This 120 gallon tank has a recirculation filter system that sterilizes the water to prevent disease transmission to our hatchery salmon.  Because the tank has double pane glass, condensation does not occur on the outside of the glass on hot and humid days.

Thanks to Friends of Northwest Hatcheries for their partial financing of this new addition to our Visitors Center.

Cold winter temperatures kept the activities indoors, but provided a welcome break from cabin fever for these students.

In the Classroom

The Hatchery presentations highlighted the Hatchery’s steelhead program and presented information on fish anatomy and physiology as well as providing students with the opportunity to dissect a real fish.

TU was started in 1982 and membership has grown from 12 to 100. Some of their many contributions to the hatchery complex include construction of a handicapped fishing ramp in 1992, assisting spawning operations and kids fishing days and offering a salmon BBQ at the Wenatchee River Salmon Festival. 

Also, in cooperation with the Leavenworth Hatchery, Barn Beach Reserve and the Cascade School District, the program “Salmon in the Classroom” has put aquariums in classroom and developed science enhancement lessons on fish habitat. 

Visit TU’s website, icicletrout.org, to explore additional accomplishments of the local chapter of Trout Unlimited.

The big dilemma was how and where to store the waders.  After working with the hatchery personnel, the decision was made to store them in the storage area of the nursery.  Shaun Love, fish culturist at the hatchery, made racks with dowling purchased by the Friends and used existing surplus hatchery materials to complete the project. 

Every one is so happy that the waders will be stored in an organized way that will keep the waders dry and retain their shape.

Last fall Leavenworth NFH assistant manager Travis Collier, along with Trout Unlimited, brought salmon eggs to five classrooms at Osborn Elementary School in Leavenworth. These classrooms had the opportunity to watch and learn how salmon eggs develop into the fry that we then release into Icicle Creek.

Next fall we hope to expand this project to bring salmon to the 4th graders at Vale Elementary School in Cashmere.

Here are some pictures of Travis, Matt and Mike Cotter tagging the “Salmon in the Classroom” fish:

Object Lesson

Multimedia

Salmon in the Classroom

“A giant Thank You to all our volunteers and supporters! We couldn’t do it without you!”

New for 2008 was the Salmon-chanted Evening, an enchanted evening of smoked salmon, local wines, hors d’oeuvres, live music, and time to stroll the garden paths…

Salmon-chanted Evening was presented by the Wenatchee River Salmon Festival, and Ohme Gardens Park.

See you at the 2009 Wenatchee River Salmon Festival! Visit the official site for more details.

Introduction

• Friends mission statement
• Associated hatcheries
• Friends-sponsored programs and program goals

History

• Non-profit status
• Growth to include multiple hatcheries
• Expansion of student education outreach
• Friends-operated stores
• Wenatchee River Salmon Festival support

Membership Information

• Description of membership benefits
• Membership form download link

Newsletter

• Newsletter download link

Articles

• Display of current Friends news or articles
• Archive of past news or articles

Activities

• Listing of Friends activities and events
• Listings, or links, to participating hatchery activities and events

Contact Information

• How to contact Friends for more information

The above outline was used to compile content for the site. Once that was achieved, it was necessary to arrive at a website structure that presents the content in a manner consistent with Internet standards, such as accessibility and cross-browser compatibility.

The Friends website was developed with the above goals in mind.

Considered in site development were:

• Logical Navigation- Internal navigation links that allow visitors to roam the site without getting lost, while providing site expansion flexibility.
• Page Structure- Pages that are consistent in layout and design, to enhance content presentation, while providing site expansion flexibility.

In October, 2007, www.friendsofnwhatcheries.org arrived online in its current form. The Friends website continues to evolve as site content is updated, and information from a variety of sources is added.

A 150 lb. adult will leave 90,000 pounds of trash for the next generation. Yikes! Leavenworth Recycles (LR) and the Friends of the Northwest Hatcheries (FNWH) have joined together to leave a better legacy. Close to ten thousand students and adults were educated about the benefits of recycling in our community while reducing the waste at this year’s Salmon Festival.

Leavenworth Recycles Booth

Lisi Ott, one of the founding board members of L R, kicked off a 2 year Department of Ecology (DOE) Public Participation Grant project to educate the Leavenworth community and visiting tourists on the benefits of recycling during the 2007 Salmon Festival.

