Join us Saturday, November 2nd, from 9:00am-12:00pm at the Heart Lake parking lot for this fall work party in the ACFL. We will be removing invasive species. No experience necessary. Bring work gloves, sturdy shoes, water, and any snacks you may need.

This project is suitable for those ages 12 and up.

Questions? Email bobv@anacorteswa.gov

EARLY: 5- 6pm

LATE: 6:30 - 8pm

Meet: Little Cranberry Lake main parking lot

Celebrate the spooky season with Friends of the ACFL! We'll start by exploring an old copper mine before heading out to search for anything that glows, hoots, or creeps in the night. While we walk, we'll get a chance to appreciate our own adaptations for nighttime exploration. Wear sturdy shoes and make sure to bring your headlamps and/or flashlights!

NOTE: Please consider your group’s comfort with being out in the woods in the dark, and plan accordingly. We suggest that groups with younger kiddos attend the early hike option to make sure that everyone has a positive nighttime forest experience!

October 15

9am - 11am

Meet: 29th St Access off D Ave

This month, we’ll explore the scenic wetlands around Little Beaver Pond! Wind through stunning alder stands, peek at several active beaver lodges, and maybe even spot a mushroom or two.

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.

Explore the beauty of nature through journaling with Friends of the Anacortes Community Forest Lands. Join us for a program inside and outside the library, as we learn about the benefits of nature journaling and take a field trip to Causland park for guided practice. Paper & pencils will be provided. 

Please note that this program will be held in the Community Meeting Room at the Anacortes Public Library. No RSVP is required.

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, July 16th. 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.

Join Friends of the ACFL to learn all about water and water critters. We will play while exploring buoyancy, look at the movement of water across the landscape, and learn about some of the critters that live in the waters of the ACFL. The whole family will have a chance to get involved as we explore and learn together about all the surprises and mysteries water holds.

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.

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! 

In 2016, a wildfire burned nearly 18 acres of the west ridge of Little Cranberry Lake. Thanks to the speedy action of the Washington DNR and other firefighting agencies, the 2016 fire was contained quickly and greater damage was avoided. Join Friends of the Forest as we revisit the burn zone and see how the ACFL continues to regrow. We’ll learn about the plant species thriving in post-fire conditions, and also discuss how human activities can impact the changing fire regime in our areas.

CANCELLED! Stay tuned for a reschedule.

Need help interpreting the trail maps? Want suggestions for a tailored hike that will hit the spot, or want help identifying something weird you spotted in the woods? Or, even better, want to learn how to be a better steward of our woods while on the trails? Join us! 

Please note that this program will be held in the Community Meeting Room at the Anacortes Public Library. No RSVP is required.

This long happy hour hike will take us into all three ACFL corridors! We’ll cruise through the Heart Lake corridor with a lollipop loop in the Little Cranberry corridor, and then duck back for a short spurt through the Whistle Lake corridor (just to say we did!) We’ll come across old growth trees, wetlands, and look for wildlife along the way. Bring snacks, more snacks, and extra water.

In 2019, a group of citizen scientists and community members, in partnership with Transition Fidalgo and the City of Anacortes, came together to form the ACFL Forest Monitoring Program. Since then, volunteers have been hard at work collecting valuable data to track the health of the forest ecosystems in our backyard. Join postdoctoral fellow Robbie Andrus (WSU School of Environment) to learn about a new project using aerial images to learn about the ACFL from a new perspective - from above! And, don’t worry, we’ll share plenty of information for how you can help ground-truth the lessons we learn from the sky.

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, June 18th. 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.

Who is creeping, crawling, and buzzing all around us? Join us to learn about how bugs move, what their purpose is and where they live. We will also look for and try to catch bugs, and do a bug nature activity that families of all ages can enjoy.

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.

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! 

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.

Please join us to help care for the ACFL on National Trails Day! We will be working on removal of invasive daphne in the Little Cranberry Lake area.

Celebrate the return of spring with a bracing hike through Sugarloaf’s flowering meadows! Join Friends of the Forest as we explore the many spring flowers that call the ACFL home (and the view will be nice, too.) You are welcome to bring your own loupes, notebooks, and plant guides. We will be sure to take some time to sketch a flower or two! 

Note: The trails around Sugarloaf are steep and can be slick after a spring rain. Hiking poles are recommended for these trails.

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, May 16th. Meet at the 29th St access to the ACFL off of D Ave, where we will set off to look for the first flush of spring wildflowers near Little Cranberry 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.

Note: Some of the trails we’ll be hiking on get steep, so hiking poles are recommended for this hike.

Join our search for pollinators and wildflowers on this family hike. We will do a pollinator activity to understand the process of pollination, read a pollinator story and make our own pollinators to take home.

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.

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!