Hi MeadoWatchers!

Temperatures are rising and biting insects are peaking. plenty to complain about while outdoors; I honestly
found myself getting a bit frustrated with the bugs a couple of times last week.

Last Wednesday, I hiked the Reflection Lakes trail. It was a pretty cool hike (compared to our recent
temperatures) and I didn't see too many people until I reached some of the upper plots. On this day, I felt a
sense of calm as I walked along the trail, slower than I normally do, collecting data and just taking in my
surroundings. This sense of tranquility followed me to the end of the maintained trail where I found a nice
rocky area to sit down, have lunch, and reflect on the summer so far. I've certainly thought about this before,
but in this moment I was able to reflect on how fortunate I am to have this internship this summer.

In April, after a dismal  interviewing experience with Seattle City Light and several rejection emails from other
government entities in the area I was starting to get nervous about the prospect of not securing an internship
this summer; something I needed for 1.) income and 2.) to fulfill the 400 hour internship requirement set in
place by the Evans School of Public Policy and Governance for their MPA candidates. I was nervous, but
marginally optimistic because I knew my dream internship for the summer was as far away from the office
building settings of the internships I had applied to up to that point. That dream became reality when a friend
told me about the MeadoWatch opportunity. I applied and here I am today.

While reflecting in my lunch spot on Wednesday, I thought about how grateful I am to be in this position; the
opportunity to participate in a program so closely aligned with my personal passions and and career goals is
not Iost on me. I have been gifted with an amazing opportunity that is allowing me to realize the trite phrase,
"find a job you enjoy and you will never work a day in your life," even if this job only lasts a few months.

I also reflected on the role that African-Americans play in environmentalism, the erasure of African-American
environmentalists from mainstream history, and the relationship many African-Americans today have with
the "environment" and outdoor recreation. As an African-American man, I thought about the widespread
belief among many of my peers that outdoor recreation and environmentalism are "white people activities".
I began to hope that my visibility in my current position, albeit a small one, and passion for the outdoors and
environmentalism can begin to change this belief that many of my peers have.

I know this blog is vastly different from the ones I have written so far, but I really just wanted to take the time
to express my gratitude for this program and everyone involved in it. I wanted to express how much it means
to me that I have the opportunity to participate in a program like this and I know it would be absolutely
impossible for me to have this experience without you, MeadoWatchers. After my reflection, I realized
characterizing the bugs as even a minor nuisance would be an overstatement.

I hope the MeadoWatch 2018 season has been as much of a joy for you as it has been for
me. As always, I hope I have the opportunity to see some of you all on the trails in the future!

All the Best,

Joshua Jenkins

Hi MeadoWatchers!

I hope y'all are enjoying the MeadoWatch season so far! We are
incredibly thankful for everything y'all do!

Personally, I'm loving my MeadoWatch experience and the
opportunities I've been given to engage with people
interested in and devoted to living a life rooted in conservation
and responsible environmental stewardship. This past Friday,
MeadoWatch had the pleasure of hiking and collecting
phenology data with the Doris Duke Conservation Scholars
Program (DDCSP) along the Reflection Lakes trail. The DDCSP at
the University of Washington is a "multi-summer, undergraduate
experiential learning experience that explores conservation across food, water, climate, and ecosystems of the
Pacific Northwest."

Friday morning, we were treated to a presentation on seed predation by some of the scholars. Then, we
drove to Reflection Lakes, split up into 5 groups of 4-5 people and embarked on our hike. It was a bit cloudy,
and the mountain was coy, but the cool breeze and mild temperatures made for a beautiful day on the trails!

On the administrative side of things, all plots are now snow free. Additionally, all plot markers (except for
plot 11 at Reflection Lakes) have been placed.

As always, happy hiking and I hope to see you on the trails!

All the Best,

Joshua and Your MeadoWatch Team

Hi MeadoWatchers!

This past week, I was joined on the trails by some precocious campers from
the Pacific Science Center's Mercer Slough Environmental Education Center. 
These brilliant 6th, 7th, and 8th graders visited the Hille Ris Lambers lab
where they participated in their own mini-MeadoWatch orientation. We
talked about MeadoWatch's mission, citizen science, climate change, and
wildflower phenology. At the end, we even played a Kahoot! quiz game
(if you have school-aged children they're probably familiar with Kahoot!). On
Friday, the campers made the the trip to Mt. Rainier National Park where
they met me at the Glacier Basin Trail. We hiked, collected data, and had a
wonderful afternoon enjoying the beauty of the park. After we finished hiking
we relaxed by the Inter Fork of White River and took in the spectacular views!

