full conference agenda here.

Featured Inland Tree Conference 2025 Speakers

Class One Arboriculture James Komen is a consulting arborist in California specializing in risk assessment and tree appraisal. He helps clients make informed management decisions for individual trees and for tree inventories. His work has been published in Arboriculture & Urban Forestry, Arboricultural Consultant, Palms, Ontario Arborist, and Western Arborist. He is an ISA TRAQ instructor and has taught workshops on tree appraisal around the U.S. and Canada.

Dana Brennan is a Forest Health Specialist for the Northeast Region of the Washington Department of Natural Resources. Dana has an MS in Chemical Ecology from the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry. Prior to obtaining her current position with the WDNR, Dana worked with the Forest Health Program with Alaska Department of Natural Resources and with the US Forest Service Forest Health Protection in Alaska.

Ralph Bloemers has been with Green Oregon Alliance For over 20 years and has worked with scientists, tribes, conservation groups and land managers throughout the Pacific Northwest on the conservation of our forests, including burned landscapes. He has investigated the causes of wildfire, documented wildlife and recovery in burned landscapes, advanced forest, fire policy and worked to help people and communities prepare for more fire in a hotter, drier world. He is the Executive Producer of the documentary “Elemental: Reimagine Wildfire,” and a producer for PBS Weathered episodes on fast fires, insurance, and carbon cycles and old forest conservation.

Jeff Carroll is a strategist, leader, and storyteller focused on using social and environmental innovation for the public good. With a background in construction and business, he designs market solutions to address environmental challenges and create job opportunities. After founding a successful deconstruction and material reuse enterprise in Baltimore, which grew to a $5M operation with 200 employees, Jeff now works to establish circular “urban wood economies.” As CEO of Urban Wood Economy Inc., he leads efforts to create scalable pilots that turn wood waste from building deconstruction and urban trees into economic opportunities, reduce carbon emissions, and reinvest in marginalized communities.

Register for the Inland Tree Conference here or contact Hilary@SpokaneCD.org for more info.

(Sponsored Article)

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Free Outdoor Entertainment 

• Chelan-Douglas Land Trust is hosting a free Hike for Health series each month throughout the year. The mid-summer outings are at Chelan River Trail on July 20 and Stormy Creek Preserve on Aug. 17. For each event, participants can choose between a guided interpretive walk or a self-guided hike and will receive a ticket for a raffle drawing for health-centered prizes. 
• Aug. 4 is the anniversary of the Great American Outdoors Act, a fee-free day for entry to all National Parks. 
• Start indoors on Aug. 17 with a showing of the film The Big Burn at the Rex Theatre in Thompson Falls to mark the 114th anniversary of the 1910 wildfires, then follow it up with a hike on the Pulaski Trail outside Wallace on Aug. 18 with Friends of Scotchman Peaks Wilderness. Friends of Scotchman Peaks will be offering several other free summer outings in July and August, ranging from foraging to family camping to strenuous backpack trips.  

Fundraisers 

• Okanogan Highlands Alliance will be hosting their annual Get Lost trail race and camping weekend July 6-7. Enjoy beautiful Lost Lake and learn more about OHA on Saturday, then lace up for Sunday’s trail race with distance options of 3, 7 or 10 miles. 
• Support Kaniksu Land Trust’s Pine Street Woods in Sandpoint at “In a Landscape — Classical Music in the Wild” the evening of Monday, July 29. Pianist Hunter Noack will play a grand piano, and the audience is encouraged to wander through Pine Street Woods while listening via wireless headphones. Tickets are $40. 

