Events

Upcoming  Events

A Place Worth Fighting For: Expert-Guided Field Trip to Cherry Point February 25th 1 – 3 PM

Join the Surfrider Foundation, the WWU Western Action Coalition, and Power Past Coal Coalition for a day out at Cherry Point to explore this beautiful aquatic reserve from 1-3 PM!

Local experts, WWU Professor John Bower, Marie Hitchman, and RE Source’s Baykeeper Lindsay Taylor will show us around the beach where the Department of National Resources (DNR) has protected a unique and rich ecosystem bordering a heavily industrially zoned area that could become the site of North America’s largest coal export terminal facility.

Come experience the majestic scenery and learn more about human and ecosystem interactions— and why this site was designated as a DNR protected environmental resource!

TRANSPORTATION:

Driving Directions: Take I-5 to exit 266 and head west on Grandview Road. Travel for about 5 miles and then turn left onto Kickerville Rd. After 1.5 miles, turn right onto Lonseth Rd. Follow for about 1 mile and then turn left onto Gulf Rd. Parking is available, but alternative transportation and/or carpooling is encouraged.

Van: If driving yourself nor biking appeal—
Email nws@surfrider.org to reserve a seat in a 11 passenger van, and we’ll take you ourselves.

Bike Ride: Want to save fossil fuels? Bike with us out to Cherry Point! We Will meet at the Depo Market on the corner of Railroad and Chestnut Streets at 11 AM. Be sure to bring your helmet and a well-tuned bike! If under 18, please bring a parent or guardian.

Past Events

2nd Annual South Fork Nooksack Canoe Cleanup, Saturday, September 10th, 9 AM – 2 PM

Join NWS along with NSEA, RE Sources for Sustainable Communities, and Yeager’s Sporting Goods as we paddle down the South Fork of the Nooksack River in an effort to remove litter from the riverbanks before they reach the ocean.  Some canoes and life jackets will be provided by Wild & Scenic River Tours, but folks are encourage to bring their own gear to join this cleanup effort. Canoes will launch from the Acme Bridge and paddle to the Van Zandt Bridge. Volunteers on land are also needed to help launch boats, staff safety stations along the river, and unload collected trash.  Garbage collecting materials will be provided by American Rivers.  Event kick-off morning refreshments will be provided by the Acme General Store and the Blue Mountain Grill.  A wrap-up BBQ lunch will be provided by Everybody’s Store. Registration for this event is required. Please contact Lindsay Taylor at ltaylor@n-sea.org.

Locust Beach Cleanup: September 24th 10 AM – 1 PM

We are teaming up with RE Sources to help keep this beautiful beach clean! Come out and join us during Water Week for light refreshments to keep one of our favorite local beaches clean! To get there, head down Holly St, which turns into Eldridge, and then into Marine Drive.  Make a left onto Locust Avenue.  Either park at the Bellingham Kiteboarding Community Center or rider your bike! If you get there after 10, no worries~ Just meet us down on the beach!

Moving Planet: September 24th 12 – 2 PM Downtown Bellingham

NWS is increasingly growing concerned about the impacts our tremendous reliance on fossil fuels is having on our oceans. Come join us for an event of biking and learning about ways we can help lessen our impacts.  Visit our booth downtown outside City Hall and listen to what community leader Mayor Dan Pike has to say about ensuring the continued safety of our community and what we can do to reduce our fossil footprints.  Join us for a 2 PM rider out to Cherry Point, the site of SSA Marine’s proposed coal export terminal.

Wild & Scenic Environmental Film Festival 7 PM at the Mt. Baker Theatre

Join us once again for this thrilling film fest! This year’s action-packed films are sure to leave you inspired to not only plan your next outdoor adventure, but also to go out and make a positive difference! Films start at 7:30 and include:  A Skier’s Journey, Change for Our Oceans, Gum for My Boat, The Majestic Plastic Bag, African Revolutions, and SPOIL. Join the experience, as inspiring people share stories of how they change the world while skiing, kayaking, surfing, and searching for amazing wildlife.

SPOIL film trailer

Tickets are $10 and can be bought in advance from the Mt. Baker Theatre.  This is also a membership drive, so come prepared to sign up to become a Surfrider member if you aren’t already! Sign up for a chance to win some cool coastal-getaway packages!

SoundWaves Annual Benefit Concert and Fashion Show: Lucky #7!

