NNRG is working with Mountains to Sound Greenway Trust and Seattle City Light to return these 150 acres of previously logged land to healthy forest using climate-adapted practices.
Case Studies
Great Peninsula Conservancy
Great Peninsula Conservancy (GPC) just completed the Forest Stewardship Council® (FSC®) certification process for Grovers Creek Preserve! Acquired by the Conservancy in 2015, the 197-acre preserve near Poulsbo boasts 60 acres of rare older growth forest including stands of western hemlock, Sitka spruce, western redcedar, and Douglas-fir. There are even 11.5 acres of late successional […]
Cedar Row Farm
Eve Lonnquist can often be found working in the woods, just like her grandmother, who bought Cedar Row Farm in 1919 for $2000 and planted its namesake row of cedars. Nestled in the Nehalem River foothills, the 160-acre forest is stewarded by Eve, her two brothers and her partner Lynn Baker. The family enjoys taking […]
Central Cascades Forest
The 46,000 acres of forestland spanning Snoqualmie Pass to Cle Elum known as the Central Cascades Forest (CCF) is now Forest Stewardship Council®-certified, through NNRG’s group certificate. It’s the Northwest’s largest jump in certified forestland since the City of Seattle’s Cedar River watershed earned FSC certification in 2011. The CCF is managed by The Nature Conservancy […]
Jackrabbit Farm: Building a Food Forest System
by Kelly Smith, NNRG volunteer On a cool and misty morning last September, Kirk Hanson and I visited Jackrabbit Farm in Southwest Washington. Kirk, Northwest Natural Resource Group’s Director of Forestry, needed to make observations and gather data for a new forest management plan for the farm, which had recently been funded through the USDA’s […]
Blakely Island Timber
Up in the San Juans Islands, our Forest Stewardship Council®-certified member Blakely Island Timber cares for more than 2,200 acres on namesake Blakely Island. Harvesting timber is a tool to achieve their goal of stewarding the forest with a healthy, productive long into the future. Douglas-fir grows much more slowly in the San Juans than […]
Member Spotlight: Butler Family Forest
Paul Butler has had a life-long love of forests. Now that he and his wife steward their own forest they’ve taken steps to care for and enjoy their land. Paul tells us how his relationship with his woods has deepened over time and what actions he’s taking to make the forest healthy.
Stewardship: Just Call It Love
Christine Johnson (with her husband Terrigal) has loved forests all her life. As NNRG’s board chair, she helps us work to protect the health, resilience, and character of these incredible places, share her love of Northwest woodlands every step along the way. Her 10-acre, FSC®-certified forest on Waldron Island is a living testament to Christine’s stewardship. Learn more […]
Member Spotlight: Orkila showcases ecological forestry
Along the rocky shores of Orcas Island, YMCA Camp Orkila is a special place where the forest meets the sea. Campers describe the iconic Northwest destination as magical, Neverland, and Oz. The YMCA offers camp programs by summer and outdoor environmental education programs in the spring and fall, serving more than 17,000 campers and students each year. The iconic camp […]
Member Spotlight: Oak restoration & attuning to “hidden” wonders
When Jeanie Taylor and her husband, Tom Lenon, saw their forest for the first time they knew it was home. While the 20 acres in the Gopher Valley hills of Yamhill County was riddled with scotch broom and blackberry, it also supported Oregon white oaks and suggested the potential to provide habitat for endangered Fender’s blue butterfly, threatened […]
Member Spotlight: Giving back to forest, creek, and community
Camp Myrtlewood brings together a community dedicated to stewardship, environmental education, and fellowship. Just a few miles upstream from the confluence of the Middle Fork Coquille River and Myrtle Creek, Camp Myrtlewood includes 124 acres of temperate rainforest that is Forest Stewardship Council® certified through NNRG’s FSC® group certificate. Tucked away in the Coast Range […]
Member Spotlight: Learning the ways of their dream forest
For years, Tod and Gerie Lemkuhl loved exploring Mount Rainier National Park and dreamed of some-day stewarding a wild forest akin to the park’s cathedrals of lush old-growth. Seven years ago they knew it was time to turn “someday” into reality. So they sold their home in Seattle, purchased 20 acres of forest near Eatonville […]
Member Spotlight: Nisqually State Park
To restore ecological complexity to a forest, you need good partners and often, you need to cut a few trees. Last summer, Washington State Parks & Recreation Commission worked with the University of Washington’s Pack Forest, WA State Department of Natural Resources, and WyEast Timber Services to conduct an ecologically-based harvest project on 104 acres […]
Member Spotlight: Turning nothing into something
In our Member Spotlight series, we highlight NNRG members who have used forest products for unique and entrepreneurial purposes on their land and within their communities. Often these projects help members earn supplemental income. For the third installment in the series, we introduce you to Oak Basin Tree Farm, a Forest Stewardship Council® certified member of our group certificate, who has sourced non-timber forest products […]
Member Spotlight: A few sheep and EQIP help steward the forest
By Christina Davis and NNRG Steve and Linnea Bensel of Nootka Rose Farm steward 32 acres of forest on Waldron Island in the San Juans. In recent years, they accessed cost-share funds through the Natural Resources Conservation Service to develop a forest management plan and do a pre-commercial thinning in their forest. They also channel the appetites of a few woolly ruminants to stymy […]
Member Spotlight: Large woody debris & wetland restoration
In our Member Spotlight series, we highlight Northwest Certified Forestry (NCF) members who are improving ecosystem functions and who have cultivated forest products for unique and entrepreneurial purposes on their land and within their communities. In this edition, we introduce you to Digger Mountain Forestry-a Forest Stewardship Council® certified member of our group certificate, and Yankee Creek Forestry-an NCF Preferred Provider. Recently, […]
Point Defiance Park – a living museum
Point Defiance Park is as rare as it is gorgeous. No where else can one find 500 acres of old-growth forest along the shore of Puget Sound and all within the city of Tacoma. The forest is interwoven with walking and running trails, bike paths, and picnic areas that provide a serene reprieve from the urban […]
Crystal Lake Tree Farm – a community and a classroom
On June 23, I was fortunate enough to attend a forest health workshop at the location. It was a lovely night to be outside as we tromped up and down the road of Crystal Lake Tree Farm. Settled on 400 acres in suburban Woodinville, WA, its location is merely one special aspect of the tree […]
Sustainable Forestry for Three Generations
O’Neill Pine Company By Jennifer Whitelaw If you ask about touring O’Neill Pine Company’s forests, co-owner Richard Pine will tell you, “it’s a long walk.” In fact, their forests are spread out over 44 properties, comprising 2,250 Forest Stewardship Council® (FSC®) certified acres of forest land in the Chehalis area of Washington. Richard and his wife […]
Fostering Positive Growth in a Forest and a Community
Tierra Learning Center’s forest in Sunitsch Canyon Leavenworth, WA By: Christina Davis The history of Sunitsch Canyon extends further into the past than the incorporation of Washington State. Mathias Sunitsch, originally from Austria, established his homestead on the land in 1888, then considered Washington Territory. Sunitsch’s barn, built in 1912, still stands on the property […]