Greetings,
Thank you for registering for the Bird Language Intensive with Wilderness Awareness School based in Duvall, Washington! We are excited to come together on March 22, 2025, for our first weekend at Linne Doran, Wilderness Awareness School’s 60-acre campus.
This confirmation letter contains information that will prepare you for this program. Please read it carefully well in advance of the start of our first weekend so that you know how to prepare and what to expect.
If you have any questions regarding your registration, please contact Wilderness Awareness School at (425) 788-1301 or [email protected]. If you have any logistical questions about the program itself, please email Heather Durham at [email protected]. Our office hours are 8:00-4:00, Monday through Friday.
If you have any questions about refunds or transfers, please visit our Cancellation and Transfer Policy. Please see our Covid Guidelines for our most up to date health precautions.
We are looking forward to a wonderful year together!
Sincerely,
Shivani Gogna
Adult Program Manager
Heather Durham and Jesse Phillips
Lead Instructors
Bird Language Intensive –
When:
8 weekends, March to October 2025
Saturdays 9:00am-4:00pm
Sundays 7:00am-2:00pm
On our first day, please arrive by 8:30 and be prepared to start at 9am.
Schedule Overview:
March 22-23: Orientation, Core Routines, and Bird Language 101
Linne Doran campus, Duvall, WA
April 12-13: Journaling Birds and Bird Language
Washington Park group campground, Anacortes, WA
May 3-4: The Art of Listening and Birding by Ear
Umtanum Creek Canyon campground, outside of Ellensburg, WA
June 28-29: Sensory Awareness and Cultivating Intuition
Linne Doran campus, Duvall, WA
July 26-27: Forest Ecologies and Naturalist Skills
Lake Easton State Park, Easton WA
August 23-24: Advanced Sensory Awareness and Intuition
Linne Doran campus, Duvall, WA
September 20-21: Advanced Disturbance Patterns: Predators & Landscape Factors
Pearrygin Lake State Park group campground, Winthrop, WA
October 18-19: Wrapping the Bundle
Linne Doran campus, Duvall, WA
What to Expect:
We will be communicating primarily through a Google Groups email list which you will be added to upon registration. In advance of each class weekend, you will receive an email communication with specific details about the location, schedule, and any special preparations suggested for the weekend.
We will be diving deeply into the world of bird language during our time together. Weekend activities will vary depending on the particular theme, but in general expect a fun and engaging mix of experiential lessons, active embodiment, storytelling, group sharing, and sensory awareness exercises interspersed with more formal bird sits, mapping, and focused bird walks.
We encourage you to be prepared for all types of weather and bring several layers so that you can be comfortable throughout the class, whether for extended trail wanders or more sedentary sit spots. Expect to be outside for the entire class day, rain or shine, throughout the year.
We are committed to creating a safe and inclusive space for participants to learn these fun and important skills. For more about our values in this area, see our Equity Initiatives: https://wildernessawareness.org/about/equity-initiatives/.
As this program is about nature connection, we will ask people to only use their electronic/smartphone devices discreetly on longer breaks. Feel free to leave them off the whole time!
Facilities:
While on Wilderness Awareness School land we will primarily be utilizing one of several covered outdoor shelters and surrounding trails. There are porta-potties on the property as well as potable drinking water. Linne Doran has limited cell reception and no internet access.
Participants are welcome to camp at Linne Doran on Fridays and Saturdays of on-campus program weekends. Accommodations are rustic: simple campsites, potable water, and firewood are provided, with no access to a kitchen or other buildings.
If you would like more modern accommodations, there are some Airbnb/VRBO type accommodations nearby, as well as Tolt MacDonald Park (20 minutes away) for large RV set-ups. We do not have space for RV’s or for campers that are larger than a standard pickup truck.
When on a Field Trip:
We travel to several stunning areas for this course. Each trip will base out of simple established campgrounds with potable water, restrooms or pit toilets, and a place to set up your sleeping gear. Campsites vary in terms of distance from the parking lot and whether larger vehicles may be accommodated; specifics will be shared in advance of each weekend. Check-in times vary, but campsites will be available Fridays and Saturdays to accommodate our group. While students camping on-site may choose to come together for evening activities on any weekend, field trips are most likely to include optional evening campfires and/or nightwalks depending on interest.