Saturday, October 8th at Boundary Bay Brewery- be sure to join us for our 7th Annual SoundWaves! Each year is packed with bands, awesome fashion/gear lines, and tons of cool raffle and silent auction prizes! Be sure to mark your calendar now!

July 5th Beach Cleaunup –

This year, since the 5th fell on a Tuesday, we met in the evening for a fabulous cleanup and watched a beautiful sunset.

Saturday, April 30th-  Locust Beach Cleanup 10 AM – 1 PM w/ Trash Art Installation!

Surfrider, RE Sources, and the Bellingham Kite Boarders cleaned up Locust Beach in honor of Plastic Pollution Reduction Month! Seattle artist Kuros Zahedi created an amazing temporary art installation with the garbage collected from this cleanup.

Wednesday, May 4th- Coal Hard Truth Forum @ 7 PM in the Bellingham Public Library

Do you  know what GPT stands for? Gateway Pacific Terminal.  Do you know what it is and what’s at stake for you and our Whatcom community?

Big Coal wants to ship millions of tons of coal per year through a new Cherry Point terminal in Whatcom County to export to Asia- spewing toxic coal dust, putting our safety at risk, clogging our railroads and ports, and stoking the climate change crisis the whole route.

Here in Washington, we have been working hard to end our reliance on coal, and now we are faced with the same coal, from the Powder River Basin, being shipped overseas.  Are we willing to risk our health, safety, and clean water to ship dirty coal to Asia when we know coal is not healthy for our community? Lake Whatcom already is contaminated with pollution derived from Asia, why would we submit ourselves to more?

Here’s how you can help: Come to the Coal Hard Truth Forum and learn about the campaign the protect Bellingham and communities across Washington from the dirty and dangerous coal industry.  Join us and many others at the Bellingham Public Library (210 Central Ave.) on May 4th at 7 PM to hear Cesia Kearns from the Sierra Club, Bob Ferris of RE Sources, and Jean Melious, former Whatcom County Planning Commissioner talk about the proposed SSA Marine/Peabody Gateway Pacific Terminal project and learn what you can do to help keep our community happy, healthy, and safe!

Thursday, April 28th- 7 PM Melali: The Drifter Sessions Bham Premiere to raise money for Surfrider Japan

Thank you for helping us raise funds to send to our Surfrider Japan chapters to help with tsunami relief.  Japan has been devastated by earthquakes, tsunamis, and radiation.  All proceeds from this amazing film that’s not even out of theaters yet on this night will be sent directly to Surfrider Japan to help on the ground relief efforts.  Don’t miss it! Doors open at 6:30, film at 7 PM, tickets $3 students, 18 and under, and seniors, $5 general.  Check out the movie here:  http://melalisoundtrack.robmachado.com/index.php

Saturday, April 23rd-  Earthday Beach Cleanups 9 AM – 12 PM

In celebration of Earthday & Plastic Pollution Reduction month in Bham, Surfrider hosted beach cleanups at 4 locations.  Thanks for helping to keep our beaches and bay beautiful!

Friday, April 1st-  Premiere of Bag It @ 7 PM in WWU’s PAC!

Bag It premiered on WWU’s campus with over 200 people in attendance, including the mayor Dan Pike, who afterward, declared April “Plastic Pollution Reduction Month” for Bellingham!  This film was brought to you by local supporters like us including: WWU Environmental Center, Sierra Club, AS Office of Sustainability, Community Food Co-op, RE Sources, and community members like you! Stay tuned for more community screenings.  Volunteers are still needed to help with education and outreach.  Email nws@surfrider.org to find out more or look on facebook at: www.facebook.com/bagitbellingham<http://www.facebook.com/bagitbellingham And read updates at: www.bagitbellingham.blogspot.com<http://www.bagitbellingham.blogspot.com

Monday, March 28th-  Northwest Straits Chapter Monthly Meeting & City Council @ 6:30 PM

After a brief chapter meeting, we walked on over to City Hall with our NWS reusable bags to show City Council that we all support Bag It Bellingham and want plastic bags outta here!  Fifteen citizens presented informed and diverse presentations on why Bellingham should reduce single-use bags, impressing our city council.

Thursday, March 10th-  Let it Snow Party! @ Boundary Bay 10 PM w/ music by the Barefoot Brothers

This joyous night kicked off the rebirth of our chapter’s Snowrider Project! Amazing music as provided by the Barefoot Brothers and tons of awesome raffle prizes were won!

