Winter Wonderland at NatureBridge
The first week of February delivered a round of winter weather that heavily impacted our campuses at both Olympic and Yosemite National Parks. Despite being dealt a mix of wintery travel conditions, lodging closures and hurdles regarding food delivery, our dedicated NatureBridge staff at both Yosemite and Olympic National Parks have been hard at work making modifications that enable programs to continue.
Olympic National Park #
Last month’s storm came just as educators at our Olympic campus were gearing up to welcome back program participants. Though the weather added several challenges, it provided a great opportunity for staff team building as well as a chance to display snow sculpture-making talents!
Most importantly, it didn’t stop our leaders from hosting a large group of Miramonte High School students for the overnight environmental science program. In addition to exploring the Elwha River and paddling Salish-style canoes on Lake Crescent, students went snowshoeing through the forest trails to Marymere Falls - a rare opportunity granted by the recent storms.
Yosemite National Park #
Our NatureBridge campus at Yosemite also enjoyed some exciting weather early last month. According to the Yosemite blog of the National Park Service, the area was blanketed with 97 inches of fresh snow in just five days. This storm, unfortunately, led us to close our tent cabin accommodations at Half Dome Village in the Yosemite Valley.
The good news is that NatureBridge is fortunate enough to have incredibly flexible staff members who are accustomed to adapting to the changing weather. Shortly after the storm, new lodging headquarters were established at the Yosemite Valley Lodge as well as the historic Big Trees Lodge, formerly known as the Wawona Hotel.
At present, our Yosemite team continues to welcome students and teachers to our Environmental Science program so that young people can enjoy the transformative NatureBridge experience in the wind, rain or snow!
In the event of more winter weather in the coming weeks, Director of Risk Management Jeff Crow and our Olympic staff are equipped and ready to work with schools to ensure safety and a unique snowy NatureBridge experience.
Stories
Fall Reflections from NatureBridge Yosemite
As an environmental science educator, I spend a lot of time teaching about nature, but this season I’ve been finding that as it turns out, nature has a lot to teach us, too. Sometimes I can let the trees, the meadow, and the lichen teach for me. They show us how to respect each other’s boundaries, how to celebrate differences, how to work together, and how to lean on each other’s strengths in order to exist in a new place. These lessons felt incredibly relevant to me heading into the first week of November, a notoriously busy time at NatureBridge Yosemite. I wanted to focus on messages of kindness and inclusivity with my students, I wanted them to feel a sense of belonging in this new space, and I also hoped that they would share those messages with others.
An Incredible 10th Anniversary of Evening on the Lake
On October 25, the Amazon Meeting Center in downtown Seattle buzzed with celebratory energy as over 300 NatureBridge guests and supporters gathered for the 10th anniversary of "Evening on the Lake," our signature Pacific Northwest fundraising event for our Olympic campus.
"Science became fun" at NatureBridge for Alum Laura Lomeli Russert
Laura Lomeli Russert is a NatureBridge alum who grew up in Groveland, CA and now calls Washington, D.C. home. Laura’s journey with NatureBridge began when she attended the Golden Gate campus as a young student with her class from Tenaya Elementary. Laura credits NatureBridge with shaping not only her love for nature but also her passion for education and science. "Science became fun,” she recalls. “You weren’t learning from a textbook anymore, and it became so much more real." Her hands-on, scientific experiences at NatureBridge laid the foundation for her eventual pursuit of a Ph.D. in psychology. “I feel like I owe a lot to NatureBridge."