5/21Evergreen huckleberry, WESE strike, Skagit drought, upper Columbia salmon revival, Willow Inn sale

Evergreen Huckleberry [Native Plants PNW]

Evergreen Huckleberry Vaccinium ovatum
Evergreen Huckleberry is also called California Huckleberry, Evergreen Blueberry or Box Blueberry.  Ovatum refers to its oval-shaped leaves. Evergreen Huckleberry is found on the west side of the Cascade Mountains from British Columbia to California.  Along the coast of California, it is common to the redwoods but sporadic further south. Natives ate the berries fresh or dried them into cakes.  Today, common lore asserts that they are sweeter after the first frost.  The berries are a bit tedious to pick and separate from the foliage, but are delicious baked into muffins. (Native Plants PNW)

Today's top story in Salish Current: Fewer Canadians are getting to the Point: do Point Roberts trends signal permanent change?

Western Educational Student Employees Are On Strike
Beginning today at 5am, 1,100 Educational Student Employees at Western Washington University walked off the job and onto the picket line. Student employees will gather at Old Main at 1 p.m. (WESE News Release)

Snowpack remains low, Skagit County in drought
Snowpack remains low in the North Cascades as drought persists. The Natural Resources Conservation Service published its latest Washington Water Supply Outlook Report last week. According to the report, most areas are in snow drought statewide, except for the area near Mount Saint Helens. Emma Fletcher-Frazer reports. (Skagit Valley Herald)

Northwest tribes, feds dive into work on salmon revival in upper Columbia River
The fish were once abundant but two dams decimated their numbers and it took years for an historic 20-year reintroduction plan to emerge. Alex Baumhardt reports. (Washington State Standard)

Offer accepted for Willows Inn Restaurant; proceeds to fund new Lighthouse Mission facility
Lighthouse Mission Ministries accepted an offer from a prospective buyer to purchase The Willows Inn properties on Lummi Island. The Mission will not be disclosing the identity of the prospective buyer or the offer price until a sales transaction is closed. The 2023 assessed valuation of the properties was about $2.4 million. Rachel Showalter reports. (Bellingham Herald)

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Here's your tug weather—
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  222 AM PDT Tue May 21 2024    
SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM THIS EVENING THROUGH LATE  TONIGHT    
TODAY  SW wind 10 to 15 kt, veering to W late. Seas 3 to 4 ft.  Wave Detail: W 3 ft at 6 seconds. Rain until late afternoon, then  a chance of rain late. Patchy fog.  
TONIGHT  W wind 15 to 20 kt. Seas 4 to 6 ft, building to 6 to  9 ft after midnight. Wave Detail: W 8 ft at 9 seconds. A chance  of showers.

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