Tuesday, February 22nd-  Consumption Week: BWTF presented Waste in our Waters: an in depth look at bacteria in our bay. @ 6 PM on WWU’s campus in CF 115

NWS and Surf Rider kicked off Consumption Week on WWU’s campus with a presentation of our BWTF (Blue Water Task Force) Program and shared our results for total coliform and E. coli in Bellingham Bay over the past few years.

Saturday, February 12th- Padden Lagoon Work Party 1:30 – 3:30 PM

NWS teamed up with the City of Bellingham’s Park and Rec to help restore the mouth of Padden Creek! Many recreationists enjoy this area for strolling around, walking dogs, launching kayaks, bird watching, gazing at sunsets, and more; however the habitat between the marine environment and the fresh water is in need of help! Check out the project’s progress at the mouth of Padden Creek off Harris Avenue in Fairhaven (by the Greyhound/Ferry terminal)!

Thursday, December 16th-  A Day Without a Bag

In order to reduce our impact on the environment, Surfrider, along with many others, urge shoppers to bring their own bags with them to stores.  It’s a great habit to always get in!

Friday, October 19th-  Farmed Salmon Exposed movie night

The WWU AS Club of Surf Rider presented “Farmed Salmon Exposed,” a three-part film series (45 min running time) and community discussion on the risks of farmed salmon and detrimental effects of the Norwegian salmon farming industry.  If you missed out, these films by award wining Canadian film maker, Damien Gillis, are available at the Nooksack Salmon Enhancement Association’s library (2445 E Bakerview Rd, Bellingham, WA) and please participate in a letter writing to state and national representatives as we stand up for wild salmon.  Look under our Campaigns tab for more!

Saturday, October 23th- Make A Difference Day!

NWS Chapter hosted a beach cleanup on Make a Difference Day and each individual can make a difference in the world!  Thank you to the Bellingham Kite Boarders for teaming up with us to help keep Locust Beach clean for all outdoor beach enthusiasts!

Friday, October 22th- Wild & Scenic Environmental Film Festival

Wild & Scenic On Tour brings together a selection of films from the annual festival held the third week of January in Nevada City, CA. “We’ve all heard the “10 Things” we should do to help the curb our ecological footprint. Well, the films featured at Wild & Scenic take it one step further sharing issues on how we can get involved locally or nationally in our community.” says Tour Manager, Susie Sutphin. “Our films help people see how we can fix the system so those 10 simple steps have more collective power. It’s an empowering and motivating experience.”

The Wild & Scenic Environmental Film Festival was started by the watershed advocacy group, the South Yuba River Citizens League (SYRCL) in 2003. SYRCL is sharing their success as an environmental group with other organizations to bring the festival to over 90 communities nationwide. It is building a network of grassroots organizations connected by a common goal of using film to inspire activism. The festival’s namesake is in celebration of achieving Wild & Scenic status for 39 miles of the South Yuba River in 1999. They celebrated their 8th annual in January 2010 in Nevada City, CA. The 3-day event features over 125 award-winning films and welcomes over 80 guest speakers, celebrities, and activists who bring a human face to the environmental movement. With the support of their National Partners: Clif Bar, Tom’s of Maine, Osprey Packs, Patagonia and Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. the festival can reach an even larger audience in tour venues coast to coast.

Featured films at the tour venue in Bellingham include the inspirational film entitled A Simple Question: The Story of S.T.R.A.W. where a fourth graders simple question in 1992 sparked an environmental activist project that still continues today; Nature Propelled, the story of a nature propelled journey to recreate the water cycle from surfing the ocean to surfing snow and rivers; Generations by Teton Gravity Research, which explores the question of will our children have enough snow to play in when they grow up?; and finally, Tapped, a behind-the-scene film on the true story of bottled water.

This festival is a natural extension of the Surfrider Foundation’s work to inspire people to act on behalf of the environment.  Surfrider is a unique environmental grassroots organization, dedicated to the protection and enjoyment of the world’s oceans, waves, and beaches, for all people, through conservation, activism, research, and education; and is supported by outdoor adventure recreationists who take action to ensure that where they play is clean: from the mountain slopes to the ocean’s waves.  The Wild and Scenic Environmental Film Festival is sure to move all viewers to get up, go out, and take action to save our planet!

Saturday, October 9th- SoundWaves Benefit Concert and Fashion Show!

