Chelan-Douglas Land Trust offers naturalist-led walks in NCW

WENATCHEE – The Chelan-Douglas Land Trust is partnering with local organizations to offer a series of free naturalist-led walks.

The five-week series of outings will occur at several North Central Washington locations. During the guided walk, attendees will learn about the area’s plants, wildlife, and history.

CDLT Engagement Manager Elisa Lopez said the outings are on Wednesday afternoons to reach people who work during the day and have busy schedules on the weekend.

“Our main goal for the Naturalist Walks series is to get community members in nature,” Lopez said. “We want people to connect to the outdoors while also educating them about local plants, wildlife, and the history of the area.” 

“We hope that these walks make them comfortable enough to take their friends and family back out and teach them things that they learned from our guided walk,” she said. “This also helps educate the public on why land conservation is important and why we need to care for it.”

“Being in nature is a way to nourish our lives,” Lopez said. “The group guided walks will help our physical and mental health as well as providing us with an opportunity to socialize with people that also value recreating on protected lands.” 

“Often, we hear from participants that it has been years since they went out on a walk and having a guided walk is the perfect way for them to get familiar with these areas,” she said.

CDLT has partnered with different local organizations to co-lead the walks and share information about their work. The organizations are the Wenatchee River Institute, Wenatchee Outdoors, and the Wenatchee Valley Chapter of the Washington Native Plant Society.

The walks are open to all ages and will be led in both English and Spanish. 

The walks are from 4:30-6:30 p.m. Dates and locations for the series are April 10 at Sage Hills, April 17 at the Jacobsen Preserve, April 24 at Saddle Rock Natural Area, May 1 at Castle Rock Natural Area, and May 8 at Mountain Home Ridge. 

Attendees can register on the CDLT website at cdlandtrust.org. Registrants will receive an email with more details on where to meet and how to prepare.

The Chelan-Douglas Land Trust works with private landowners, businesses, and local communities to ensure that the public will be able to enjoy the benefit of cherished natural areas forever.

“We have a team that cares for our land and a team that connects the community to these lands,” Lopez said. “With the support of our community, CDLT has protected 26,000 acres of land for recreation and conservation in Chelan and Douglas Counties.” 

“These places are for all of us, everyone is welcome,” she said. “We rely on contributions from people to continue to protect and care for these lands forever.”

Quinn Propst: 509-731-3590 or quinn@ward.media.