Tuesday, April 23, 2024

10 am – 1 pm

Sign up: RSVP Here

Where: Little Cranberry Lake parking lot

Celebrate the return of spring with a bracing hike around Little Cranberry Lake! Join Friends of the Forest as we explore the many spring flowers that call the ACFL home (and the views will be nice, too.) You are welcome to bring your own loupes, notebooks, and plant guides.

Note: Some of the trails around Little Cranberry Lake are steep and can be slick after a spring rain. You may wish to bring hiking poles for these trails.

Join us on Saturday, April 20 between 4:00-8:00 pm at the intersection of 6th and Commercial Avenue at our “Forest Discovery Corner”! We’ll have free snacks and drinks, games, crafts, and educational activities, all while celebrating our wonderful community and supporting the Procession of the Species and Earth Day Luminary parade. Join us!

Saturday, Apil 20, 2024

10am - 12pm

Meet: Rotary Park

Join Friends of the ACFL as we celebrate Earth Day by sending some love to Rotary Park! Since its founding communities have gathered on Earth Day to give back to their communities and the planet we call home. We will meet at the Rotary Park parking lot at 10am and we’ll do a clean up in the area around Oren gazebo. Following a 1 hour clean up, we’ll walk up to the Cap Sante view point to enjoy some of the views that make Anacortes so special. We will have gloves and trash bags. Please feel free to bring your own gloves and trash pickers if you have any.

This clean up will be in place of our monthly family hike for April but we'll be back to the ACFL for our May Family Hike!

Tuesday, April 16, 2023

9am - 11am

Sign up: RSVP here

Where: A Avenue Trailhead

Join Friends of the Forest on an immersive stroll through the Anacortes Community Forest Lands starting at 9:00am and ending around 11:00am on Tuesday, April 16th. Meet at the A Ave entrance, where we’ll set out to appreciate the spring sights in the wet and low-lying places of the Little Cranberry Lake watershed. We’ll keep the pace of this hike slow as the group’s curiosity guides our learning, so feel free to bring your own field guides, binoculars/magnifiers, and whatever gear you'll need for walking on trails.

Friday, April 12, 2024

10 am – 12 pm

Sign up: Registration Form Here

Where: Location will be emailed to registered participants.

We meet on the second Friday of each month to monitor the water quality in the wetlands around Little Cranberry Lake and Big Beaver Pond. Wear weather-proof clothes and bring your curiosity! 

Thursday, March 28, 2024

6pm - 7:30 pm

Sign-up: RSVP here

Meet: Little Cranberry Lake parking lot

Owls developed nocturnal habits to avoid competition from diurnal hawks and other birds of prey, and have various adaptations that make them particularly adept for hunting in the dark. Join this hike to find out more about owls and their nocturnal adaptations, and if we’re lucky, maybe we’ll hear or even see one! 

Join Friends of the ACFL and 
Anacortes Parks and Recreation for a Trail Work Party
Saturday, March 23
Trail 304 (Whistle Lake Area)
(please see info below about parking)
9:00am-12:00pm

We will be working just off Trail 304 in the Whistle Lake area, pulling several invasive plants (primarily ivy with some holly mixed in, and don't rule out Daphne!).
We will provide some hand tools and gloves.
Please bring an extra pair of gloves if you have them, any hand tools you may have, water, and snacks.
Registration not necessary.

Some important things to note:
1. This area is very muddy and mucky. Please dress warmly and wear boots and pants that are either waterproof, water resistant, or that you don't mind getting messy!
2. Parking at the trailhead is very limited. Please park at Mount Erie Elementary, 1313 41st Street. There will be a parks staff person there and we can arrange carpooling/shuttling to the trailhead. 

Questions: please contact Bob Vaux at bobv@cityofanacortes.org or
360-588-8233.

We hope to see you there!