Conservation, Stewardship & Volunteer Opportunities 

• American Hiking Society is hosting a week-long volunteer vacation in the Hurricane Creek drainage of the Eagle Cap Wilderness, Aug. 10-17. Due to grant funding for this project, there is a reduced registration fee of $250 for this pack-supported backpack trip with meals and snacks provided by AHS. 
• Evergreen Mountain Bike Alliance will be hosting a volunteer work party at Jungle Hill near the Kettle Crest on July 20-21 as a portion of their Kettle Fest event. 
• Friends of Scotchman Peaks Wilderness will be leading several trail work projects throughout the summer, including work on their namesake trail on July 13 and an overnight trip to Star Gulch July 27-28. 
• Hells Canyon Recreation Collaborative and Idaho Trails Association will be partnering for a project at the historic Kirkwood Ranch in Hells Canyon on July 15-17. Volunteers will receive jetboat transportation to and from the project location each day, along with materials that need to be staged for a bridge replacement project. The work will consist of helping move materials closer to the project site.  
• Idaho Trail Association has a full summer schedule, with highlights including a Fault Lake daytrip on July 13, multi-day offerings like their Pend Oreille Divide project Aug. 15-18, and week-long adventures like their project at Heart Lake in the Mallard Larkin Pioneer Area from Aug. 4-10. See their website for the full list.  
• Pacific Northwest Trail Association will add trail maintenance projects to the volunteer calendar throughout the summer, including unique opportunities to help pack in supplies for backcountry professional trail crews. One such opportunity is in support of the Whistler Canyon crew on Aug. 10-11. Traditional trail work events will also be available. 
• Wallowa Mountains—Hells Canyon Trails Association will be moving trail projects to the high country for the summer season, including projects at North Fork Catherine Creek July 14-18 and North Minam Meadows Aug. 2-6.  
• Washington Trails Association will be hosting Spokane-area daytrip projects at Mica Peak and Mount Spokane throughout the summer months, as well as backpacking trips including the Salmo Loop Aug. 1-4 and the Shedroof Divide at Shedroof Mountain Aug. 16-19.  

The post Inland NW Trail & Outdoor News  appeared first on Out There Venture.

Free Outdoor Entertainment 

• Chelan-Douglas Land Trust is hosting a free Hike for Health series throughout the year, with offerings near Leavenworth on May 18 and Wenatchee on June 15. A guided interpretive walk will be available, or participants can opt for a self-guided hike. 
• The annual Wenas Audubon birding campout will take place the weekend of May 31-June 2 at Wenas Creek campground. The event will include evening campfire chats and daytime birding field trips in the area. Camping is free with a Discover Pass. 
• Dig out your fishing pole! Washington free fishing weekend is June 8-9, where fishing for rainbow trout and bass at lowland lakes across the state will not require a fishing license. All other regulations will remain in place, including number and size limits and special equipment rules. This coincides with fee-free days for areas normally requiring a Discover Pass, including Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife water-access sites. Idaho will host its free fishing day on June 8. 
• Many parks will have entrance fees waived in observance of Juneteenth, June 19. It is a free entrance day for all National Parks, and a free day for recreation sites in Washington that normally require a Discover Pass. 

Conservation, Stewardship & Volunteer Opportunities 

• Help The Lands Council mark the 50^th anniversary of Expo ‘74 with a massive SpoCanopy tree planting effort from May 7-11 as the nonprofit works to plant 500 trees over the course of five days! The trees will be planted in urban areas that currently have low tree canopy coverage. Anyone can sign up online for a volunteer time slot to help plant trees, and Spokane residents can request a SpoCanopy tree for their neighborhood. 
• Wallowa Mountains—Hells Canyon Trails Association is offering a broad range of early season stewardship opportunities in May and June, from brushing work parties to multi-day log-out trips. A unique opportunity includes registering for sign scouting trips within areas impacted by recent wildfires, where volunteers will work in small groups to document damaged and missing trail signage that needs to be replaced.  
• Join Spokane Riverkeeper in Riverfront Park on June 8 from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. to mark the 50th anniversary of Expo ‘74 with a cleanup event focusing on the Spokane River in the downtown area. Advance registration is required so that enough gloves and bags are available for everyone. 
• Friends of Scotchman Peaks Wilderness will be hosting a series of day work parties for late spring, including a log-out trip to namesake Scotchman Peak on National Trails Day, June 1! 
• Pacific Northwest Trail Association is offering a variety of front country (day trip) and backcountry (camping or backpacking) projects in northeast Washington. Two unique project days will be devoted to Intro to Crosscut Sawing, with offerings on June 1 at the Mill Pond site near Sullivan Lake, and June 15 on Flume Creek Trail northwest of Metaline Falls. 
• Washington Trails Association will be offering a mix of day trailwork trips to Spokane County Parks and Mount Spokane State Park, as well as several backcountry trips within the Colville National Forest. A new project destination will pair car camping with trailwork on South Fork Silver Creek and Sherlock Mountain on June 21-23.  
• Idaho Trail Association is offering both one-day and multi-day trail maintenance trips within the Idaho Panhandle National Forest. The nonprofit also has a fun Backpacking 101 event that pairs webinars and group sessions on backpacking with a culminating trail maintenance trip to Plowboy Campground at Priest Lake on June 8-9. 