On a more administrative note, after some thought (and discussion with the
campers from Mercer Slough) I decided that our plots along the trails would
be more noticeable if they were marked by the orange survey  markers
instead of the yellow ones. Because this conclusion was reached after the
Glacier Basin hike and before the Reflection Lakes one, the trail markers on
the Glacier Basin trail are still yellow.

As always, for updated trail status check out the Trail Status tables at the top of the Our Hikes page on our
website!  I hope the MeadoWatch season has gotten off to a good start for those of you that have already
started hiking and collecting data. I've already seen a couple of you on the trails already and look forward to
seeing more!

All the Best,

Joshua and Your MeadoWatch Team

Hi MeadoWatchers!

With the 2018 orientation season behind us the 2018
MeadoWatch season has officially arrived! Last Thursday-Friday I
embarked on my first "solo" field work excursion, accompanied
by Kianna Dieudonné of the Doris Duke Conservation Scholars
Program. We drove to the park on Thursday morning and hiked
the beautiful Glacier Basin Trail. Conditions were perfect; clear
blue skies and comfortable temperatures made for a wonderful
outing. The Glacier Basin Trail is now completely melted out and survey markers have been placed at each of
our plots! For the Glacier Basin hikers, you should have no trouble navigating this trail the rest of the season.

After a decent night's rest we woke up early Friday morning brewed some coffee and set off for the
Reflection Lakes Trail. Clear skies and cool weather made for another gorgeous and enjoyable hike, even
if the trail provided challenges at some points. As those of you who have already hiked this trail know, much
of it is still covered in snow. The snow doesn't make the hike itself mechanically difficult (I do suggest bringing
poles and/or microspikes), but it does make the trail very tough to find in some spots. We were aided by our
GPS, but for those of you that don't have one I would exercise caution while hiking this trail at the moment.
Also of note, because there is still a lot of snow on the trail, most of the plots are still without survey markers
(if you're ever curious about the status of the trails/presence of absence of survey markers at our plots check
out this link: http://www.meadowatch.org/our-hikes.html). Despite the conditions, we were able to complete
the hike and were rewarded for doing so in the form of breathtaking views and wildlife companionship; the
wildlife companions being a fearless marmot in search of food (he taste-tested my microspikes and a
keychain on Kianna's pack) and a supportive hiking guide in grouse form (he literally helped guide us along a
section of the trail on our descent).

Overall, solo field work week number 1 was a success and I can't wait to get back at it this week. I wish you all
happy hiking; and hopefully I'll get to see some of you on the trails!

All the Best,

Joshua and Your MeadoWatch Team

Hi Y'all!

Here to deliver a few Reflection Lakes Trail Updates.
Janneke and I hiked (or at least attempted) the Reflection Lakes
trail yesterday. We observed plenty of avalanche lilies budding
and flowering, just not many on the trail and certainly not any in
our plots. There was a lot of snow on the trail from the beginning;
Plot 1 was completely covered and Plot 2 was half covered, but
there were no phenophases to observe. After Plot 2, the trail was
completely snow covered but for a few clear spots scattered
intermittently along the way. When we got to the stream
crossing on the way to Plot 3 we decided to turn around because there was no clear safe way for us to cross.
Additionally, the trail beyond the stream was covered in snow as well; not giving us much hope that
we would be able to find our plots. With all of this said, the snow seems to be melting fairly quickly. The
impediments we faced yesterday might be completely melted by next week, just exercise caution and bring
any gear (microspikes, crampons, poles, etc)  you think will make your hike a safe and enjoyable one. For
weekly trail status updates, including the number of plots uncovered be sure to check the "Trail Status
Update" link on our website that can be found under the the volunteer resources sub-tab titled "Our Hikes."
Happy hiking and I hope to see y'all on the trails!

All the Best,

Joshua and Your MeadoWatch Team

Hello MeadoWatchers!