During the Salmon Festival, enough bags of #1 plastic bottles and aluminum cans to fill a small pickup truck were recycled.

While the idea of recycling is not new to many in the community, the underlying reasons of why recycling is important, the knowledge of what can be recycled in our area, where recyclables can be dropped off, and how to prepare them for dropping off is still a mystery.

The DOE grant will be used to educate people about the benefits of recycling in our community, county, and state. LR believes when people in the community learn that their individual actions can make a difference in the quality of the world we live in, their actions will become more meaningful. LR plans to accomplish this education by sponsoring a Trash Trivia Contest on KOHO radio, writing a weekly recycling tip in the Leavenworth Echo, guest speaking locally and being a presence at the Salmon Festival and another yet to be determined Leavenworth festival.

The community itself is not recycling effectively. Though the organizers of the Salmon Festival have incorporated recycling into their festival plans most of the other festivals do not include recycling plans. These factors contribute to the fact that Leavenworth is producing a lot more waste then necessary.

LR believes when people know better they will do better. To that end LR is committed to working with FNWH and the Leavenworth Fish Hatchery Staff to raise awareness of recycling at future Salmon Festivals in the effort to collect recyclable materials and divert waste from landfills.
.: Lisi Ott and Jeff Johnson :.

Did you know?…

Recycling saves energy and reduces green house gases (ghg). There is a 95% energy savings when making aluminum cans out of recycled aluminum cans. The savings from one can could run a TV for three hours.

Last year, Waste Management collected six million tons of recyclable materials. The ghg savings from that material is equal to taking two million cars on the road for a year.

Kids and hands-on activities.

17th Annual Salmon Festival Tons of Fun!

The festival is a free four-day natural resource education event that attracts 8,000 to 10,000 visitors each year. The first two days are committed to elementary school students from all over North Central Washington and the weekend days are open to the general public. All four days offer hands-on activities that give visitors opportunities to learn about many different aspects of salmon, our natural environmental, art and Native American culture. The festival is hosted by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the U.S. Forest Service.

Highlights from this year

The festival broadened its horizons by adding the Outdoor Recreation exhibit featuring demos and information on a wide variety of activities. Local and nationally known organizations and businesses set up booths and activities, answered questions and offered information on recreation options in the Wenatchee Valley. Visitors were able to try a kayak in the pond, ride a bike adapted for physically challenged riders, check out local mountain bike trails, get info on alpine snowboarding and skiing, obtain cross country skiing and hiking info and many other adventurous activities. It was concluded that outdoor recreation is a big hit at the Salmon Festival and the planning team will continue to offer the exhibit next year.

Sculptor Gretchen Rhode with a young helper.

Another new exhibit was the Inspirations from Nature art and cultural exhibit that took place in the hatchery park near the food court. Icicle Arts partnered with Salmon Fest to produce a hands-on, up close and personal view of artists, their genres and their creative process. Sculpting, painting, drawing, pastels, bronze casting, woodworking, recycled art projects and nature journaling were some of the different types of art represented. Visitors were encouraged to flow through the informal exhibit and experiment with their own creative powers by observing, interacting with the artist and actually taking part in the process. Watching a child trying to sculpt a rock by learning how to use a jackhammer is worth a lot of smiles! With all of the positive feedback from both artists and visitor, Inspirations from Nature will be back at the festival next year!

Icicle Arts at Salmonfest.

Tried and True

Great success was also evident in the festival’s other activities that are offered every year. Some of the local favorites such as chalk art, kids in the creek, creativity corner, the storytelling tent and costume parade, the Salmon Run, Gyotaku, the Native American Encampment and many others are as popular as ever. Sardis Raptor Center and The Reptile Man also pack the stage area with fun and educational presentations. Who wouldn’t like to see a bald eagle or an albino python up close and personal?

The Wenatchee River Salmon Festival is a shining star of fun and education for all who venture to the Upper Valley in September. Fundraising efforts continue all year to insure the quality and depth of experience it has always offered. For information on becoming a contributor to this award winning event, call the Friends of Northwest Hatcheries at 548-6662, ext. 271. We’re always ready to talk Salmon! And don’t forget to put September 18 – 21 on your 2008 calendar so you can enjoy the fun next year!