| | | | Hi Friend, February's here, and it's been strangely dry for this time of year—almost like the landscape is holding its breath before spring arrives. But we're not waiting. This month, we're planting 16,465 trees and shrubs across five preserves in our most ambitious restoration season yet. We need your help. Our February 28th work party at Gass Preserve is a rare chance to restore salmon habitat along Hood Canal—planting native species that will support chum and Chinook recovery for decades to come. Whether you've planted a thousand trees or this is your first time, there's a spot for you. The days are getting longer, the buds on the Gary oak in my yard are swelling, and spring is just around the corner. Let's make the most of these final winter weeks and get some trees in the ground together. Here's to getting outside, | | | | | | | | 2026 Winter Tree Planting: 16,465 Trees Across Five Preserves | | | | This winter, we're undertaking our most ambitious planting season yet! This January and February, our Stewardship team is working alongside volunteers and conservation crews to plant 16,465 native trees and shrubs across five GPC preserves—more than triple last year's efforts. This massive undertaking represents not just a commitment to forest diversity and reforestation but a scientific approach to building climate-resilient forests that can thrive for generations to come. Visit our website to learn about the five major restoration projects we're tackling this year, and learn about ways you can join us to plant a tree or two. | | | | | | | | 🌲 Bring People Together for Conservation 🌲 | |  | We’re inviting Sponsors and Table Captains to help connect friends, neighbors, and partners at our Conservation Celebration fundraiser on June 4. Host a table, share an evening with people who care about this place, and support the forests, farms, and trails we all love. Reach out to Development Manager Katherine Tacke to reserve a table for eight ($1,800) or explore sponsorships (in-kind or levels from $1,000–$25,000) at katherine@greatpeninsula.org or 360-373-3500 x107 | | | | | | Save the Date: Kitsap Great Give | March 10 | | | | Next month, support GPC on this countywide day of giving—from preserving community forests to restoring Hood Canal shoreline to implementing Salmon in the Classroom. Early giving begins March 1 at kitsapgreatgive.org/organization/gpc | | | | | | Protect What You Love for Generations | | | | You can support GPC’s mission long into the future with a planned gift in your will. It’s simple, flexible, and makes a lasting difference. GPC's Legacy Society honors individuals who make a commitment to protect the lands and waters of the Great Peninsula through a gift in their will, trust, or retirement plan. Members are recognized during their lifetime—when they inform us of their plans—and celebrated in the years that follow as lasting champions of conservation. Board member Mike Hall and his wife Becky are hosting a Legacy Society challenge—each new Legacy commitment activates a $1,000 gift in your honor, helping protect the lands you love forever. Six of 25 Legacy Challenge spots are already committed! Visit our website to learn more. | | | | | | | | Call for Volunteers: Salmon in the Classroom | |  | Each spring, elementary students in classrooms all around Kitsap County take part in Salmon in the Classroom and learn all about salmon by tending salmon eggs in their classroom tanks. As the baby salmon grow from egg to alevin to fry, students explore the salmon life cycle, their habitat, and the impacts of human activity. The learning experience culminates with field trips to Clear Creek in Silverdale in March and April. There, students learn about habitat requirements, test water quality, and discover the many kinds of stream bugs that live in local streams. During the trip, each student has the opportunity to name a salmon fry and release it into the creek, where it will start its journey downstream. We’re seeking volunteers who want to be part of this life-changing field trip! Salmon in the Classroom volunteers are trained on each of the four stations that students rotate through, and will assist in leading the educational program. This is an opportunity to help students build a lifelong relationship with nature. Volunteers will be trained in outdoor education techniques that meet BEETLES and Next Generation Science Standards. No experience necessary! There are three volunteer training sessions. Choose the one that best fits your schedule: - February 26th, 10:00 am – 12:00 pm
- February 26th, 1:00 pm – 3:00 pm
- February 28th, 10:00 am – 12:00 pm
Click the Sign Up button to see all Salmon in the Classroom training dates. | | | | | | | | Stillwaters Online Book Sales | | Want to expand your library in an environmentally friendly way? Shop Stillwaters’ online used book sale at AbeBooks. Stillwaters Environmental Center's long-running online book sale has continued, thanks to dedicated volunteers, through the transition to GPC. You can shop for our books online, all year round at AbeBooks! Click HERE to browse our online books for sale. If you are interested in donating books, we accept them all year long. Contact us at info@greatpeninsula.org for more information. | | | | | | | | | | Winter Land Labs Volunteer Training Want to get outside and share your love of nature with local youth? GPC’s Land Labs program is calling all volunteers interested in helping with our winter field trip series. No experience needed! We’ll teach you everything you need to know at our next Land Labs Volunteer Training. The training will focus on how to best support local students as they engage in real-world science questions out on GPC preserves. In our winter module, students will explore how land has been protected and managed over time, learn about present-day conservation efforts, and discover ways in which land trusts are restoring ecologically valuable places, such as forests and urban trails. Get outside and help lead