Tuesday, March 19, 2024

9am - 11am

Sign up: RSVP here

Where: Heart Lake parking lot

Join Friends of the Forest on an immersive stroll through the Anacortes Community Forest Lands starting at 9:00am and ending around 11:00am on Tuesday, March 19th. Meet at the Heart Lake parking lot, where we’ll set out to look for early signs of spring! We’ll keep the pace of this hike slow as the group’s curiosity guides our learning, so feel free to bring your own field guides, binoculars/magnifiers, and whatever gear you'll need for walking on trails.

Saturday, March 16th 2024

10am-12pm 

Where: Heart Lake Parking Lot

Why do trees grow so tall? Why are trees so important to our forest ecosystem? And, how do you get to know a tree? Join Friends of the Forest on our March Family Nature Walk to explore these questions and more! During our walk we’ll hug trees, do a tree scavenger hunt, play a game to help you get to know a tree, make our own tree and read a story during snack time.

This hike is ideal for families with kids ages 0-10 and we will take a slow pace with stops along the way to accommodate our smallest hikers. We welcome all ages but please be aware that this hike will be at a slower pace than our other community hikes.

Friday, March 8, 2024

10 am – 12 pm

Sign up: Registration Form Here

Where: Location will be emailed to registered participants.

We meet on the second Friday of each month to monitor the water quality in the wetlands around Little Cranberry Lake and Big Beaver Pond. Wear weather-proof clothes and bring your curiosity! 

Join Friends of the Forest for 10 weeks of immersive learning about the Anacortes Community Forest Lands!

When: Tuesday evenings and Saturday mornings, March 5th - May 11th, 2024

Where: Anacortes Arts Depot, 611 R Ave, Anacortes and many trailheads in the ACFL

Friends of the Forest's Naturalist Club is back and better than ever! Starting March 5, join us for 10 weeks of immersive learning about the Anacortes Community Forest Lands!

Connect with fellow life-long learners, and complete projects that will deepen your connection to and curiosity about the natural world. All learners of any experience are welcome!

click here to find out more, and to register for the 2024 Spring Series.

During the 10 week series:

Every other Tuesday, Naturalist Club members will attend a skills-based class at the Anacortes Arts Depot (611 R Avenue), each focusing on a different aspect of Fidalgo Island and ACFL ecology. On alternating Saturdays, we'll meet out in the ACFL itself and put some of those classroom skills to practice. Participants will explore their basic naturalist skills, learn to identify the common plants and animals of the ACFL, and investigate how the components of the ACFL are connected - to each other and to us! 

Each class will spark curiosity about the incredible diversity and complexity of the ACFL ecosystems while aiming to inspire participants to become better observers of the outdoors. By the end of this course, participants will have added to their understanding of and deepened their connection to their world.

And beyond!

Once you've completed the 10 week series, you will join our Naturalist Club community! Although there is no pressure to continue to be involved, we host special Naturalist Club excursions and guest lectures throughout the year for both current and past participants of this program.

*Although this program can accommodate learners of all ages, it is best suited for those 13 and older. 

For any further questions about our Naturalist Club program, contact Ellie at ellie@friendsoftheacfl.org.

Thursday, February 29, 2024

10am - 1pm

Sign-up: Registration Form Here

Meet: 29th St Access (off of D Ave)

Take a leap into 2024 by joining Friends of the Forest on an oh-so-satisfying stewardship hike! Join us for a (mostly) relaxing stroll through the ACFL, where we will be tasked with pulling out any spurge-laurel (Daphne laureola) growing near the trails. Introduced as a garden ornamental, spurge-laurel can outcompete native understory plants when it escapes cultivation. By removing the young plants (and cutting back the old), we can continue our work to improve habitat quality for all who call the ACFL home. 

Note: This is a walking work party, so please bring good quality work gloves on this hike. You are also welcome to bring small trowels or hand pruners. Friends of the Forest has some equipment that will be available for loan.

Save the Date!

Friends of the Forest's 2024 Annual Meeting

Tuesday, February 27,

7:00-8:30 pm

Anacortes Arts Depot

Featuring Jake Verschuyl, PhD, speaking on "Patterns and Drivers in Forest Biodiversity across the Pacific Northwest"

Refreshments provided. No RSVP necessary. See you there!

