News from Washington Trails Association

Everyone is going gaga over snowy owls.

This arctic bird has made a rare foray into Washington this winter, delighting birders and non-birders from far and wide. Unlike most of its owl cousins, the snowy owl is diurnal - active during the day - and as much at home on a beach log as it is in a tree. It is big, beautiful and startlingly white, with piercing yellow eyes. What's more, this is the owl of Harry Potter, which makes it a magnet for kids.

There are many theories as to why the snowy owl has appeared in such numbers in the Lower 48 states this year. The most prevailing theory ties it to their favorite food: lemmings. These are small arctic rodents, known for their boom and bust cycles. A recent boom likely led to an exceedingly good breeding year for the snowy owl. Then the lemming population crashed, causing the owls to travel further south this winter looking for food.

Snowy owls started arriving in late fall and are expected to stick around until March. Last weekend's beautiful weather had people out in droves trying to catch a glimpse of the regal bird. Following sightings at the Skagit Wildlife Refuge by Trip Reporters "Bob and Barb" on January 27th, three WTA staffers traveled there independently last weekend. The result: bald eagles, yes; snowy owls, no.

But don't fear, the snowy owl is still around. "Hikingqueen" and "Weluv2hike" both reported sightings at Damon Point State Park on the Washington coast. Hikingqueen reported, "We saw at least 10! Tons of photographers lining the area. Get there early for a parking spot."

The current epicenter of the snowy owl, however, is Boundary Bay Regional Park, just over the Canadian border from Blaine. The owls have been there in large numbers since December, and the word is definitely out as people packed this park with their tripods and enormous telephoto lenses. Last weekend Bob and Barb Griffith saw 36 owls and 400 people in three hours. (Check out this photo of 11 owls by Ray Morris on the King5 site.)

Where will the snowy owl be this weekend? And how do we temper our excitement of seeing these amazing creatures with their need for space and peace?

The Tweeters List is a message board with sightings and excellent advice from well-versed birders. Posters recommend that people stay on the dikes or paths, remain quiet, refrain from the use of flashes and under no circumstances should anyone flush the birds.

With that in mind, enjoy your search for the snowy owl. And when you return, consider posting a Trip Report or submitting a photo to the WTA Photo Gallery.

For some hikers, the Enchantment Lakes Basin is a once in a lifetime backpacking experience. For others, its a special place to return to as often as possible. But whether hikers are able to hike in this sublime alpine wonderland this summer depends on one crucial factor: winning a coveted lottery permit.

From June 15 to October 15, all overnight visitors must obtain a quota-based permit in order to camp in the Enchantments area. Because demand far exceeds the number of permits available, it is highly recommended that hikers take part in the lottery drawing if they want to overnight this summer or fall.

This year, lottery applications for the Enchantment Permit Area will be accepted from February 22 to March 13, 2012.

Permits are required for overnight camping in the:

• Core Enchantment Lakes Zone,
• Snow Lakes Zone (includes Nada Lake)
• Colchuck Lake Zone (includes Horseshoe Lake)
• Lake Stuart Zone
• Eightmile Lakes / Caroline Lakes Zone

Like last year, the lottery process will be handled via www.recreation.gov, the same site that processes campground reservations for many U.S. Forest Service and Mount Rainier National Park campgrounds in Washington. There will be a $6 application fee, and applicants who are successful will be charged $5 per person per day.

Results of the lottery process will be sent out at midnight on March 15. Starting about 7am on March 16, unclaimed lottery allotments will be available on a first-come, first-served basis. Do note that hikers who miss all of these windows may still be in luck for a walk-up permit. Twenty-five percent of the permits are held back for walk-ins, and will be available at 7:45 each morning except Sundays.

When filling out a permit application, hikers are required to select the Enchantment Zone where they would like to camp, the number in their party and entry and exit dates. Applicants will be allowed to enter up to four possible itineraries, and flexibility will certainly improve the odds. Other tips include:

• Choosing mid-week dates, as trips starting on Thursday, Friday or Saturday fill up first.
• Selecting dates outside of the popular August - early September window, like July or late September.
• Selecting a less-visited destination outside of the Core Enchantments Zone, such as the Eightmile/Caroline Zone, or stay in the Snow Lakes Zone and day hike into the Enchantment Lakes Basin.
• Keeping party sizes small (maximum is eight).

For more information, visit the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest Enchantments website or go straight to www.recreation.gov to apply beginning February 22nd. Good luck!

Registration for Washington Trails Association's backcountry work parties opens today at 10am. On the agenda for 2012 are 28 adult Volunteer Vacations, 16 Youth Vacations and 39 Backcountry Response Team (BCRT) trips.

Of the more than 100,000 hours of work performed by WTA volunteers each year, 40 percent of it comes by way of these programs. For Volunteer Vacations, hikers sign up for a week of trail maintenance with up to ten other crew members. They work on a trail project during the day and have fun in camp during their off-time, making great friends in the process.

The price of a Volunteer Vacation is $195 ($235 non-member) for the first trip and $145 for additional trips. All meals are included, and personal gear and supplies are transported to the camp for all but the backcountry trips.

Youth Vacations are similar to Volunteer Vacations but are designed specifically for high school students, ages 14-18. Many teens report that a week spent improving trails is a transformative experience and nearly half return each year for another trip. The cost of Youth Vacations are the same as Volunteer Vacations. In addition, WTA front-country trips also include tent and sleeping gear.

Backcountry Response Teams are three to eight days in length. WTA provides the tools, but otherwise they are self-supported. Most, but not all, are backpacking trips that access trail work in areas that day-trips cannot. These are offered at no cost.

