Photo by Sara Madura

(unless otherwise noted all photos are by Emily Sunblade)

We saw a whale! (continued)

Whitney Neugebauer, Executive Director of Whale Scout, is dedicated to protecting whales and the habitat they depend upon. So why is Whale Scout sponsoring an event in North Creek Forest?  The answer unfolds here...


To the delight of all, there was a life sized Killer Whale on the edge of the forest.

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114 Volunteers moved 27 cubic yards of wood chips down a steep bank and dispersed it across the site.

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It was a perfect day....

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....for everyone to enjoy a team event.

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Most of our volunteers had never seen a "bucket brigade", also handy for putting out fires when nothing else is available. 

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It's magical when your winter day is perfect, your task goes well and you are a valuable member of the team.

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Dr. David Bain, Whale Biologist and Vice President of FNCF puts it in very simple words. "The whales start in the treetops."



Rain filters through tree tops and branches.  The water that isn't absorbed or evaporated can take hours to reach the ground.  Once it soaks into the forest soil it can take weeks for it to reach a stream.  During this whole time it is being cleaned by filtering action and bacteria.  It is being cooled to the temperature of the soil. Water reaching a depth of around 6 feet below the surface will adjust to the average annual temperature of its geographic area within a fraction of a degree.  The results: Near constant temperature summer and winter; pure clean water for salmon and other aquatic life and no storm surges to wash eggs downstream or smother them in silt.

Whales, salmon and our Northwest forests have co-evolved and are mutually dependent. Thus food for whales, and the whales themselves, depend on the trees.  The health of our forests determines the health of our marine ecosystem.
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