The post Inland NW Trail & Outdoor News appeared first on Out There Venture.

You know the parenthood adage is, “The days are long, but the years are short”? It’s true! Now that my own kids are pre-teens, our family calendar is busy year-round. Which is why we start brainstorming during fall for the upcoming seasons of non-school days, holidays, and spring and summer breaks. Not that we’re quick to make solid plans, but it’s good to know what’s coming, since we also have club soccer and youth theater commitments.

This past summer when I heard that Yosemite’s Mariposa Grove of giant sequoia trees nearly burned, I felt some panic: I haven’t been to the Tunnel Tree!         

This led to an epiphany: With only seven more summers until both my kids finish high school, we need to choose more carefully how we spend our family vacation time and use our adventure travel time.

Flooding, droughts, wildfires, and other climate-change impacts threaten all of America’s public lands, year-round. I can’t take for granted the National Parks, forests, waterways, and wildlife.

Not to get all doomsday, but much is bound to change during our children’s lifetimes. Will Glacier National Park’s glaciers really be gone by the year 2030? Will there be enough snow to alpine ski in 20 years? Go see orcas in the Salish Sea before they’re extinct, and visit Alaska before the next oil spill!

Sooner is better when it comes to doing all the outdoor adventures I would like to share with my children, whether it’s skiing big mountains or hiking Half Dome. Also, my knees aren’t getting younger.

Adventure travel destinations and recreation ideas are plentiful; having enough money and time are the greatest challenges. Plan now for the most adventurous year ever.

Here are 5 ideas for starting the adventure travel planning process.

Brainstorm Destination & Recreation Ideas

I have great ideas for epic trips, but if my pre-teens won’t buy in, their lackluster enthusiasm won’t make it work. Older kids can lead the brainstorming: “Which mountains, National Parks, and countries would we like to visit while mom and dad are still paying the bills?” (It’s best to provide budget parameters.)

Buy Adventure Travel Guidebooks

Once you decide on a destination, purchase a paperback travel guidebook. The Mountaineers has a large catalog of family-oriented books, including the Adventuring with Kids series, written by Spokane authors Harley and Abby McAllister—one each for Yellowstone, Glacier, Yosemite, and one for Utah’s Big Five parks. Mountaineers also have state-based “Best Hikes with Kids” series and guidebooks for urban trails and parks in major U.S. cities.

Choose When To Go

Summer is busy tourist season everywhere. Consider travel during non-peak seasons to save money. The best time to go is when your family can actually go, once money is saved, and parents have time off work—maybe even if it means missing school or a major holiday with extended family.

Plan Early For Reservations

Unique accommodations like fire lookouts, cabins, and glamping yurts are in high demand. Campsite reservations for National Parks and forests can be made six months in advance, at Recreation.gov. For state parks in Washington and Idaho, the reservation window is nine months. National Park lodge rooms, RV park campsites, and rental homes may be reservable a year in advance.

Hire An Expert Adventure Travel Guide

If you want exciting high adventure but don’t have the gear or expertise, book excursions with a professional guide. Outfitters offer one-day activities as well as multi-day trips.

Whitewater rafting, sea kayaking, and rock climbing come to mind as “extreme” recreation for beginners to try; a high-level of expertise is vital for a safe outing. Even for more experienced recreationalists and travelers, whether it’s backpacking or biking, a multi-day trip led by guides takes the stress and burden off parents for planning and daily logistics.

Northwest guide-service companies include ROW Adventures, Breakwater Expeditions, and FLOW Adventures, and the non-profit organization Peak 7 Adventures.

ROW even offers international excursions in 25 countries through two newer business brands, Adventure Unbound and Sea Kayak Adventures. We’re talking epic travel adventures: safari in Tanzania, river rafting in Chile, kayaking and camping on Ecuador’s Galapagos Islands.

Time is precious, and adventure awaits—go find it with your kids.

Amy McCaffree is the Out There Kids columnist and a longtime Out There contributor.

The post Adventure Travel For Families appeared first on Out There Venture.

