Twin Rocks Outdoor Education

03/20/2023

Our first week of outdoor school for the spring is in the books! We very much enjoyed hosting Ontario School District 8C! They lucked out with a BEAUTIFUL week on the Oregon coast!
Rain or shine, we are looking forward to many more weeks of outdoor school this spring.

11/09/2021

We are so grateful that we got to host a few weeks of outdoor school this fall! Here is a glimpse of the fun times we had with students and staff at Twin Rocks Outdoor School. We are looking forward to seeing many more schools in the spring!

03/26/2021

As I was out on a walk this morning I was hit with the pungent scent of skunk cabbage - the tell-tale scent of spring around camp. I found this article about the native uses of skunk cabbage really interesting. I didn't know skunk cabbage is related to the taro root used to make poi - a traditional Hawaiian dish. Have you every tried skunk cabbage root?

Skunk cabbage (Lysichiton americanus), which grows in mucky soils and marshes from northern California to Alaska, is one of the few members of the Arum (Araceae) family native to the Pacific Northwest. Its flowers (on the clublike stalk) and surrounding bright yellow spathe emerge as early as Februa...

05/28/2020

Our lake is full of wonders! Check out our video about aquatic macro-invertebrates in Spring Lake.

Come with us as we explore our lake-front wetlands and look for aquatic macroinvertebrates!

05/21/2020

We got a video of a coyote up on Charlotte's Mountain. A staff member said that she heard some coyotes howling a few nights prior. Maybe this one was one of the howlers!

05/15/2020

The mural in the new Nature Center is almost done! Bobi Bergh had done a fabulous job on it. Look at all those details!
I'm so glad that Bobi said yes to this project, even before the coronavirus hit, when she was still super busy.
She and her husband Andrew have been a blessing to TRFC over the years as they have led musical worship at a variety of our camps, such as Tween Camp and Couples Conference. Bobi is a gifted musician as well as being a gifted artist!
Thank you, Bobi, so much for adding this beautiful piece of art to our camp. It sure has lifted my spirit seeing it come about!

05/13/2020

Last weekend there was a really great low tide. It was caused by the full moon. A low tide during a full moon and during a new moon (no visible moon) is called a "spring tide". Spring tides make for great tide pooling. Check out this informational video on Youtube that Jeff Sargent and I filmed down at our local tide pools.
https://youtu.be/45tRE4zb_wA

Come with us as we explore some local tide pools and learn about what we can find there. We find crabs, anemones, urchins, and more!

05/07/2020

What do many kids have in common with this ochre sea star? They are rock collectors!
This ochre star was found in the loose gravel of a tide pool at low tide. It was probably slowly making its way toward larger rocks where it could hide, but I was able to lift it up easily from the loose gravel. Did you know that ochre stars (like most echinoderms) grip on to surfaces using hundreds of suction-like tube feet, which are powered through a water-vascular system that works through hydraulic pressure? They can hold on to their rocks really tight! So, if you spot a sea star in the tide pools, don't try to pull it off the rocks or you could end up harming it. Just snap some pictures and let it be.

04/28/2020

When you come across a wildflower that you don't "know", what do you do?

Do you like to google it, or look it up in your trusty ID book? To find out the scientific classification so that you can know what that plant is related to?

Or do you observe it in it's surroundings, taking note of where it grows and what grows near it? Do you make up a name for it based on what it looks like, or where you found it so that you can remember it better?

Of course neither approach is wrong nor right. In my family we have those who do both, and we all end up learning something. Just one of the many ways that we are created uniquely!

04/22/2020

Since it has been so quiet at camp these past few weeks, I have been more aware of the sounds and songs of the wild creatures around camp. The Pacific tree frogs (chorus frogs) and the Pacific wren have both caught my attention with their unique songs. What nature songs have you been listening to this spring? Scientists believe that birds are being more "talkative" that usual this spring because they are filling the sound void that would normally be filled with all our human noises. I wonder what they're talking about?
You can listen to the call of the Pacific wren here: https://youtu.be/A6f1y0MozCI
And here is the Pacific tree frog chorus: https://youtu.be/T7kavUckB4g

Video of a calling male pacific chorus frog (Pseudacris regilla) taken February 2010 in Napa County, California. The male frog uses this call to attract fema...

04/20/2020

A gray whale washed up on a beach in south Tillamook county. A necropsy (an animal autopsy) will be done soon to find out the cause of death. Find out more about gray whales here: https://www.marinemammalcenter.org/education/marine-mammal-information/cetaceans/gray-whale.html

04/11/2020

Easter eggs at Twin Rocks! Can you find them all?