lessons, run activities, and foster our next generation of conservationists! If you love talking about trees and getting your boots a little muddy… then volunteering to help kids with this lesson is for you. When: February 5th, 1:00pm – 4:00pm Where: Silverdale, WA | | | | | | | | February Clear Creek Trail Work Party Bring a loved one or be our Valentine at this February’s Clear Creek Trail work party! We’ll be showing the trail some extra love by removing invasive plants, picking up litter, repairing boardwalks, and more. Come out on the holiday to help out, and we’ll have sweet treats waiting for you! When: February 14th, 9:00am – 12:00pm Where: Silverdale, WA | | | | | | | | Birding with the Listen Up Collaborative at Grovers Creek Preserve Birds are talking—we just need to listen! Join us at Grovers Creek Preserve to learn about GPC’s ecological forest restoration efforts and how we’re using birds to measure success. We’ll walk the preserve with GPC’s Stewardship Director Adrian Wolf and discover how the Listen Up Collaborative, a local coalition of land trusts, tribes, and forest groups, uses avian indicators to rate stewardship work. This is a great opportunity to sharpen your birding skills while learning about habitat restoration. When: February 21st, 10:00am – 12:00pm Where: Poulsbo, WA | | | | | | | | Salmon in the Classroom Volunteer Training Take part in this year's Salmon in the Classroom field trip series as a volunteer! Salmon in the Classroom volunteers are trained on each of the four stations that students rotate through, and will assist in leading the educational program. This is an opportunity to help students build a lifelong relationship with nature. Volunteers will be trained in outdoor education techniques that meet BEETLES and Next Generation Science Standards. No experience necessary! When: February 26th & February 28th Where: Silverdale, WA | | | | | | | | Bandit Theater Presents Mad Science: A Night of Improv and Laughter with GPC’s Adrian Wolf Science, Technology, Engineering, Math, and improv comedy unite for Bandit Theater’s Mad Science. Every show, special guests are invited to share their real cutting-edge research and stories from the academic front line for the Mad Science team of improv comedians to warp, twist, and turn on its head. February’s special guests are Adrian Wolf, Stewardship Director of Great Peninsula Conservancy, and Irene Weber, Natural Resources Program Supervisor at Kitsap County Parks. Join the fun and learn how $80 recorders and bird songs are revolutionizing conservation—then watch our comedians turn science into laughter. When: February 27th, 7:00pm Where: Seattle, WA | | | | | | | | Tree Planting and Habitat Restoration at Gass Preserve Join Great Peninsula Conservancy for an exciting planting project at Gass Preserve in Seabeck, one of our newest protected sites! This site has been cleared of old buildings and is ready for ecological restoration. Volunteers will help plant a wide variety of native trees and shrubs to bring new life to this special place. The work party will include two shifts on the same day: a morning shift from 9:30–11:30 AM and an afternoon shift from 12:00–2:00 PM. Volunteers are welcome to sign up for one shift or stay for both. This project permanently protects a 13-acre property, including seven acres of tidelands, along the eastern shore of Hood Canal in Kitsap County. The preserve includes 530 feet of shoreline and 400 feet of Johnson Creek as it flows into the nearshore environment. Though modest in size, Gass Preserve plays an outsized role in supporting Hood Canal summer chum and Puget Sound Chinook salmon recovery, making this restoration effort especially meaningful. When: February 28th, 9:30am – 2:00pm Where: Seabeck, WA | | | | | | | | Friends of Miller Bay Winter Work Parties | | The Friends of Miller Bay (FOMB) work party schedule is live! FOMB regularly holds work parties at GPC preserves within Miller Bay. Come out, and meet neighbors and members who care about our environment! Be sure to sign the waiver on the FOMB Volunteer Page and sign up so they know you're coming. Upcoming Events: -
Friday, February 6th: 9:00am – 4:30pm Cowling Creek Forest Preserve -
Friday, March 13th: 9:00am - 4:30pm Miller Bay Preserve For more information, visit the FOMB Calendar or contact Paul Dorn directly at paul@dorn-enterprises.com | | | | | | | | Kitsap County Earth Day Awards | | | | Each year, Kitsap County Public Works Solid Waste Division and the Board of County Commissioners recognize individuals and groups for their dedication to environmental stewardship. Award recipients are celebrated for their work in environmental education, habitat restoration, recycling, litter control, water quality, and more. Do you know an individual, group, or business that deserves to be celebrated for their environmental efforts?
Submit a nomination today. Nominations are due by 11:59 p.m. PST on March 20, 2026. | | | | | | | | Tracking Elusive Marsh Birds with Puget Sound Bird Observatory | | | | Puget Sound Bird Observatory (PSBO) studies birds and their habitats in the Pacific Northwest to better understand changes in bird populations, to inform decisions, and to engage the public with birds and their needs. The PSBO's Regional Wetland Secretive Bird Monitoring project is a community science effort that uses volunteers to collect and record data according to a specific protocol for assessing regional populations and trends of marsh birds across the Puget Sound trough. Today, this effort has grown into one of the largest volunteer-driven monitoring programs in the Pacific Northwest, spanning 200+ wetlands across 11 counties. PSBO is seeking volunteers to help monitor for elusive wading bird species. Visit their website to learn more. | | | | | | Like what we're up to? Our work is made possible by generous donors like you. | | | |  | | | | | If this email was forwarded to you, you can join our e-news to receive your own copy in the future. | | | | | | | |