WTA's backcountry work parties are extremely popular. Some fill up within minutes. But there are so many options that volunteers should be able to find an excellent trip long after registration begins.

>> 2012 Volunteer Vacation schedule >> 2012 Youth Vacation schedule (teens 14-18) >> 2012 Backcountry Response Team schedule >> Full work party schedule, including day trips

Who hasn't flipped through any number of books or magazines admiring the photographs contained within? Images of far-off places, beautiful scenery and nature in all her glory inspire and excite us. As hikers and backpackers, we have a special appreciation for this kind of imagery, as it inspires and motivates us. It beckons us. Until finally, we're reaching for our maps and guidebooks, uttering, "I have to see that."

Compelling outdoor and nature photography is an art. It takes a keen eye, mixed in with creativity and awareness—and just a little luck. But it is not an art form limited to just a few people, splashed across expensive books and glossy magazines to make us all envious. It's an art form that practically anyone can achieve to some success by just following a handful of simple guidelines—and not running out to buy the most expensive cameras, lenses and accessories on the market.

This was the inspiration for creating Washington Trails new column, Snapshot. I wanted to offer all of my fellow photographers—from aspiring novice, to the most seasoned pro—a place to get simple, easy-to-understand tips, tricks and guidelines to help them improve their photography—whether shooting with a pocket camera or a full DSLR. Most importantly, I wanted it to be friendly and encouraging. 

In order to do this, I turned to several of Washington Trails' regular photo contributors, known for their outstanding work. Some are pros, some aren't, but all know how to put the magic into their photography—and are happy to share it with the rest of us. After all, the equipment only captures the photo. It's the photographer that creates the photo. And it's not rocket science.

So check out the introductory Snapshot column on Composition, written by professional photographer Dave Schiefelbein. For this all-important element of any photography, Dave offers a handful of tips and suggestions, sure to assist and inspire, and help transform flat, boring pictures into dynamic, storytelling photographs. You're sure to notice a difference in your photography the next time you head up the trail with camera in tow.

Stay tuned to Snapshot in future issues of Washington Trails, where we'll cover topics such as veiling, photo filters, using a tripod, and smartphone photo apps. And if you're interested in contributing photography to Washington Trails, send an email to editor@wta.org.

Hello from Hiker Lobby Day 2012!

About 50 intrepid hikers have assembled in the conference room of St. John's Church for our Hiker Lobby Day orientation and training. After this, we will hike to the State Capitol for our scheduled meetings with elected officials and get down to the heart of the day -- face to face lobbying!This is my fifth Hiker Lobby Day, and as I sit here surrounded by WTA members, volunteers and others who have taken the day off work to come advocate on behalf of trails, I feel deeply appreciative of their efforts. One year ago, these hiker lobbyists were instrumental is securing passage of the Washington State Discover Pass, without which many of our DNR recreation lands and State Parks would have locked their gates. Although the Discover Pass is not performing as well as expected and State Parks regrettably just passed pink slips to dozens of park rangers, the passage of this sustainable funding source was critical. Without it, we might have NO rangers on the state parks payroll. We might not have access to Deception Pass State Park, or Mount Si.

This year, hikers are here to make the Discover Pass a better program. Two companion bills -- SB 5977 and HB 2153 -- will add space for an additional vehicle license plate number to the Discover Pass. It is widely hoped that this improvement will result in higher sales of the pass, and therefore more revenue for these cash-strapped agencies.

We'll keep you posted on our progress as the day progresses right here, and on twitter and facebook.

UPDATE 11am: Hiker lobbyist Tim Van Beek tells us why he is at Hiker Lobby Day today.

UPDATE 1pm: Two hikers, both named Sarah, talk straight on why it is so important they're down in Olympia for trails today.

Did you know that maintenance on many of your favorite trails is funded by a little known grant program in the federal transportation funding bill? The Recreational Trails Program (RTP) provides essential support for trail maintenance all over Washington state. If RTP is not reauthorized or extended by the end of March 2012, those funds will go away and likely never return.

The Recreational Trails Program (RTP) is housed in the Transportation budget. The Federal Department of Transportation sends RTP money to the states, who then disburse funds to non-profits and land management agencies as grants. WTA has a long history of receiving RTP grants, and we use these dollars to do trail work. This year, we applied for and were awarded $175,000 in grants to fund our Volunteer Vacations, Backcountry Response Teams and Youth Program. Without RTP dollars, WTA would have to seriously curtail its trail maintenance work.

The re-authorization of the Surface Transportation Funding Bill has been delayed for nearly three years now. In order to keep our infrastructure working, transportation funds have been reauthorized for brief periods. The last was in September and runs out at the end of March. WTA's grants have been funded for the next year, but if RTP is not reauthorized or extended by the end of March, a huge amount of work that WTA would lead in 2013 is going to be in jeopardy.

But there is good news. The House Transportation Committee is releasing their version of the Surface Transportation Funding Bill, called the American Energy and Infrastructure Jobs Act, or H.R. 7. The bill would extend RTP for four years, funding the program at $85 million per year, which is consistent with the last several fiscal years. That's great news, and we applaud the House effort.

Of course, there is also bad news. The Senate version of the bill does not include RTP funding, instead giving states the option of dedicating a portion of their transportation funds to enhancements programs like RTP. That lack of certainty makes it very difficult for us and our non-profit and agency partners to plan effectively.

What can you do? Call Senators Murray and Cantwell. Thank them for their support of RTP over the years and ask them to fight for a four-year fully funded reauthorization of the RTP in the Senate's Surface Transportation Funding Bill. Senator Murray's number in DC is (202) 224-2621 and Senator Cantwell's number is (202) 224-3441. Be sure to speak from your own experience as a hiker who benefits from the critically important recreation funds. Thank you!