NWS hosted our 6th Annual SoundWaves Benefit Concert and Fashion Show at Boundary Bay on Saturday, October 9th from 2 PM to midnight! As usual, we had tons of awesome items in our silent auction and an amazing line-up of the latest in this year’s surf & snow fashion show!  Bands included: Dana Lyons, Aloha Danny, the Barefoot Brothers, DJ Booger, Boris Budd, Rise N Shine, Un Ami with additional performances by the Bellingham Arts Acamdemy for the Youth and the Bellingham Circus Guild!

Saturday, September 25th-  International Coastal Cleanup

Locust Beach is a hidden gem on the north end of Bellingham Bay. Unfortunately, it’s also the deposit area for most of the drifting trash in Bellingham Bay. RE Sources & NWS joined forces to keep our Locust beach clean!  For the International Coastal Cleanup, volunteers broke down into smaller teams to inventory what kind of trash is found on our beach.  This data goes into a larger database to help people like us track and target our efforts towards cleaner beaches!

Saturday, September 11th-  1st Annual South Fork Nooksack River Canoe Cleanup

Over 60 community members joined NWS, NSEA, and RE Sources on Saturday, September 11th from 9 AM – 3 PM with a fleet of garbage pickers paddling down the South Fork of the Nooksack River in an effort to remove litter from the riverbanks, gravel bars, and the river bottom.  Canoes launched from the Acme Bridge, covering trash cleanup all the way to the Van Zandt Bridge.  We would like to thank Yeager’s for all their help and the Acme General Store for a delicious breakfast and the Everybody’s Store for the yummy rap up BBQ! While we love recreating on the river, please remember that everything you do upstream has an impact on everything downstream!

July 5th- Beach Cleanup

Once again, we teamed up with RE Sources for another July 5th Beach Cleanup! With your help, we cleaned up three beaches; Marine Park, Locust Beach, and Cherry Point to leave all three spotless, removing over 700 lbs of waste!

Saturday, June 26th – Hands Across the Sand

In light of the BP oil spill, educating the public and advocating for a reinstatement of the moratorium are more important than ever. The Surfrider  Foundation, along with other environmental organizations hosted Hands Across The Sand events nationwide. Citizens from all walks of life headed to their local beach or park, and from 11:00 am – 12:00 pm in their given time zone, joined hands in opposition of offshore oil drilling. Thank you for joining our chapter and well over 100 others at Boulevard Park, especially those who walked, biked, ran, or kayaked out!

Saturday, June 19th- International Surf Day

This year the NWS Chapter celebrated ISD 2010 locally in Bellingham at Marine Park with a beach cleanup and free StandUp Paddle Board Demos provided by the Bellingham Kite Boarders and lots of fun was had! Not so locally, other local chapter members headed out to Hobuck for some fun and waves out on the peninsula.

Sunday, May 30th- NWS Surfrider team participated in Ski to Sea

The 2010 Ski to Sea race was as exciting as ever! We had an excellent line up once again this year, with many returning participants from last year and can’t wait again to compete next year!

May 14th, 15th, & 16th- Clean Water Classic

Washington Surfrider’s 9th annual Clean Water Classic surfing competition was held in Westport where all the Pacific Northwest Surfrider Chapters come together to host this event, which is the largest continuously run Pro/Am competition in the PNW!  Great fun was had by all on the beach, surfing the waves, and listening to live music! Visit the event website and blog here.

May 8th- Surfrider Film Event

Acoustic guitarist Jeremy Houtsma opened the night at Chuckanut Brewery on the back patio, setting great vibes for the rest of the night.  Attendees enjoyed watching “The Dirty South: A Ben Wilson Movie”, a trailer to the new Woodshed Production called “180 Degrees South” and “The Present” while lots of raffle prizes were won.

May 1st & 2nd- Rise Above Plastics Workshop

WA/BC Chapters gathered in Tofino to put our heads together on how to tackle the problem with plastics.  For more information on our Rise Above Plastics (RAP) Campaign, click here.

Saturday, April 17th- Coastal Clean Up at Locust Beach 10 AM – 1 PM w/ RE Sources

Teaming up with RE Sources and the Bellingham Kite Boarders, we organized a beach cleanup at Locust to celebrate the 40th anniversary of Earth Day followed by a BBQ! In true Washington style, the weather was wet, yet 25 dedicated volunteers still showed up to comb the beach for trash.  In 2 hours they picked up over 700 lbs of garbage and 250 lbs of recycling!

February 18-Free Movie Night: Poisoned Waters

NWS Chapter of the Surfrider Foundation presented Frontline’s Poisoned Waters at 7:30 PM in Western Washington University’s Viking Union.  While Puget Sound may look healthy on the surface, this film documents the toxic contamination of our Puget Sound.  Panel discussion with People for Puget Sound followed program.

