Great Outdoors

The WSU Extension Master Gardener Program trains volunteers to be effective community educators in gardening and environmental stewardship. Master Gardeners provide information generated from research at WSU and other university systems. Christine Gile, a biologist who lives in Loon Lake, is a current Master Gardener. Visit our Ask a Master Gardener Plant Clinic, which operates Thursdays, 1-3 p.m. and Mondays 9-11 a.m. WSU Stevens County Extension Office, 986 S Main Suite D, Colville.

According to National Day Calendar, August is National Water Quality Month, and can be an excellent time to focus on protecting freshwater resources, reviewing drinking water safety, and learning about how daily actions may impact water quality.

What could be better than raspberries? More raspberries, of course, and if you have raspberry plants, you can easily propagate them to attain more plants and berries.

The U.S. Forest Service announced on June 30 that Washington’s national forests are expanding digital payment options at recreation sites, including the Colville National Forest.

The WSU Extension Master Gardener Program trains volunteers to be effective community educators in gardening and environmental stewardship.
Master Gardeners provide information generated from research at WSU
and other university systems.
Master Gardener Kathy Hansen is a writer and educator living in Kettle Falls.
Visit us and bring your questions to the Chewelah Farmers Market, every
other Friday, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. (next one is July 3), and the Colville Farmers Market, every other Saturday, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. (next one is July 1). Both
run May-Oct.

The longest day of the year landed on Sunday, June 21.

Community members, tribal leaders, scientists, state and federal agency representatives, environmental advocates, and others climbed aboard a bus at the Kettle Falls Visitor Center for the annual Lake Roosevelt Forum Bus Tour on June 10.

Fire officials warn that eastern Washington could be heading into a longer and more active wildfire season, with dry conditions, low snowpack, early vegetation growth, and an already-enacted burn ban raising concerns across the region.

Imagine transforming your kitchen scraps into nutrient-rich compost without the smell – boosting plant and soil health while reducing landfill waste. This process is made possible by the worm.

The Washington Department of Natural Resources has enacted a partial burn ban beginning Friday, May 29

Firefighters responded to multiple fires across the region over the holiday weekend as warm temperatures, dry fuels, and breezy conditions created elevated fire concerns in northeast Washington.

Local anglers can participate in the state’s annual Free Fishing Weekend, June 6-7, allowing residents to fish many area waters without needing to purchase a license.

Lake Roosevelt National Recreation Area, in partnership with the Northwest Fur Trade Historians, is planning to host a free living history encampment on Saturday, May 16, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

The local Forestry Competition, hosted by Stevens County Conservation District (SCCD) with the help of many local industry, agency, and individual volunteers, was held on April 2 at Douglas Falls Grange Park outside of Colville.

The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) announced that recreational fishing is scheduled to open at local lakes on April 25. 

In a funding one-pager released by the agency, DNR officials said recreation maintenance and operations funding was reduced by more than $7 million during the 2025 legislative session, a cut of more than 20%. 

The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) safely relocated a 7-8-year-old male black bear on Jan. 9; the bear had made a den beneath an abandoned structure in Hunters. A Hunter’s resident noticed the bear in the neighborhood on Dec. 21, 2025. The large bear was caught on video and was not reacting to human movement or noise.

Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) officials announced they plan to stock nearly 65,000 jumbo rainbow trout in 25 lakes statewide, including two in Stevens County, ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, offering anglers a chance to get outside for Washington’s annual Black Friday fishing.

As the 2025 fire season comes to an end in the area, a synthesis of the statewide statistics has been compiled by a number of organizations to reveal upward trends of ignitions and late-season smoke.

A King County Superior Court judge denied the request for a preliminary injunction to prevent the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) from lethally removing one wolf from the Sherman pack in Ferry County on Oct. 31. This comes after WDFW staff investigated an injured calf in the Sherman wolf pack territory in Ferry County on Oct. 23.

According to WDFW, Windrope’s decision is consistent with the guidance of the state's Wolf Conservation and Management Plan and the lethal removal provisions of the department's 2020 Wolf-Livestock Interaction Protocol. WDFW officials stated that the rationale for authorizing lethal removal of one Sherman pack wolf is as follows...