Get Intimate with the Shrub-Steppe &
Yakima River Canyon Bird Fest
Ellensburg WA
Friday May 12- Sunday May 14, 2023
If your activity has a waitlist, please join and in the notes column, add the activity you want to join.
A *by-donation community event highlighting the endangered shrub-steppe habitat in Central Washington. The event starts Friday with an evening social gathering, Saturday is filled with expert guided field trips with birding, geology, snakes and reptiles, fish and river bugs, history, and more. Educational booths are set up with free educational materials and other outreach materials and we highlight affinity environmental and natural resource groups from around the state. Saturday evening brings a keynote speaker with a shrub-steppe focused theme. Sunday includes self-guided field trips and additional guided field trips into the shrub-steppe.
*some special events have fees associated
LAND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
The future home of the Yakima Canyon Interpretive Center rests on the ancestral lands of the Pshwánapam people (fourteen Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation). The people of the Yakama Nation inhabited more than 12 million acres across Adams, Benton, Chelan, Douglas, Franklin, Grant, Kittitas, Klickitat, and Yakima Counties. We honor those peoples who are tied to the land through history, legends, and culture. We acknowledge their descendants who live in the world today. We thank the caretakers of this land, who have lived here and continue to live here since time immemorial. An acknowledgment is a simple, powerful way to show respect, and a step toward correcting the stories and practices that erase Indigenous people’s history and culture. It also honors the truth.
24th Anniversary!
Join KEEN (Kittitas Environmental Education Network) in May and discover the natural beauty of
Ellensburg, Kittitas County, and Central Washington State!
The Yakima River Canyon is an Audubon Important Bird Area (IBA) with some of the highest densities of passerines and birds of prey in the State. The extensive cliffs, shrub-steppe, and riparian cottonwood forests provide a rich mixture of habitats for animals, plants, reptiles, and insects. Particularly important are the immense basalt cliffs and talus slopes interspersed with shrub-steppe vegetation, which support a diverse assemblage of birds associated with this habitat, including White-throated Swift, Cliff Swallow, Rock Wren, Canyon Wren, and 21 species of raptors. Ten of these raptor species breed in and around the canyon, including two pairs of Golden Eagles and five pairs of Prairie Falcons.
The cliffs and shrub-steppe habitat also support dense populations of Red-tailed Hawks, American Kestrels, and Great-horned Owls. Up to 20 Bald Eagles winter along the river, subsisting primarily on whitefish. The riparian habitats along the river and its tributaries support a high diversity and abundance of bird species, including Lazuli Bunting, Pine Siskin, Evening Grosbeak, Bullock’s Oriole, Sage Thrasher, Mountain Bluebird, Say’s Phoebe, Williamson’s Woodpecker, Red-breasted Nuthatch, Cedar Waxing, Northern Spotted Owl, and American Pelican.
Plan ahead! Some of our field trips require parking passes from state or federal entities. Umtanum & Selah need BLM Pass, Yakima Canyon Interpretive Center & Ginkgo need WA Discover Pass, so be sure you are ready. Also, grab a hotel or campground reservation early - Ellensburg is very popular in the spring!
Event Overview
Friday May 12, 2023
6pm-9pm @ the [tap room]
Social Gathering, Falconry
& Food Trucks
Join KEEN and our field trip leaders/speakers at the [tap room] by Ironhorse Brewing for a totally casual and fun welcome to the event kind of evening. Maybe meet field trip leaders & local experts and connect with new friends! Members of the Washington Association of Falconry will share a slide show and bring along some falcon friends! Cash bar & food trucks available.
Saturday May 13, 2023
9am-1pm
Environmental & Conservation Booths
@ Yakima Canyon Interpretive Center
Kittitas Environmental Education Network, Yakima Canyon Interpretive Center, Kittitas Audubon, Conservation Northwest, Mid-Columbia Fisheries Enhancement Group, Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife, CWU Reptiles of our Shrub-Steppe, CWU Zooarchaeology Lab, Teanaway Community Forest, WA Association of Falconry, Kittitas County Conservation District, CWU Museum of Culture & Environment, Yakama Nation Pacific Lamprey Outreach Team, Cacti of the Shrub-Steppe, Trout Unlimited, WA Native Plants Society, Puget Sound Energy, Yakima Fly Fishers Trout Unlimited, Inland NW Wildlife Council, Kids Activities, and more!
