Just got a note from the Washington State Ferry folks:

The Washington State Department of Transportation Ferries Division has now completed necessary repairs to the 144-auto ferry Elwha. It will return to service on the Anacortes/San Juan Islands route on Thursday, April 9. The  Sealth will return to the  inter-island route by relieving the 34-auto Hiyu.

Just got a note from the Washington State Ferry folks:

The Washington State Department of Transportation Ferries Division has now completed necessary repairs to the 144-auto ferry Elwha. It will return to service on the Anacortes/San Juan Islands route on Thursday, April 9. The  Sealth will return to the  inter-island route by relieving the 34-auto Hiyu.

You’ve always wondered what those flowers on the trail were (I know I have) – now you can find out! Here’s more from Louisa and Ann:

Spring is coming!  Catch the bloom!

Wondering what that flower is that you saw on the trail?  We have a new way to find out!

The San Juan Island Trails Committee, a committee of Island Rec, has developed a new web tool for island wanderers on many of San Juan Island’s trails.  Just go to the San Juan Island Trails Committee’s website (sanjuanislandtrails.org), click on “Trails”, click on the name of the trail that you wish to walk, and print its map if needed.

Then click on “Plants” to access the new downloadable pdf file of plants to be found along your selected trail. (Note: Plant lists for all trails are not yet available.)  Print the specific trail plant list and the legend, grab your favorite field guide book, and you are ready to go for a “walk in the woods”.

Contact Louisa Nishitani ([email protected]) or Ann Jarrell ([email protected]) with questions, comments, or additions.

You’ve always wondered what those flowers on the trail were (I know I have) – now you can find out! Here’s more from Louisa and Ann:

Spring is coming!  Catch the bloom!

Wondering what that flower is that you saw on the trail?  We have a new way to find out!

The San Juan Island Trails Committee, a committee of Island Rec, has developed a new web tool for island wanderers on many of San Juan Island’s trails.  Just go to the San Juan Island Trails Committee’s website (sanjuanislandtrails.org), click on “Trails”, click on the name of the trail that you wish to walk, and print its map if needed.

Then click on “Plants” to access the new downloadable pdf file of plants to be found along your selected trail. (Note: Plant lists for all trails are not yet available.)  Print the specific trail plant list and the legend, grab your favorite field guide book, and you are ready to go for a “walk in the woods”.

Contact Louisa Nishitani ([email protected]) or Ann Jarrell ([email protected]) with questions, comments, or additions.

When the Navy uses sonar in the waters inhabited by whale, you can be sure of one thing: It’s rough on marine mammals who get around using echolocation to “see” with. At the least… A number of us have petitioned the Navy to stop the exercises, and it’s gone to the Courts & back…presently the Navy is allowed to carry on with its work.

Tuesday evening, whale photographer Jeanne Hyde started hearing sounds – now she files this report (as of Wednesday evening):

Starting at about 7pm I began hearing strange electronic type noises on the Lime Kiln hydrophones… I contacted a few people trying to figure out just what it was…then all of a sudden a loud ‘PING’ – it was sonar…  at first it was intermitent…then it got consistent.  I logged in what I heard until 4:30 a.m.

Please go to my blog (click here) and read what happened..also on my blog, there is a link to Scott’s blog where he wrote what he heard.. and a link to Orcagirl where she made some recordings.

(Note from Val Viers, adding to this conversation: “Just a heads up that some Navy ship (probably one or more submarines) put a lot of noise into the Haro Strait last night for 6 – 8 hours.  My hydrophones and those at Lime Kiln lighthouse picked up SONAR pings and lots of what sounded like garbled human conversation for hours and hours.

The Whale Museum works with Beam Reach Marine Science and Sustainability School to maintain a net work of hydrophones that are listening 24/7 and streaming to the world.  Check out my son Scott’s blog entry at: http://www.beamreach.org/blog/2009/04/07/sonar-in-haro-strait )

The Navy comment period for extended training in these inland waters ends on April 13th.
If you haven’t already send them a comment there is a link on my blog so you can – it’s on the right hand column.  If you already have, send it along to someone that you think cares and will weigh in with their opinion.

When it hurt my ears over the computer I cannot imagine how it may have impacted marine life.

Jeanne

Monika Weiland shoots great photos of killer whales, and the ones she shot on Monday of transient orcas came out great, including this one of a transient launching a harbor porpoise high into the air.

Click here for more of her pictures from a great day out on the water.

My friend Tim is shooting a picture a day for the year, and he’s full of surprises (you can see his blog in the “Online News” box of the column to the right, under “A Picture A Day”)… his entry last Wednesday & Thursday included this 747 flying low over the Friday Harbor Airport. Whoa!

Click here for the full story.