They each offer a concentration of trails for all levels of riders, active trail-building clubs hard at work on new trails, and mountain town or city amenities that make a multiday bike trip that much more memorable.

Hood River, Oregon

The town of Hood River sits in the transition zone where the Columbia River Gorge shifts from dripping hemlock to dry foothills, where the last stringers of wet westside weather blow themselves out on the river’s legendary gales. It’s long been known for its wind-surfing scene, but the tailgates and trailheads around Hood River tell a story about the town’s rise to fat tire fame.

In the 1990s, trail builders began constructing rogue freeride lines—massive gaps and high-wire, high-consequence wooden features in the forested hills of Post Canyon, located 10 minutes southwest of downtown Hood River. But the tracks ran afoul of the county forestry department, which manages the land for its primary economic use of timber extraction.

After a catastrophic windstorm in 2012 toppled scores of trees onto the trails and the salvage logging that followed disturbed the area even more, local builders approached the county to plead their case for new trails.

Thanks to the efforts of the Hood River Area Trail Stewards (HRATS) and its volunteers, the county acquiesced. And although the county continues to manage the area with timber top of mind, Post Canyon has weathered the storm and come out of it a stronger trail network, showcasing the trail-building transition from rocky, root-tangled tech to contemporary bench-cut jump and berm trails.

One look at Family Man Staging Area, one of the main portals to Post Canyon, shows that, although Post Canyon may have matured, there’s still plenty of high-energy riding here. Come midweek and you’re just as likely to see preschoolers on push bikes rolling out next to big senders.

The bidirectional trails, like Lower– and Upper Eight Track, are smartly laid out and rarely overwhelming to ride; riders going uphill aren’t likely to hit a wall or stall out on steep climbing turns, but beginners can build their descending skills on the return trip.

Meanwhile, expert riders can descend from the top of Upper Eight Track on Bad Motor Scooter and Upper Grand Prix, where one immaculately crafted berm after another connects massive tabletops, step-ups and step-downs.

Upper Eight Track also ties into a broader network of singletrack and motorcycle trails that honor the area’s legacy of chunky, suspension-testing tech. Now, though, the trails are legal and sustainable.

This year, HRATS has ambitious plans to give Family Man a facelift and expand Golden Eagle Bike Park and Pump Track in coordination with Hood River Parks and Recreation. It’s all part of a plan to nurture a grander transition: from beginners to lifelong bikers.

Spring is an ideal time to visit Hood River: Passing showers give the trails a regular refresh but don’t tend to be day-drenching affairs. When in town, don’t miss the legendary Dirty Fingers Bicycle Repair, a Hood River institution and an all-in-one bike shop and pub. Next door, KickStand Coffee & Kitchen will get your caffeine and calories sorted.

HRATS, informally known as the Hood RATS, build and maintain the trails at Post Canyon in addition to backcountry trail networks along the Hood River and across the Columbia, so consider making a donation after enjoying their trails.

Wenatchee, Wash.

On the sunbaked east slope of the Central Cascades, Wenatchee has developed into a shoulder-season destination for riders on both sides of the state, thanks to the hallmarks of east-slope riding: towering pines and steep, flowing descents on the sandy ridgelines that separate the Wenatchee Valley from the Cascade Crest.

In the foothills on the west side of town, #2 Canyon has transitioned from a rogue riding network to a fully sanctioned and Forest Service-supported trail system. The Central Washington chapter of Evergreen Mountain Bike Alliance put the public’s pandemic-inspired desire for outdoor activity to work for them, building out miles of new, buttery-smooth trail to connect to classics like Stairway to Heaven mtb trail.

The flowing berms on New Sundance replaced a heinous fall-line climb but kept the spectacular views of Mount Stuart and the central Cascades, while The Still added a swooping, 3-mile loop that flows equally well in both directions. And Evergreen has ambitious plans for even more miles this year.

Thirty minutes west, Leavenworth Ski Hill/Freund Canyon rewards riders with immaculate flow and a bird’s eye view of the Bavarian-village vibe of Leavenworth—that is, if you can take your eyes off the sidehill gap jumps of Rosie Boa.

Methow Valley, Wash.

If you haven’t ridden the Methow (“Me-tow“), go. Now. The wildflower displays on the open sage-covered hillsides, with the snow-capped battlements of the North Cascades in the background are second to none.