Saturday May 13, 2023
6pm-9pm
Jay Kehne - Conservation NW
*Keynote Speaker & Catered Dinner
Jay Kehne leads Conservation NW's Sagelands Heritage Program, including the Safe Passage 97 project, Okanogan Working for Wildlife Initiative and representation within the Arid Lands Initiative. He also manages work on shrub-steppe wildlife including pygmy rabbits, sage grouse, sharp-tailed grouse, pronghorn antelope and bighorn sheep.
Jay was recently honored with the 2021 Conservation Leadership Award from the National Wildlife Federation!
Jay Kehne joined Conservation Northwest in 2010 after a 31-year career with the U.S. Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service. Jay puts his experience working with ranchers and farmers, combined with his love of Washington’s shrub-steppe habitat, to work helping to connect and protect important habitats for a variety of species in the arid lands of our state. Jay also served two terms as a Washington Fish & Wildlife Commissioner, and lives with his wonderful wife in Omak, overlooking the Okanogan River. He enjoys elk and deer hunting with life-long friends, traveling, fishing, skiing, back-packing, and spending time with his five children and six grandchildren.
Jay will focus his keynote for GISS on connectivity across shrub steppe habitats. He will weave in information on specific endangered wildlife species such as sage grouse, sharptailed grouse, and pygmy rabbits as well as candidate species like working with Canada and WDFW to translocate Burrowing Owls into WA.
He will discuss climate change and it's impacts on shrub-steppe, what we expect to happen in arid environments,
and how that affects what we do today to prepare for maintaining critical habitats. He will also talk about Beaver Dam Analog structures in riparian areas in shrub steppe help create climate and fire refugia for species as climate change evolves and corresponding fires occur.
*this is a ticketed event with limited space
Expert-Led Field Trips
May 13 & May 14
Pre-Register for Activities Here
Self-guided field trips can use WA Audubon Sun & Sage Loop Map
FRIDAY MAY 12
SOCIAL HOUR, FALCONS & FALCONRY,
AWESOME LOCAL BEER & FOOD TRUCKS!
A casual get-together to kick off the 24th year of GISS/YRCBF!
Members of the Washington Falconry Association will have live raptors with them and will do a slide show presentation about falconry and conservation.
Food and drinks are on your own. This is a free gathering - but we really hope to see you!
SATURDAY MAY 13
FIELD TRIP
6am-9am
Passerines & Raptors of the Yakima River Canyon with Deb Essman
*FIELD TRIP
6am-10am
YAKIMA TRAINING CENTER WILDFLOWERS,
WILDLIFE, AND ARCHAEOLOGY WITH BETHANY OLIVER
*this field trip requires a DOD background check for each participant over age 17
HANDS-ON SCIENCE BOOTHS
@ YCIC
9AM-1PM
Kittitas Environmental Education Network, Yakima Canyon Interpretive Center, Kittitas Audubon, Conservation Northwest, Mid-Columbia Fisheries Enhancement Group, Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife, CWU Reptiles of our Shrub-Steppe, CWU Skulls & Bones, Teanaway Community Forest, Mountains to Sound Greenway, Kittitas County Conservation District, CWU Museum of Culture & Environment, Discovery Lab Ellensburg, Yakama Nation Pacific Lamprey Outreach Team, Yakima Fly Fishers Trout Unlimited, WA Association of Falconry, WA Native Plants Society, Puget Sound Energy, Inland NW Wildlife Council, Kids Activities, and more!
TROLLS UNDER THE BRIDGE!
9am-1pm
Get Intimate with fish, river bugs, and other critters that rely on rivers in the Yakima River Canyon!
with DR. PAUL JAMES & CWU BIOLOGY STUDENTS
FIELD TRIP
Saturday 9am-11am
Columbia River Basalt Geology and Climate Change with
Dr. Dale Beeson
Walking field trip with 2 hour duration: This is a rocky steep uphill trail, 1.4 miles total distance roundtrip. Drive to Umtanum Creek trailhead parking (BLM parking requires $5 day pass at site or America The Beautiful Pass) https://www.blm.gov/visit/yakima-river-canyon Meet at the parking side of the Yakima River suspension bridge.
We’ll cross the mighty Yakima River and understand the rivers power at land shaping. But wait, what about the towering basalt cliffs above us? What causes the varying shapes and patterns? We’ll work our way up along the trail through geologic time to learn some of the secrets of the Columbia River Basalts. What can the rocks tell us about “the before times”? What do the Yellowstone area and our Yakima River Canyon have in common? We’ll visit an ancient soil horizon overrun by a lava flow and see escaping gas bubbles frozen in time. The stories that these rocks have to share are…..amazing!