Saturday, February 24th, 2024

10am-12pm 

Where: Little Cranberry Lake

Rain, rain don’t go away! Join Friends of the Forest to get outside and appreciate all that the winter rains do for our backyard forest! We will learn about why we get more rain in the winter, where it goes, and how it makes the best nature art material, mud! Along with our story and snack time, we will create mud art, jump in puddles, talk about our lake critters, and explore all things water in the ACFL!

This hike is ideal for families with kids ages 0-10 and we will take a slow pace with stops along the way to accommodate our smallest hikers. We welcome all ages but please be aware that this hike will be at a slower pace than our other community hikes.

Tuesday, February 20, 2023

9am - 11am

Sign up: RSVP here

Where: A Avenue Trailhead

Join Friends of the Forest on an immersive stroll through the Anacortes Community Forest Lands starting at 9:00am and ending around 11:00am on Tuesday, February 20th. Meet at the A Avenue trailhead, where we'll set off to explore the areas around Mitten Pond. We'll keep the pace of this hike slow as the group's curiosity guides our learning, so feel free to bring your own field guides, binoculars/magnifiers, and whatever gear you'll need for walking on trails.

Tuesday, February 13, 2024

10 am – 1:00 pm

Sign up: Registration Form Here

Where: Location will be emailed to registered participants.

We meet every other month to examine the macroinvertebrates in the wetlands around Little Cranberry Lake and Big Beaver Pond. Macroinvertebrates, or the aquatic bugs and larvae that call our wetlands home, are fantastic indicator species that give us clues about the health of our waterways. Wear weather-proof clothes and bring your buggiest enthusiasm! 

Can’t make the date here, but still interested in the project? We have opportunities to volunteer for this project on your own time. Register to find out more.

February 10, 2023

10am - 12pm

Sign up: RSVP here

Where: Little Cranberry Lake main parking lot

Although many of our showy vascular plants have gone to bed for the season, winter is a spectacular time to appreciate the beauty and diversity of the nonvascular plants of the Pacific Northwest! Join us to celebrate the magnificent mosses of the ACFL (and some lichens, too!), and gain new appreciation for the big jobs that these little plants can do.

Friday, February 9, 2024

10 am – 12 pm

Sign up: Registration Form Here

Where: Location will be emailed to registered participants.

We meet on the second Friday of each month to monitor the water quality in the wetlands around Little Cranberry Lake and Big Beaver Pond. Wear weather-proof clothes and bring your curiosity! 

Saturday, January 27, 2024

10am - 12:30am

Sign-up: Registration Form Here

Meet: Ray Auld parking lot @ base of Mt Erie

Did you know that Fidalgo Island has one of the best remaining stands of old growth Puget Sound lowland forest, right here in the ACFL? Join Friends of the Forest as we explore the mysteries of the old forest, and learn how the forest ecosystems in our backyard helped the world better understand forest ecology. 

Tuesday, January 16, 2024

9am - 11am

Sign-up: Registration Form Here

Meet: Whistle Lake parking lot

Join Friends of the Forest on an immersive stroll through the Anacortes Community Forest Lands starting at 9:00am and ending around 11:00am on Tuesday, January 16. Meet at the Whistle Lake parking lot, where we’ll explore the areas around the ACFL’s deepest lake! We’ll keep the pace of this hike slow as the group’s curiosity guides our learning, so feel free to bring your own field guides, binoculars/magnifiers, and whatever gear you'll need for walking on trails.

Saturday, January 13th, 2024

10am-12pm 

Where: Ray Auld Dr.

Join Friends of the Forest to start your year learning all about mushrooms! We’ll go on a mushroom scavenger hunt, talk about and touch different kinds of mushrooms, learn about why mushrooms are so important to our forest health and do a mushroom craft!

This hike is ideal for families with kids ages 0-10 and we will take a slow pace with stops along the way to accommodate our smallest hikers. We welcome all budding mycologists or those looking to explore the backside of Heart Lake but please be aware that this hike will be at a slower pace than our other community hikes.