First, the bad news: The catastrophic wildfires that surrounded the Methow Valley in summer 2021 decimated the Chickadee trail system at Sun Mountain, where the Methow chapter of Evergreen Mountain Bike Alliance had just completed a three-year building campaign on trails such as Thompson Ridge—a trail that had opened the year prior and offered a backcountry mini-epic to the popular trail network’s forested, flowered tracks.

The good news: The Methow Valley boasts a number of other trail systems, such as the classic singletrack loop on Buck Mountain and the Rendezvous Hut network outside of Mazama. Better news: The community in the Methow Valley is resilient and has already been hard at work raising money to rehabilitate its trails, which are a pillar of the recreation economy and the community’s identity.

Support the Methow Valley’s efforts to recover by shredding, sipping and shopping in the region—and go the extra mile by donating money or muscle to Evergreen’s “Bring ‘em Back!” rebuilding campaign.

Sandpoint, Idaho

Despite being home to Schweitzer, one of the largest ski resorts in North America, Sandpoint locals and tourists alike often refer to the city on Lake Pend Oreille as a lake town that just happens to have great skiing. And although they share similar sentiments about the community’s trail offerings, Sandpoint is quietly developing into a dirt destination.

The transformation is in large part thanks to the Pend Oreille Pedalers (POP) and their work on the Syringa Trail Network on the west side of town. Syringa, which encompasses a trio of public lands and private parcels—Sherwood Forest, Pine Street Woods, and Velo Tout Terrain (VTT)—offers a healthy mix of kid-friendly rollers and expert-level tech.

And POP continues to add new trail as fast as people can ride them; this spring, they have already opened two new trails in VTT, the newest acquisition at Syringa. Zen Garden and Chaos Theory trails add intermediate- and expert-level tech to VTT’s entry-level berms and rollers.

Meanwhile, up on the mountain, Schweitzer is putting the finishing touches on three new flow trails, a beginner, intermediate and expert. With these new additions, Schweitzer adds some modern manicured lines alongside its notoriously gnarly old-school tech trails like Pinch Flat. And it’s only the beginning: Like its neighbor down by the lake, Schweitzer is building them as fast as its guests can ride them.

McCall, Idaho

Like Sandpoint, McCall is known first and foremost as a lake town. And like its North Idaho counterpart, this southwest Idaho community on the shore of Payette Lake boasts its share of excellent biking, with trails that bridge buffed-out flow to backcountry epics.

The Payette Lake Trail (PLT) aims to combine the two. Modeled after the Tahoe Rim Trail, the approximately 30-mile Payette Lake Trail will circumnavigate the mountain lake on mostly new, modern singletrack.

And, like the famed Tahoe Rim Trail, the PLT will feature near-constant views of the lake far below. So far, crews have completed the west leg, which ties in with the Payette Rim Trail, a McCall classic.

This season, Brundage Mountain Resort, in collaboration with the Central Idaho Mountain Bike Association, will build an 8.4-mile connector between the resort’s 30-mile lift-served singletrack system and the Bear Basin trails, a 15-mile network of flowy machine-built trail on Forest Service land just outside town.

Bear Basin trail system connects with the Payette Rim Trail, which means that, in seasons to come, riders will be able to drop off the top of Brundage and circumnavigate the lake, all on trail—proof that McCall is truly both a mountain biking and lake town.

Boise, Idaho

Idaho’s City of Trees is also the city of bikes. Centerpiece to Boise’s biking bona fides is the Boise Foothills trail system, which encompasses some 200 miles of tread radiating out from two-dozen trailheads across a patchwork of private and public lands only minutes from downtown.

The urban trail network has earned the city the honor of being an International Mountain Bike Association gold-level ride center, one of only seven in the world. From the trailheads, often at the end of tree-lined residential boulevards, the singletrack curls and snakes through the scalloped ridges and ravines that border Boise to the north.

Ask a local for a favorite route, and they’ll likely recommend the one closest to their driveway; they’re uniformly good. And from most of those trailheads, riders can climb some 5,000 vertical feet to Bogus Basin Bike Park. Here, amid subalpine firs, a far cry from the dry sagebrush below, riders can circle the ski hill on Around the Mountain—Idaho’s top-rated trail on Trailforks—or sample the lift-served trails that have received the input and manpower of the of the numerous pro riders that call Boise home.

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