Food:
Food is not provided for this course. There will not be an opportunity to leave the program site midday to buy lunch, so make sure to bring packable lunches and snacks for our class days, as well as breakfast and dinner food if camping for the weekend. Please bring your own stove and cooking vessels, as well as a cooler if needed. We do not have any way for you to refrigerate or heat your food, so please plan accordingly. Duvall and some of our other locations may have restaurants or grocery stores nearby for evenings off; ask your instructors for recommendations.
Getting Here
How to get to Wilderness Awareness School: You can find us via Google Maps or also view driving directions here.
Our campus address:
20410 320th Ave NE
Duvall, WA 98019
Gear Packing List
This list is designed with your comfort and safety in mind, and takes into account the variable weather possibilities at our varied Washington locations.
Required Gear for Class Days:
- Daypack to carry gear into field
- Notebook(s) and writing implements
- May be helpful to have both a small pocket pad (Rite-in-the-rain ideal) as well as a larger journal or notebook
- Full water bottle(s) for full day in the field
- Lunch and snacks for each field day, packed in daypack
- Layered clothing that can get dirty, muddy, wet, etc., appropriate to the weather and location.
- Appropriate footwear (closed-toe and waterproof preferred).
- Location details will be shared prior to each weekend, but generally helpful to have some sort of hiking/walking shoe and another option for back at camp and/or if the first gets soaked.
- Wristwatch or time implement that doesn’t require cell service.
Recommended Day Gear:
- Full rain gear: rain pants, raincoat, and rain hat
- Crazy Creek/Camp Chair/Sit Pad (for bird sits and/or back at camp)
- Pencils, markers, and/or pens and sketchpad
- Binoculars
- Compass
- Sun protection
- Camera
- Bandana or blindfold
- Personal first aid kit (we will have a more extensive one with us)
For Those Camping Overnight:
- Sleeping bag and pad
- Tent or other shelter
- Flashlight
- Cooking supplies, including packable containers for lunch food
- Food
- Breakfasts and dinners generally back at camp near cars. A few locations may be near local restaurants if preferred.
- Lunches and snacks packed in morning and carried into field
- A cooler for storing food (may be left in vehicle)
- Personal toiletries and medications
Highly Recommended Learning Resources:
- What the Robin Knows by Jon Young
- The Genius of Birds by Jennifer Ackerman
- Sibley Birds West (2016) by David Sibley, or another physical field guide
- Advanced Bird Language digital downloads by Jon Young
Additional Learning Resources:
- Slow Birding by Joan Strassman
- A World on the Wing: A Global Odyssey of Migratory Birds by Scott Weidensaul
- Bird Tracks & Sign by Mark Elbroch and Eleanor Marks
- Why Birds Sing: A Journey Into the Mystery of Bird Song by David Rothenberg
- The Singing Life of Birds: The Art and Science of Listening to Birdsong by Donald Kroodsma
- A Birder’s Guide to Washington from American Birding Association
- Bird Mentor online courses from WAS alum Kristi Dranginis
- Merlin bird app
- Cornell Lab of Ornithology All About Birds website
- Birds Connect Seattle (formerly Seattle Audubon)’s website BirdWeb
- Institute for Bird Populations Standardized Bird Species Codes
About The Bird Language Learning Journey:
Bird Language is primarily an experiential and intuitive–rather than an academic–discipline. Wherever you are in your nature connection journey or whatever your level of naturalist or birding experience from novice to expert, we trust you’ll have much to gain and to contribute to our learning community, simply by showing up, paying attention, and sharing your stories. Our depth of learning is rooted in the diverse gifts we each bring to the group, as well as the time we spend together honing the core routines of bird language across multiple landscapes over our 8 months together.
To help you get the most out of Bird Language Intensive and to continue deepening your learning between class weekends, we will be recommending regular awareness activities and naturalist assignments throughout the year. However you choose to engage outside of class will ultimately be up to you; we recognize folks have busy lives and we seek to make this course as accessible as possible for all.
Regardless of your level of engagement, we do ask that everyone, as soon as possible, establish (or reestablish) a sit spot convenient to your home. Once we’ve begun our course you’ll have more orientation on bird language-related activities to practice or focus on while at your sit spot, but for now, the important part is simply to establish the routine, of deepening your connection to your place and all the beings who live there, over time. As with most of our curriculum areas at Wilderness Awareness School–and bird language more than ever–sit spot is the most important tool to supercharge your connection.
If you are unsure of how to choose or interact with a sit spot, here are some helpful articles from our website that can get you started. We look forward to hearing your stories!