Category: Trip Report
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Lake Cushman Post-Fire Butterfly Survey, Field Trip Report
May 4, 2026 On May 4th, nine WBA members enjoyed a memorable survey in the Cushman area of Olympic National Forest: Tanna Knouse, Karen Holtrop, Jeannette Barreca, Travis Thurber, Cathy Clark, Dan Dunphy, Melanie Weiss, Paulette Murphy, and Liz Kuehn. Despite some initial uncertainty around wildfire-burned areas, the day proved to be a rewarding one,…
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Cowiche Canyon, Yakima, Field Trip and Outreach Report
April 25, 2026 By David James The Cowiche Canyon Conservancy in Yakima has held an Annual Earth Day celebration of nature in the canyon for many years. For at least 15 of those years, I have had the pleasure of hosting a butterfly station in the canyon where I would have books and pictures of…
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Juniper Dunes, Field Trip Report
April 29, 2026 By David James Following on from our WBA field trip in April 2025 seeking proof of life for the Columbia Basin segregate of the Juniper Hairstreak, we again made a trip on April 29, 2026 to the surreal landscape of Juniper Dunes, just north of Pasco, WA. Both years, we failed to…
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Little Quilcene, Field Trip Report
July 29, 2025 By Karen Holtrop, Trip Leader Seven enthusiastic WBA members embarked on the Little Quilcene for Zerene (pronounced so it rhymes with Quilcene) and More Field Trip on July 29th. The trip took place along an old road corridor at the headwaters of the Little Quilcene River in the Olympic National Forest. And…
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Bear Creek Mountain, Field Trip Report
July 26, 2025 by David James, Trip Leader Six WBA members and a reporter from the Yakima Herald had a spectacular day in the flowery meadows below Bear Creek Mountain in late July. The flowers had only just started blooming but were putting on a great show along with 23 species of butterflies. There is…
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Red Top Lookout, Field Trip Report
July 13, 2025 By David Droppers, Trip Leader Bumpy road, steep trail, but it’s short, the views are good, and boy are the butterflies grand! We seemed to hit near the peak of abundance and diversity today, finding 29 species between the three of us. First stop was a marshy area, where Great Spangled Frits…
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Big Meadow (ID), Field Trip Report
July 12, 2025 By John Baumann, Trip Leader Spokane area WBA field trips concluded this summer with a truly Big Bang on July 12. At my suggestion, our threesome agreed to avoid risk of drought conditions on Mt Spokane by driving north through Newport, WA, to Bonner County, Idaho, where a great green flood plain…
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Umtanum Ridge, Field Trip Report
June 14, 2025 By David Droppers, Trip Leader Only two people dared to venture up to Umtanum Ridge on foot. While we did not definitively find the Nevada Skipper as hoped (may have had some glances, but they were great at getting out of my net once caught!), a great day was still had. In…
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Spiva Butte Nature Preserve, post fire visit, Field Trip Report
June 5, 2025 By Melanie Weiss WBA members returned for a third visit to Spiva Butte Nature Preserve on June 5, 2025. Butterfly surveys had been conducted at the preserve in 2018 and 2019. Sadly, the 2020 wildfires burned almost 100% of this pristine area. Extensive restoration work has taken place since then. We acquired…
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Horseshoe Lake, Pend Oreille Co., Field Trip Report
May 31, 2025 By John Baumann, Trip Organizer When our group of seven WBA members had concluded our search of the “Rustler’s Gulch Trails” near Horseshoe Lake, my first thoughts focused on gratitude for the unique fellowship that WBA creates for us. I’d expect that, like myself, most of us find the experience of solitude…
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Douglas Creek BLM Area Field Trip Report
May 18, 2025 By John Baumann, Trip Organizer Twelve hardy, waterproof WBA members risked constantly shifting spring weather to gather from all parts of the state at Douglas Creek BLM area on May 18th for a truly joyful reunion. Though it was brightly sunny, temps were chilly, at 55 to 63, and winds gusted to…
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Crystal Mountain Subalpine Field Trip Report
August 26, 2024 This season’s challenging weather unfortunately resulted in the cancellation or postponement of WBA’s late summer field trips. The Crystal Mountain trip was postponed until Aug. 26, and fortunately the day was spectacular. A gondola carried our group up 2,500 ft. to an elevation of 6,800 ft. and an in-your-face view of Mt.…
