Winter Ecology: The Subnivean Zone

Do you think that animal and plant activity goes silent in the winter? Well, think again!

Join us on this new overnight class at the Environmental Learning Center, our instructors will share their extensive knowledge of winter ecology in the North Cascades ecosystem on a spirited winter romp in the Diablo Lake neighborhood.

Join us to explore the hidden bustle of life under the Cascadian snowpack — the subnivean zone! We’ll examine a cross-section of snow to observe the tunnels and chambers created by the denizens of winter, ideally via snowshoes (weather depending). We’ll also look for plants that thrive in the temperature-regulated zones above the soil. And, to show how humans too have found ways to thrive in a snowy world, together we’ll build a Quinzhee — a snow structure of Athabascan origin.

Come experience the as Winter turns towards Spring in the North Cascades — a place of profound beauty, peaceful quietude and, yes, animals and plants surviving in style!