Report: DNR/WDFW Naneum Ridge Field Trip - July 14 2012

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DNR/WDFW Naneum Ridge Field Trip
Report & photos by Clay Graham / Eastern Washington Adventures


Shub-steppe at Quilomene Wildlife Area - Photo by Clay Graham / Eastern Washington Adventures

I am on the "Naneum Ridge to Columbia River Recreation Plan" Committee for the Department of Natural Resources' Naneum Ridge State Forest which also includes the Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife's Colockum, Quilomene and Whiskey Dick areas. See Map

On Saturday July 14th, 2012 we met up at the DNR office in Ellensburg at 8 AM for our first field trip to see the recreation area. We headed out around 8:30 AM toward Parke Creek Road.

We drove up Parke Creek Road and stopped around 10 AM after turning onto Beacon Ridge Road. We looked at the Shub-steppe and talk about the wildlife that lives there.

Next we moved on up Beacon Ridge Road and turned up the Colockum Road and then up Pettit Road. We stopped around 11:45 AM at a meadow near the Aurther Coffin Game Reserve to talk about the how important these type of meadows with that type slope are to wildlife. There were cows grazing eating stuff the wildlife don't like.

Next we moved up to the end of the road for lunch at a place called Inspiration Point. After lunch we back tracked out to the Colockum Road and headed on up.

Our next stop was around 1:30 PM at the WDFW Colockum Cabin in the Aurther Coffin Game Reserve so people could use the outhouse.

Next we headed down to Coleman Creek Road. We stopped around 3:00 PM to look at a dispersed campsite that was too close to the creek. We talked about the fish habitat that gets effected by the sediment runoff and lack of trees. It started raining hard at this point.

We moved on down and stopped at Coleman Orchard around 3:30 PM. Here we talked about how the area was open to target practice and how many trash the place by not picking up after themselves. Kittitas County Field and Stream Club and the Master Hunters have clean ups to keep the shooting area open.

That was the end of the field trip. We headed back to the

Return to DNR office in Ellensburg to get our vehicles to go home.

This was a very educational trip.

See full report with 20 photos at: DNR/WDFW Naneum Ridge Field Trip - July 14 2012