@Umtanum Creek Recreation Area
FIELD TRIP
Saturday 9am-11am
Beaver Tales - How beavers help riparian areas recover from fire
Dr. Lixing Sun
@Umtanum Creek Recreation Area
FIELD TRIP
Saturday 10am-12pm
Archaeology & history of the Yakima Canyon Interpretive Center with Dr. Steven Hackenberger & Jon Shellenberger
KEEN is working with Central WA Archaeology Services to complete a cultural resources survey of the future home of the Yakima Canyon Interpretive Center @ Helen McCabe Memorial Park. Dr. Hackenberger and Jon Shellenberger are working with members of the Yakama Nation to tell the story of the property in the larger context of the Yakima River Canyon and the ancestral lands of the Pshwánapam people (fourteen Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation).
FIELD TRIP
Saturday 10am-12pm
Snake Sneaking!
with Dr. Dan Beck and Tyler Larsen
Dr. Dan and Tyler know where the snakes hide...so you'll get to see them! Maybe even touch them. Plus, you'll learn a ton about their habits, habitat, and how they are recovering after a devastating fire in the Umtanum Canyon just a few years ago. You don't want to miss this opportunity!
Photo credit: Kimberly Quayle
HABITAT RESTORATION & CELEBRATION IN HONOR OF GLENN MILLER
with Mid-Columbia Fisheries Enhancement Group
Volunteers are invited to help a new riparian buffer succeed along Sorenson Creek, a tributary to the Yakima River at the mouth of the Yakima River Canyon. We will gather in honor of Glenn Miller, lifelong advocate and volunteer for salmon recovery.
FIELD TRIP
Saturday 10:30am-12:00pm
Native Plants & Wildflowers of the Shrub-Steppe
with Kimberly Quayle
Walking field trip, 1.5-2.5 hours, drive to trailhead in private vehicles. Discover pass is required, parking for about 6 vehicles.
Join us on a walk through Selah Cliffs Natural Area, where we will discuss native plants and ongoing restoration efforts in the area. We can expect to see resilient native plants like spiny hopsage, greasewood, sagebrush, and prickly pear cacti - as well as striking basalt cliffs with colorful lichen. The cliffs at this site are home to the rare basalt daisy, found only in Yakima canyon, and also provide homes for various bird species like prairie falcon. Other wildlife we may encounter include ticks and rattlesnakes, so good shoes and long pants + socks are recommended!
FIELD TRIP
Saturday 11am-1pm
Walk & Write 'NEA Big Read'
with Jill Scheffer, KEEN President & Marie Marchand, Ellensburg Poet Laureate
CWU Libraries are partnering with KEEN and the Ellensburg poet laureate to present a Spring Renewal poetry and nature journaling workshop that brings together local ecology and writing. Jill & Marie will lead a walk around the YCIC property, decorate our own nature journals (journals and art supplies provided), stopping for spring poetry readings and watching wildlife & plants. We'll end with creating our own poetry and sharing with the group (if desired). We will provide custom notebooks and writing utensils for participants, as well as distribute copies of the Big Read book, Catalog of Unabashed Gratitude at the event.
@Yakima Canyon Interpretive Center
FIELD TRIP
Saturday 12pm - 1pm
Birding for Kids & Youth
with Gwyneth Scoville
@Yakima Canyon Interpretive Center
FIELD TRIP
Saturday 12pm - 1pm
Wildflowers of the Shrub-Steppe
with Linda Raubeson
Easy walking field trip
Join us on a walk through Umptanum Creek Recreation Area where we will discuss native plants and ongoing restoration efforts in the area. We can expect to see resilient native plants like spiny hopsage, greasewood, sagebrush, and prickly pear cacti - as well as striking basalt cliffs with colorful lichen. The cliffs also provide homes for various bird species like prairie falcon. Other wildlife we may encounter include ticks and rattlesnakes, so good shoes and long pants + socks are recommended!
@Umtanum Creek Recreation Area
FIELD TRIP
Saturday 1pm - 3pm
Adult Lamprey Release - Teanaway River
with YAKAMA NATION LAMPREY OUTREACH PROGRAM STAFF
Limit: 50 persons
Arrive at destination, walk to the river field trip; duration 1-2 hours; drive to destination with private cars
Meet at: Masterson Public Access near Cle Elum/Teanaway
This will be a short walk to the river from the road field trip to release adult Pacific Lamprey into the Teanaway River with Tyler Beals (Yakama Nation Lamprey Biologist II). Tyler will give a talk about our Projects history and overview, lamprey life cycle, traditional significance, larval habitat surveys, and adult translocation.
