The Leavenworth Spring Bird Fest, put on by the Wenatchee River Institute and North Central Washington Audubon Society, occurs every 3rd weekend in May. The annual Leavenworth Spring Bird Fest promotes conservation through educational and recreational activities about birds, wildlife, and their environments. Come bird with us, discovering the natural beauty and wonders of North Central Washington! Celebrate the return of migratory birds in the midst of peak wildflower season. Enjoy the excitement of birding field trips and workshops. Take part in speaker events, music, visual arts, picnics, and activities for all ages and abilities. All of this is happening in beautiful Leavenworth, WA and throughout the Wenatchee River Valley. Bird Fest happens in association with World Migratory Bird Day. Bird Fest contributes a list of all birds seen during the festival to eBird, the world’s largest biodiversity-related community science project. Registration for all trips and events opens Wednesday, March 25th. For all current Bird Fest info, click the link below! Help us give special thanks to our lead partner, NCW Audubon Society, and our 2026 Bird Fest Title Sponsor, Sleeping Lady Mountain Resort! Thank you to all our sponsors for making this event possible: Hotel Pension Anna, Sage Mountain Natural Foods, Obertal Inn, South Restaurants, Leavenworth / Pine Village KOA, Whistlepunk Ice Cream Co., Ludwig's German Restaurant, Icicle Brewing Company, Colchuck's Leavenworth, Winton Manufacturing, Leavenworth Chamber of Commerce, Blue Elk Inn, North Cascades Heating & Cooling, Riverfront Rock Gym, Schocolat, Mike West Leavenworth Realty, Walleye Cards, A Book for All Seasons, Leavenworth Coffee Roasters, and Osprey Rafting.
Apr
24
Fri · 5:30 PM - 7:30 PM
Annual fashion show featuring wearable art made from recycled and repurposed materials. Come check out the creative pieces built by your neighbors! There will be four design team categories this year: adult, middle and high school youth, elementary youth, and family. Prizes are available for each category, plus a People's Choice Award where audience members will get to vote for their favorite outfit.
Mar
15
Sun · 9:00 AM - 3:00 PM
Beginner and family-friendly introduction to wildlife tracking with local tracker Kirk Beckendorf and WRI Community Programs Educator Virginia Shoup . Join generations of trackers who have learned to tell the stories of our animal neighbors by studying the signs they leave behind. Even when we don't see the critters that move through the landscape, their tracks, scat, scratch marks, and more can tell us what they're doing. Throughout the day we will learn about tracks, gait, and other wildlife signs as we journey through the local area to see what stories wildlife signs can tell us. Our day will be mostly spent outside, with a couple of lessons inside. We will walk around the Wenatchee River Institute campus as well as travel to a couple of other local spots. Depending on group size, there will be the option to ride in the WRI van or carpool to other locations. Locations will be determined closer to the event to allow for the best opportunities, but will be within a 30 minute drive. Ages: Second grade and up. Adults without kids welcome too! Children 15 and younger must be accompanied by a participating adult. Please note that we welcome children and recognize that you know your child best. We will spend much of the day outside moving at a slow pace. Children should be able to stay with the group and be comfortable outside in variable weather, as well as be respectful of instructors and learning time.
Jun
13
Sat
Spend two full days in the Cascades around Leavenworth, with professional wildlife tracker, naturalist, educator and author, David Moskowitz. This wildlife track and sign evaluation is offered through CyberTracker North America. David's approach to this class is highly interactive, engaging participants in identification and interpretation of tracks and signs. There is lots of time for questions and discussion built in. The style of this class is an excellent way to learn about animal sign and investigate real life tracking scenarios. Participants have the chance to achieve a certificate at the end of the class, awarded on three levels. Prior CyberTracker students can take this class to attempt evaluation at a higher level. CyberTracker courses provide an opportunity for quality, focused learning with some of the best trackers in the country. Courses are designed to further participant's tracking knowledge, as well as to rigorously test and document their current tracking skill set. Originally designed to help African Bushmen gain employment on game preserves, these courses also provide an internationally recognized certification of tracking ability. Certifications are an important credential for wildlife researchers and environmental educators as well as for people who want to test and push their own ability. Evaluations are entirely field based, striving to expose participants to the widest range of tracks and signs as possible. Discussions are encouraged, giving participants a chance to air their thoughts and receive individualized instruction.
Mar
24
Tue · 7:00 PM - 8:00 PM
Livestream the event or watch it later on YouTube at this link. No registration required, but RSVP to receive email reminders and updates about this event! Doors open at 6:30pm for a community social with beer and wine available for purchase. The presentation will start at 7:00pm. After a summer of overcrowding and understaffing in The Enchantments, the issue of day use management has reached an inflection point. Will this offseason present an opportunity to make changes along the Icicle Creek corridor, and if so, what will they entail? Hear from Seattle Times outdoors reporter Gregory Scruggs, who covered the issue closely this summer and traveled to Colorado to learn how another mountain town grappled with a similar challenge, along with Mat Lyons, Executive Director of TREAD, who has been working with Chelan County stakeholders on a proposal for alternative transportation options to Enchantments trailheads, and Sarah Shaffer, Executive Director of Wenatchee Outdoors, who will share insights on the on-the-ground work with over 40 volunteers in partnership with the U.S. Forest Service, packing out pounds of trash from the Enchantments Wilderness area. About the presenters: Gregory Scruggs (he/him) is the outdoors reporter at The Seattle Times, where he writes about the intersection of recreation, land management and the outdoor industry in Washington. His coverage takes him deep into the Cascades and out on the Salish Sea. In 2022, he won the President’s Award in the newspaper category from the Outdoor Writers Association of America. Mat Lyons (he/him) is the Executive Director of TREAD, a nonprofit that collaborate with all partners to drive sustainable outdoor recreation initiatives in North Central Washington. Sarah Shaffer (she/her) is the Executive Director of Wenatchee Outdoors, a nonprofit focused on engaging volunteers and the community in stewardship and recreation in North Central Washington.
Mar
30
Mon · 9:00 AM - 1:00 PM
Come learn more about the spring volunteer opportunities with the focus primarily on the Wild Birds Field Day Program. We will spend some time starting off with an overview of our spring opportunities followed by reviewing some of our main bird-focused lessons. **Volunteers should be available for at least two youth Field Days if coming to the training.**
Mar
19
Thu · 7:00 PM - 8:00 PM
Livestream the event or watch it later on YouTube at this link. No registration required, but RSVP to receive email reminders and updates about this event! Doors to the Red Barn open at 6:30pm for a community social with beer and wine available for purchase. The presentation will start at 7:00pm. Jack Mynatt, Tracy Maynard, and Mike Power are avid, long-time hikers, skiers, and amateur photographers. Jack and Tracy are on the board of the Wenatchee Valley chapter of the Washington Native Plant Society (WNPS). They have been annoying their hiking companions for decades with lengthy stops to take pictures, and now it's your turn to slow down with them to look and listen. Jack and Tracy will focus (so to speak) on iPhone photography; Mike uses a DSLR. In addition to showing some pretty pictures, they will discuss a few technical issues, problems and solutions, and make suggestions for taking better shots so you too, can have your photos accepted to the WNPS Calendar. Photo by Jack Mynatt.
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