2010, February 6 &7th- Banked Slalom

The Northwest Straits Chapter’s Snowrider Project went to Mt. Baker again!  We educated and encouraged Washington citizens to support Working for Clean Water Bill.  This bill will impose small fee’s on petroleum companies (not the gas pumps) to create jobs, rebuild our local economies and clean up polluted waterways like Puget Sound. We got twenty seven signatures, but that’s not enough.  Legislatures are discussing this bill right now so they need to hear from their constituents NOW! Whatcom County Council has decided to go against this Bill.  Session will end March 11th so we need to get the word to them ASAP and tell Whatcom County Council to chage thier minds! For more information, please look under Campaigns –> Puget Sound Partnership –> Working for Clean Water.  We also raised awareness about Rise Above Plastics and presented internship opportunities.

2009, October 10 – 5th Annual Benefit Concert and Fashion Show at Boundary Bay Brewery!

This was our 5th annual Soundwaves fundraiser at Boundary Bay. Last year we had kids events, several bands, fashion show, silent auction and raffling.  We had awesome sponsors like Boundary Bay Brewery and Bistro, Sportsman Chalet, Georgie Girls, Plantas Nativa LLC, Sessions, GNU, K2Snowboarding,  Zumiez, LibTec.  With your support, we were able to raise enough money to support our on-going programs such as Blue Water Task Force water quality monitoring, Risa Above Plastics (RAP) campaign, the Boulevard Park’s Woods Coffee recycling/composting bins, beach and highway clean-ups, storm drain marking, Native/Ocean-Friendly Garden projects, and Snowrider Projects. If you would like to donate, participate or volunteer for this coming year’s event, please contact us at nws@surfrider.org.

2009, September 20 – Coastal Cleanup with Re Sources

Last year we joined together with Re Sources to monitor the types of trash we recovered.  The clean-up was to help support Washington CoastSaver program’s effort to combat marine debris to ensure that the astounding beauty and ecological diversity of Washington’s coast is restored and preserved forever. As we cleaned up our beaches, we kept track of the amount and types of trash.  On September 20th,  from 9am-1pm, a cleanup was held at Locus Beach where volunteers recorded each piece of trash picked up.

2009, September 12th – Paddle for Clean Water

The Surfrider Foundation’s Washington Chapters organized a Paddle out for Clean Water at Hobuck Beach in Neah Bay, WA.  All were invited to paddle out on surfboards, kayaks, standup paddleboards, canoes, et cetera.  The purpose of this event was to raise awareness about the water quality of the waters we recreate in year round.  The paddle out took place at 11 AM, followed by some ocean fun and a beach cleanup.

The following day, on Sunday the 13th, we hosted our 1st Annual Mini Kids’ Camp.  This small surf camp shared the stoke of recreating in the ocean with the youth of the Makah Tribe.

2009, September 19 – Bellingham Traverse

The NWS Chapter competed in the Bellingham Traverse to celebrate the life-cycle of wild salmon!  The race will includes a 5.5 mile road run, 6 mile mountain bike, 18 mile road bike, 4 mile trail run, 4 mile paddle, and a 0.5 mile team trek to the finish line at Boundary Bay Brewery. Fore more information about the event please go to http://www.bellinghamtraverse.com

2009, Saturdays in August – Fairhaven Movie Nights!

Every Saturday in August, NWS will be hosting a table with the folks from Ban the Bag in Bellingham at movie nights in Fairhaven at the Fairhaven Village Green.  We petitioned for our Rise Above Plastic campaign, which aims to reduce the use of single-use plastics, and supported Ban the Bag in Bellingham in their efforts to reduce the use of plastic grocery bags.

2009, August 17-19 – Flowmotion Summer Meltdown

The 9th annual Summer Meltdown Festival held in Darrington accommodated individuals of all ages and provided a beautiful, laid-back environment to fully enjoy the grassroots entertainment. There were drinks, food, awesome hammocks, sweet music and of course awesome people.  Surfrider made its presence, helping to raise awareness about the state of our beaches and waves.

2009, July 26 -  Mt. Baker Highway Cleanup

The Snowrider Project hosted it’s first highway cleanup at Heather Meadows on Mt. Baker Highway last summer.  We adopted this section of the highway to reduce the nasty trash and runoff into our waterways from the mountains.

2009, July 5 – Beach Cleanup