Citizen scientists, eager educators

Pend Oreille Chapter of Idaho Master Naturalists to host Waterlife Discovery Center open house

By Lyndsie Kiebert-Carey Reader Staff

While some choose to simply enjoy the natural amenities of North Idaho, some make it their mission to work for them.

One group putting forth such effort is the Pend Oreille Chapter of Idaho Master Naturalists — a volunteer organization partnering with the Idaho Department of Fish and Game to ensure those natural amenities are monitored, supported and enjoyed by all for years to come.

The chapter will host an Open House event Saturday, June 10 at the Waterlife Discovery Center (1591 Lakeshore Drive, in Sagle) from 8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. with the goal to introduce more community members to the facility and bring more outdoor enthusiasts into the volunteer fold.

The event will also feature a Youth Fly Fishing Clinic. However, slots for that are currently filled and a waitlist is in place. The clinic is annual, so those interested in participating next year are encouraged to pre-register early.

The Pend Oreille Chapter of IMN volunteered 3,225 hours in 2022, furthering the organization’s mission to “develop a corps of well-informed volunteers to actively work toward stewardship of Idaho’s natural environment.” Those volunteer hours, according to the group’s Communications Chair Cindy Wolcott, were spent serving as goat ambassadors at Scotchman Peak trailhead; facilitating field trips for area students; teaching kids to fish at area lakes with the help of the IDFG fishing trailer; guiding hikes at Round Lake State Park; working on the Bull River restoration project; improving area trails; partaking in stream flow studies; and running the City Nature Challenge bioblitz for Bonner

County.

Past local IMN projects have included major efforts to restore the Clark Fork Delta, collecting kokanee eggs for the Cabinet Gorge Fish Hatchery, working on citizen science projects and more.

The Pend Oreille Chapter operates out of the Waterlife Discovery Center, which is an IDFG-owned education center on 10 acres in Sagle consisting of several indoor and outdoor exhibits, as well as a signed wetland walking trail and pond. While the grounds are always open to the public, the summer Naturalist On Duty hours are Thursday-Saturday, 10 a.m.-2 p.m. During those times, indoor exhibits will be open and the volunteers can help guide and educate visitors.

The East Bonner County Library District’s STEM trailer will also visit the Waterlife Discovery Center on several Fridays over the summer. Dates and times are listed at ebonnerlibrary.org/events.

Those interested in the Idaho Master Naturalist program should contact IDFG’s

Sara Focht at sara.focht@idfg.idaho.gov or 208-287-2906. To stay up to date on happenings with the local Pend Oreille Chapter, find “Pend Oreille Chapter Idaho Master Naturalists” on Facebook.