Washington Water Trails Association

Did you know that the "T18" matriline is the one of the most seen Orca groups in the Salish Sea? Grandmother, the matriarch, is sixty-nine years old, while her youngest grandson is twenty-three. Read more about the family here:

T18s Bigg's Matriline

So exciting, a new baby!

Stopped in at Windjammer Park, Joseph Whidbey, and Fort Ebey… The latter two definitely need some signage help. 🐳💦

Next stop, Ala Spit… Looks like the tree fort is back 🙂

Have you stayed at the Bowman Bay Cascadia Marine Trail site? Please do log your visit at the bottom of our volunteers webpage as the park ranger would like a list of those who stayed there… He doesn’t seem to think it gets very well used. That said, a lot of our sites don’t get highly used, but they are there to provide access for human powered boats when they need to get off the water.  https://www.wwta.org/volunteer/

Yay!

September 13, 2024 - Js, Ks, and Ls at Lime Kiln Early in the morning on September 13th, 2024 Southern Resident killer whales from all three pods were heard vocalizing on the Haro Strait hydrophones. Here's a clip.

WWTA Reminder: Paddle and Picnic at Snee-oosh Beach with Update: Sunday Afternoon, September 15th - https://mailchi.mp/wwta/wwta-reminder-paddle-and-picnic-at-snee-oosh-beach-with-update-sunday-september-15th

Speaking of water trails, has anyone visited points on our Lakes to Locks Trail?

WWTA - Last Chance - Membership Drive with Raffle! Join, renew or donate before the end of the day on August 31st! - https://mailchi.mp/wwta/wwta-last-chance-membership-drive-with-raffle-join-renew-or-donate-before-the-end-of-the-day-on-august-31st

WWTA - La Conner Annual Paddle and Picnic with Salmon BBQ! Sunday Afternoon, September 15th - https://mailchi.mp/wwta/wwta-la-conner-annual-paddle-and-picnic-with-salmon-bbq-sunday-afternoon-september-15th

Great news! Thanks to the grants and individuals!

Have you been to any WWTA sites lately? Please log your hours at the bottom of the page (or sign up 🙂 ) . It so important for many reasons. We need to show various agencies that the site are being used, and any hours towards stewardship can help with our grants.

Thanks to Michael, Suzanne, Andy and others for updating our sign at Lisabuela :)

https://www.wwta.org/stewardship/site-stewards/site-steward-report-form/

Nighttime along the water.

I had another one of my big ideas, so I took a major risk, and went against my better judgement, spending hours and hours waiting for a clearing in the clouds during one of the biggest displays of Northern Lights of the year.

It was low tide so I saw the opportunity, I waited and waited, watching the world update about their incredible experiences witnessing the light show while I continued to be stubborn, not moving from my spot in hopes of getting that one lucky moment, when I could easily drive one hour and find clear skies. But I didn't, and my lucky moment never came, BUT it is these moments that have made me the photographer I am today, and it is these nights that continue to help define my career.

I found my angle with the sea-stars, posted up in position, and waited patiently all night long while practicing taking night time shots with my camera. This wasn't the first time I tried to capture this scene. On 3 other occasions I've found myself in very similar, and actually worse situations than this for this same idea. Atleast this time I was watching the ocean glow blue with bioluminescence, and atleast this time I could make out SOME color at times through the clouds.

Typically the photos from this night would just go into my archives, never to be looked at again by anyone, but I was physically worn out and mentally exhausted by the end of this night, and I don't imagine I'll have another opportunity to capture all of these things again until next year.

So here you go, I'm not the luckiest photographer alive 😆 I do fail, quite often, I just don't share those moments that didn't make the "cut"

WWTA was created by forward thinking individuals who noticed public water access receding, and so created four water trails. This is a very educational article on the subject of private vs public beaches:

Can I Walk on the Beach? A Brief History of Privately-Owned Tidelands in Washington - Maritime Washington Is my beach legal to walk on? The answer is complex, with legal cases and treaties affecting Washington's shores. Read on to find out!

WWTA Reminder - Membership Drive and New Guidebook! - https://mailchi.mp/wwta/washington-water-trails-association-reminder-membership-drive-and-new-guidebook

Washington Water Trails Association - WWTA Through advocacy, education, and stewardship, Washington Water Trails Association protects and promotes public access to Washington waterways, shorelines, and marine trails for human-powered watercraft.