Friday, January 12, 2024

10 am – 12 pm

Sign up: Registration Form Here

Where: Location will be emailed to registered participants.

We meet on the second Friday of each month to monitor the water quality in the wetlands around Little Cranberry Lake and Big Beaver Pond. Wear weather-proof clothes and bring your curiosity! 

Tuesday, December 19, 2023

9am - 11am

Sign-up: Registration Form Here

Meet: Ray Auld Parking Lot at the base of Mt Erie

Join Friends of the Forest on an immersive stroll through the Anacortes Community Forest Lands starting at 9:00am and ending around 11:00am on Tuesday, December 19th. Meet at the Ray Auld Dr. parking area at the base of Mt Erie, where we will set off to explore the mysteries of the old growth forest at the south end of Heart Lake. We’ll keep the pace of this hike slow as the group’s curiosity guides our learning, so feel free to bring your own field guides, binoculars/magnifiers, and whatever gear you’ll need for walking on trails.

Saturday, December 16, 2023

10am - 1pm

Sign-up: Registration Form Here

Meet: A Avenue trailhead

Celebrate the holly-day season with an oh-so-satisfying stewardship hike with Friends of the Forest! Join us for a (mostly) relaxing stroll through the ACFL, where we will be tasked with pulling out any young English holly that is growing near the trails. Although it often features as part of our holiday decorations, English holly can outcompete native plants in our forests when it escapes human cultivation. By removing the young plants (and cutting back the old), we can continue our work to improve habitat quality for all who call the ACFL home. A goal worth celebrating!

Note: English holly is a prickly plant, so please bring good quality work gloves on this hike. You are also welcome to bring small trowels or hand pruners. Friends of the Forest has some equipment that will be available for loan.

Tuesday, December 12, 2023

10 am – 1:00 pm

Sign up: Registration Form Here

Where: Location will be emailed to registered participants.

We meet every other month to examine the macroinvertebrates in the wetlands around Little Cranberry Lake and Big Beaver Pond. Macroinvertebrates, or the aquatic bugs and larvae that call our wetlands home, are fantastic indicator species that give us clues about the health of our waterways. Wear weather-proof clothes and bring your buggiest enthusiasm! 

Can’t make the date here, but still interested in the project? We have opportunities to volunteer for this project on your own time. Register to find out more.

Saturday, December 9, 2023

10am-12pm 

Where: Little Cranberry Lake (Main Parking Lot)

Celebrate the start of the winter season with Friends of the Forest! Bring your family to learn about how animals stay warm in the winter, how the forest changes as the seasons shift, and try making your own animal shelter to keep our forest friends warm!

Friday, December 8, 2023

10 am – 12 pm

Sign up: Registration Form Here

Where: Location will be emailed to registered participants.

We meet on the second Friday of each month to monitor the water quality in the wetlands around Little Cranberry Lake and Big Beaver Pond. Wear weather-proof clothes and bring your curiosity! 

Saturday, November 25, 2023

10am - 11:30am

Sign-up: Registration Form Here

Meet: A Avenue trailhead

During this time of year when the light is low again and we’re heading into winter, it’s natural to reflect on the things we are grateful for. Friends of the Forest is especially grateful for all that we’ve accomplished, and for the community who supports us. This gentle hike will offer quiet times for the group to reflect on all that you may be grateful for this year. You are welcome to bring your own binoculars, field guides, snacks, and water bottles. Dress in preparation for the weather!

Tuesday, November 21, 2023

9am - 11am

Sign-up: Registration Form Here

Meet: 29th St Access of of D Ave

Join Friends of the Forest on an immersive stroll through the Anacortes Community Forest Lands starting at 9:00am and ending around 11:00am on Tuesday, November 21st. Meet at the 29th St access to the ACFL (off of D Ave), where we’ll set out to explore the scenic wetlands around Little Beaver Pond. We’ll keep the pace of this hike slow as the group’s curiosity guides our learning, so feel free to bring your own field guides, binoculars/magnifiers, and whatever gear you'll need for walking on trails.