Wisdom is the reward you get for a lifetime of listening when you’d have preferred to talk.
Doug Larson

Here are Ally (second place) and Jessica (first place) with their winning posters – way to go, girls! ooo

Here are Ally (second place) and Jessica (first place) with their winning posters – way to go, girls! ooo

Marta Specht says you’re gonna have fun at this:

Friday Harbor’s Centennial Honored at Elegant Edibles: Island pioneer recipes, “The Baker Boys” and a “Peep Hunt” for the little ones are just a few of the new additions to CATS’ annual Elegant Edibles on Saturday, April 11.

The gourmet bake sale and fundraiser takes place from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at the San Juan Community Theatre.

The event starts off with a colorful “Peep Hunt” for children six and under. The free hunt will have children searching for those sweet marshmallow treats in the Theatre’s new garden (weather permitting).

Inside, the bake sale will feature delicious goodies just in time for Easter celebrations.  One table of treats will be prepared by The Baker Boys. More than a dozen talented island men have each given their best to Elegant Edibles, and lots of different items will be on hand.

The other new feature this year will be Island Pioneer recipes gathered from descendants of our early families.  These will be available for purchase as well as the sampling of two recipes taken from the 1901 White House Cookbook.

A child’s Easter basket will be raffled and there will be several door prizes, including a spiral cut ham from Kings, cookbook from Griffin Bay Bookstore and seashell dish towels from the Sandpebble, and cake plate from the Dominique’s.  The door prizes will be given at 11 AM, and you must be present to win.

Come see our new, lower prices. These will be maintained throughout the sale.

For more information, call Joann Aberle of CATS (Community Arts Theatre Society) at 378-2853.

Marta Specht says you’re gonna have fun at this:

Friday Harbor’s Centennial Honored at Elegant Edibles: Island pioneer recipes, “The Baker Boys” and a “Peep Hunt” for the little ones are just a few of the new additions to CATS’ annual Elegant Edibles on Saturday, April 11.

The gourmet bake sale and fundraiser takes place from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at the San Juan Community Theatre.

The event starts off with a colorful “Peep Hunt” for children six and under. The free hunt will have children searching for those sweet marshmallow treats in the Theatre’s new garden (weather permitting).

Inside, the bake sale will feature delicious goodies just in time for Easter celebrations.  One table of treats will be prepared by The Baker Boys. More than a dozen talented island men have each given their best to Elegant Edibles, and lots of different items will be on hand.

The other new feature this year will be Island Pioneer recipes gathered from descendants of our early families.  These will be available for purchase as well as the sampling of two recipes taken from the 1901 White House Cookbook.

A child’s Easter basket will be raffled and there will be several door prizes, including a spiral cut ham from Kings, cookbook from Griffin Bay Bookstore and seashell dish towels from the Sandpebble, and cake plate from the Dominique’s.  The door prizes will be given at 11 AM, and you must be present to win.

Come see our new, lower prices. These will be maintained throughout the sale.

For more information, call Joann Aberle of CATS (Community Arts Theatre Society) at 378-2853.

It was a great evening – with music and dancing provided by Rock & Roll Hall of Fame dj Pay O’Day, food provided by Roche Harbor’s executive chef Bill Shaw and his staff, and good cheer provided by the members of the Yacht Club. The evening honored Commodore Fred Bowen and his wife Carolyn Bowen for their four years of service on behalf of promoting, organizing, and encouraging boating and social activities of yacht club members.
As you’ll see in the pictures of this 58-photo portfolio from the evening by Bill Waxman and me, the theme of the ball was “Out of this World,” because Fred worked for NASA most of his working days.

The other day, proud mom Barbara told me Catherine had placed high in an essay contest, winning a cash prize and a trip to Washington, D.C., along with ace FHHS social studies teacher Greg Sawyer – wow! Way to go Catherine! Here’s the rest of the story, from Sonia Blumstein at the essay contest:

ARLINGTON, VA – A Friday Harbor high school student has been named a top prize winner in a national essay contest that drew more than 31,000 entries.

As a participant in the Pacific region, Catherine Bevens of Friday Harbor High School was awarded Third Place and $1,250 in the Being an American Essay Contest sponsored by the Bill of Rights Institute, a nonprofit educational organization based in northern Virginia near Washington, D.C. Bevens’ sponsoring teacher, Greg Sawyer, received a matching cash prize.

In addition to the cash prizes, Bevens and Sawyer also won all-expense paid trips to the nation’s capital, where they were honored on March 31 at an awards gala featuring a keynote address by Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas The D.C. trip also included a reception with federal legislators, visits to the National Archives, Supreme Court, and with Pro Football Hall of Fame Cornerback Darrell Green, who served as Chair of President George W. Bush’s Council on Service and Civic Participation. Continue Reading

School District: The search for a superintendent continues… school board chair Boyd Pratt told me last night that the board voted to shelve the search for a permanent person and look instead for an interim superintendent for this next year, saying the present search didn’t yield a wide enough field of candidates.

