Hiking Boots on the Bus

July 6, 2012
Everyone knows The Mountains to Sound Greenway has some of the best hiking trails in this area. A rainy day hike to Granite Lakes a couple of weekends ago was no exception. With abundant hiking in the nearby Alpine Lakes Wilderness (the closest wilderness area to any major metropolitan area in the country!), it...

June 29, 2012
Recently we have been learning about biosolids- how they are made and where they are used. After the heavy organic solids (mostly human and food waste) are strained from sewage, they are composted with bacteria for about a month to remove pathogens. About half of these biosolids are then trucked off to commercial forests...

June 22, 2012
Greenway Trust Priority Area:
Did that headline come as a surprise to you? The findings certainly surprised me. Seattle consistently earns accolades nationally for walking and biking such as Walkscore’s 6th most walkable large city, Walkscore’s 7thmost bikable, and Bicycle Magazine’s 10th. However, at least in terms of U.S. Census commuting to work statistics, Ellensburg beats walking pants and cycling shorts off Seattle: The top...

June 18, 2012
Imagine walking through the forest with your eyes at the level of your knees. What would you notice? On a sunny morning, would it feel like you were swimming in shades of green with pools of light illuminating your path? Maybe if you were a toddler. The Greenway Education Program offered a family nature...

June 14, 2012
Reprinted with special permission from Renee Bodine, Public Affairs Officer, Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest Service.
The eggs have hatched, but the chicks won’t be leaving home at the Deception Crag Wall until July 9th, keeping the wall off limits to climbers about a week longer than first announced. Biologists discovered the nesting peregrine falcons in April, and have been monitoring them ever since.  “We first noticed the wee ones...

June 12, 2012
Greenway Trust Priority Area:
Construction has officially begun on the new trail at Mailbox Peak. Scheduled to be finished in fall 2013, the new trail will offer hikers a much more sustainable route to the summit. It climbs the roughly 4,000 vertical feet in five miles, as opposed to the same gain in the existing trail’s two miles....

May 22, 2012
Greenway Trust Priority Area:
Long have many hikers lamented the conditions of the mostly boot-built trail at Mailbox Peak in the stunning Middle Fork Snoqualmie River Valley. The steep scrambles and near-vertical parts of the trail have long-challenged even the most physically fit of hiking enthusiasts. Long have some hikers commented on the packed parking lot at the...

May 11, 2012
This blog post is #4 in a series entitled Cities Matter and City Matters.
A nugget of wisdom from Alice in Wonderland: “Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?” “That depends a good deal on where you want to get to,” said the Cat. “I don’t much care where–” said Alice. “Then it doesn’t matter which way you go,” said the Cat. Luckily...

April 25, 2012
Biologists have discovered peregrine falcons nesting on a popular climbing site and are concerned climbers will disturb them. The nest is on the Deception Crag Wall at Interstate 90 exit 38. The site is typical nesting habitat according to Sonny Paz, wildlife biologist for the Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest, because the steep rock face protects...

April 13, 2012
This blog post is #3 in a series entitled Cities Matter and City Matters.
What comes to mind when you think about a forest? I am willing to wager most people think of a wild forest somewhere like the Alpine Lakes Wilderness. Did you know that foresters consider urban forests to also be important? In fact the United States Forest Service has an entire urban forestry program. Where is...