My name is Joshua Jenkins, the 2018 MeadoWatch intern! I am a rising 2nd year
Public Administration/Public Policy student here at the University of
Washington’s Evans School with a concentration in Environmental Policy.
I hope everyone is excited as I am about this summer!

​

We weren’t able to place plot markers at both Plot 7, 9, or 12 because they 
were either partially or fully covered by snow. The trail conditions are pretty
favorable, before you reach Plot 9 there is virtually no snow that will impede
hiking; however, after Plot 9 the snow begins to impede hiking and remains
a constant presence throughout the end of the trail. Be careful crossing over
creeks and streams as there are places that seem to be covered by snow,
but may give way if you step on them. Meera and I were able to hike up
without poles or crampons/microspikes but I decided to use microspikes
on the way down for peace of mind. I recommend bringing whatever gear
makes you feel the most comfortable and surefooted while hiking in snow.
With that said, it seems like the snow is melting quickly!

​
I will be out on the trails next week collecting data and placing plot markers that we weren’t able to place
yesterday, don’t hesitate to come say hello if you see me! Happy hiking and I look forward to seeing ya’ll
on the trails this summer!

All the best,

Joshua Jenkins and Your MeadoWatch Team

​

A big THANK YOU to everyone who contributed to our MeadoWatch campaign! We were fully funded
(with your support), which means we will be able to run MeadoWatch at full capacity this summer. As part of
our crowdfunding campaign, we posted quite a few lab notes about MeadoWatch, please check them out
here (we also posted them to our facebook page). 

In the meanwhile, for those of you eager to start the summer high mountain hiking season, mother nature
may slow you down... Check out this graph (from the SNOTEL snow monitoring network). The pink line shows
the average precipitation (in inches), over the last 30 or so years, at the Paradise climate station. The light
blue line shows the average SWE (snow water equivalent), which is a measure of how much snow there is on
the ground, on average, at Paradise. Now, check out the dark blue and red lines - those represent total
precipitation (dark red) and SWE in 2018. You can see that for most of the winter, we were tracking average
conditions, which implies an early July snowmelt at Paradise. In the last 2 weeks, however, we've gotten a lot
of snow in the high mountains, and are at above average precipitation and snow at Paradise. So, our season
may start a bit later than usual!

Stay tuned for news about our orientation sessions.

Dear MeadoWatch volunteers and enthusiasts,
 
MeadoWatch is five years old! It’s been a great five years, and we have been really inspired by the level of
enthusiasm by all the volunteers and the support of our National Park Service partners. We would like to
keep MeadoWatch going this summer, however, the grants that helped us initiate and run MeadoWatch in
the early years (from NSF and NASA) have come to an end (as all grants do).
 
You can help! We have launched a crowdfunding campaign (see here) to raise funds to keep MeadoWatch
going this summer. If you can support us at any level, that is great, but you can help even if that isn’t possible
– please share it with your social networks!
 
Your MeadoWatch team (Janneke & Meera)

​Hey MeadoWatchers,
 Happy fall to you all, the air is crisp and cold, and the leaves are changing
color!
​
These transitions mean that summer hiking is over and so is our 2017
MeadoWatch season! We have
officially closed down both the Reflection Lakes and Glacier Basin hikes, are
in the process of removingplot markers (they are removed for Glacier Basin
, will be for Reflection Lakes shortly), and placed climate
sensors to monitor temperatures over the winter.
 
Just in time too, as I was cleaning up the Glacier Basin last Saturday,
I encountered a light snow shower passing through at the top of the hike,
although you would may not have guessed based on the photo below. On that note, if you decide to
go hiking in the fall be sure to bring extra layers as the weather can change
unexpectedly!

We want to thank you all so much for joining us again this year and collecting such great data!
Without all your hard work and enthusiasm, MeadoWatch would not be such a success, and we are so
grateful to have awesome volunteers! Over the next few months we will begin to enter your data, so as a
friendly reminder, please send us any completed data sheets if you have not submitted them already
(don’t worry, there is not such thing as phenological mismatch when it comes to late data sheets!). If you are
interested in volunteering to help with data entry, please keep an eye out for an email in the coming month.  
 
Enjoy beautiful fall season and we look forward to seeing out on the trails again next year!
 
All the best,
 
Your MeadoWatch Team