Skagit Valley College – San Juan Center: In a press release from Mount Vernon, Arden Ainley says the San Juan campus will have reduced hours and an increased online emphasis. Here’s more:

Skagit Valley College Reacts to Legislative Budget Proposals

Skagit Valley College President Dr. Gary Tollefson reacted to legislative budget proposals today, indicating, “Although the college does not yet know how the proposed budget cuts to the Community and Technical College system will play out here at Skagit, it appears we will sustain substantial budget reductions when the Legislature reconciles differences between the House and Senate proposals.”

In anticipation of a significant reduction in funding from the state during the next biennium, Skagit Valley College has implemented a package of budget reductions totaling $2 million for the 2009-10 budget year.  “The planned cuts will be painful and will reduce or re-configure some services and class offerings, but we have worked hard to keep the negative impact on students to a minimum,” said Dr. Tollefson.  “In this economic downturn and with surging demand increasing our spring enrollments by over 15%, that means serving many more students than ever and providing them the training they need to return to work, or the best, most cost-effective preparation for transfer to a four-year college or university.”

The notices of non-renewal, layoff, or reduction of hours were given to employees over the past two weeks in individual meetings with the President.  Reductions have impacted twenty-six positions at the college, seven of which were already vacant.  In addition to personnel actions, the reductions included cuts in equipment purchases, re-configurations of program delivery, travel restrictions, ending some contracts with local agencies, and numerous other belt-tightening measures.  Total reductions taken to date total about
$2 million.

As part of the college’s restructuring, additional emphasis will be placed on distance learning online programs, allowing access to courses and programs by students who need to study any time and from any location.  This model will be combined with traditional classroom and hybrid classroom-online course models to provide additional ways for students in Skagit’s service area to access education and critical services.

In Mount Vernon, the Business Resource Center will continue to provide business start-up and business development services from the current location.  The San Juan Center in Friday Harbor and the South Whidbey Center in Clinton will continue their operations with reduced hours of operation and an increased online course emphasis.

In a message to all college employees, Dr. Tollefson noted the uncertainty surrounding the state budget by saying ” . . . national and state economic indicators point to a continued slowdown of business activity and potential additional tax revenue shortfalls which may require additional budget reductions, depending on the final actions of the Legislature.”

School District: The search for a superintendent continues… school board chair Boyd Pratt told me last night that the board voted to shelve the search for a permanent person and look instead for an interim superintendent for this next year, saying the present search didn’t yield a wide enough field of candidates.

Skagit Valley College – San Juan Center: In a press release from Mount Vernon, Arden Ainley says the San Juan campus will have reduced hours and an increased online emphasis. Here’s more:

Skagit Valley College Reacts to Legislative Budget Proposals

Skagit Valley College President Dr. Gary Tollefson reacted to legislative budget proposals today, indicating, “Although the college does not yet know how the proposed budget cuts to the Community and Technical College system will play out here at Skagit, it appears we will sustain substantial budget reductions when the Legislature reconciles differences between the House and Senate proposals.”

In anticipation of a significant reduction in funding from the state during the next biennium, Skagit Valley College has implemented a package of budget reductions totaling $2 million for the 2009-10 budget year.  “The planned cuts will be painful and will reduce or re-configure some services and class offerings, but we have worked hard to keep the negative impact on students to a minimum,” said Dr. Tollefson.  “In this economic downturn and with surging demand increasing our spring enrollments by over 15%, that means serving many more students than ever and providing them the training they need to return to work, or the best, most cost-effective preparation for transfer to a four-year college or university.”

The notices of non-renewal, layoff, or reduction of hours were given to employees over the past two weeks in individual meetings with the President.  Reductions have impacted twenty-six positions at the college, seven of which were already vacant.  In addition to personnel actions, the reductions included cuts in equipment purchases, re-configurations of program delivery, travel restrictions, ending some contracts with local agencies, and numerous other belt-tightening measures.  Total reductions taken to date total about
$2 million.

As part of the college’s restructuring, additional emphasis will be placed on distance learning online programs, allowing access to courses and programs by students who need to study any time and from any location.  This model will be combined with traditional classroom and hybrid classroom-online course models to provide additional ways for students in Skagit’s service area to access education and critical services.

In Mount Vernon, the Business Resource Center will continue to provide business start-up and business development services from the current location.  The San Juan Center in Friday Harbor and the South Whidbey Center in Clinton will continue their operations with reduced hours of operation and an increased online course emphasis.

In a message to all college employees, Dr. Tollefson noted the uncertainty surrounding the state budget by saying ” . . . national and state economic indicators point to a continued slowdown of business activity and potential additional tax revenue shortfalls which may require additional budget reductions, depending on the final actions of the Legislature.”