@ Masterson Public Access
*FIELD TRIP
1:30pm-5:00pm
Seeing the Birds & Wildlife of the Yakima River Canyon - Float Trip with Rill Adventures & KEEN Naturalists
@Umtanum Creek Recreation Area
*this is a ticketed event (space limited)
PLANETARIUM SHOWS
2:00pm-5:00pm
with Dr. Bruce Palmquist at the CWU's Lydig Planetarium
Join Dr. Palmquist for a 45-minute show at the CWU Planetarium. Shows start on the hour - 2:00, 3:00, and 4:00. The planetarium seats 80. The Lydig Planetarium is a fully digital planetarium using 6 projectors and running World Wide Telescope - an open source project originally started by Mirosoft Research. World Wide Telescope allows the planetarium to project not only the night sky, but also a 3D model of the solar system as well as coordinate systems and overlays of constellations.
*WINE TASTING
2:00pm-5:30pm
A Taste of Terroir: Exploring the Wines of Washington
Kristine Miller, Director of CWUs Wine Program, will discuss the terroir (climate, topography, soil, etc.) of Central Washington and the various events that shaped the terroir of the amazing wine regions of this area. Learn how this terroir impacts the flavor profile of Washington Wine. Combined with wine tasting and a great location at Canyon River Ranch Lodge, this is an afternoon not to be missed!
*this is a ticketed event
KEYNOTE SPEAKER & DINNER
6pm-9:00pm
with Jay Kehne
Climate Change & Arid Environments
Jay works on ensuring connectivity across shrub steppe habitats. How to protect key areas with programs such as conservation easements, helping ranchers implement the newest tool for habitat improvement called virtual fence, and helping the state get solar developments under control so that shrub steppe species and critical habitat are not lost in the current gold rush to install solar. Jay will weave in information on specific endangered wildlife species such as sage grouse, sharptailed grouse, and pygmy rabbits as well as candidate species such as work we are doing with Canada and WDFW to translocate Burrowing Owls into WA. Jay will also cover what we expect from climate change impacts in arid environments, and how that effects what we do today to prepare for maintaining critical habitats. This could include explaining how zeedyck and BDA structures in riparian areas in shrub steppe help create climate and fire refugia for species as climate change evolves and corresponding fires occur.
Ticket price is inclusive of a catered dinner from Rustic Root Catering and one drink ticket.
*this is a ticketed event
SUNDAY MAY 14
FIELD TRIP
Sunday 7:30am-11:00am
Raptors of Kittitas County
with Deb Essman
Meet @ Yakima Canyon Interpretive Center
Travel to Various Locations
FIELD TRIP
Get Intimate with Ginkgo State Park & Petrified Forest
9:00am-1:00pm
Join us for a guided hike into the hills and valleys of the Ginkgo Petrified Forest State Park. Interpretive ranger, Kevin Lieske, will be leading the hike, focusing on the spring wildflowers and the cataclysmic events that transformed this landscape of central Washington. Depending on weather, the hike will be up to 5 miles in length, with a maximum elevation gain of around 500 feet. This is very sun-exposed terrain, with no shade or water access. Please be prepared with appropriate sun protection, footwear, water, food, and clothing layers. High winds are common in this area, please pack appropriately. The trail consists of loose, rocky terrain in places. If you typically hike with poles, it is suggested that you bring those with you. The duration of the hike is estimated to be 4-5 hours, with a lunch stop. (Lunch is not provided). A valid Discover Pass is required for each vehicle. We hope to see you out there!
FIELD TRIP
Mother's Day Events
Wildflower and Wind Power Walks
Join us while we explore the beauty of the shrub steppe in bloom!
10-11am Wind Turbine Tour
11-11:30am Wildflower and Wind Power Presentation
11:30-1pm Wildflower and Wind Power Walk
2-3pm Wind Turbine Tour
3-3:30pm Wildflower and Wind Power Presentation
3:30-5pm Wildflower and Wind Power Walk
Wildflower Walks are also available midweek by appointment early June.
What to Bring: Wear sturdy closed toe shoes or boots and dress for both the wind and sun. It can still be quite chilly in the spring. Bring a water bottle, snacks, camera, hiking poles, or whatever else you will need to enjoy your walk.
Distance: While our walks cover less than a mile, they will be on rocky uneven terrain, and may not be suitable for all visitors.
@ Wildhorse Wind & Solar Facility
FIELD TRIP
On Your Own
Self-Guided Birding Tour
Suggested Locations:
Irene Rinehart Riverfront Park
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