Inland NW Trail & Outdoor News

Cover photo courtesy Diane Knowles

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.