Dispatches

State considering new name for Mount Rainier feature

The Washington State Committee on Geographic Names is seeking public input on proposals to change the names of three geographic features in the state, including a feature on Mount Rainier.

Proposed changes receiving the committee’s approval will advance to the Board of Natural Resources, acting as the Washington State Board on Geographic Names, for a final decision.

The meeting is 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Oct. 23 at Olympia’s Natural Resources Building (No. 172), 1111 Washington St. SE.

Among the name changes is a V-shaped mountain pass on the southern slop of Mount Rainier. The formation was described in the journals of Capt. George Vancouver in 1792. A local historian is seeking to have the pass named Vancouver Notch.

Also on the agenda is a 10-acre pond along state Route 8 in McCleary. Students at McCleary School are requesting the pond be named Wildcat Pond. Wildcat is the school’s mascot.

In Jefferson County, a group is requesting a 3-mile creek be named Cooper Creek in honor of a family that homesteaded in the area 100 years ago.

Public comments can be submitted at the meeting or by mail. Mailed comments must be submitted by 5 p.m. Oct. 13 and sent to Washington State Committee on Geographic Names, PO Box 47030, Olympia, 98504.

Shorebird lecture set for Aug. 6 at UPS

Accomplished birder Dennis Paulson will present at a lecture Aug. 6 at the University of Puget Sound.

“Birds of the Wind: The Lives and Times of Northwest Shorebirds” is a photo-illustrated lecture from 6:45-8:45 p.m. at Thompson Hall on campus.

The event is a fundraiser for the UPS Slater Museum of Natural History. Admission is $20.

Paulson, a former director of the museum, is a biologist and naturalist and is an expert on dragonflies. He’s authored nine books including two on shorebirds. He is the primary instructor for the Master Birder program run by Seattle Audubon and occasionally by Tahoma Audubon.

The Aug. 6 presentation will discuss shorebird foraging, migration and breeding.

To attend, contact Diane Yorgason-Quinn at avosetta@hotmail.com.

Visitor’s death spurs national forest to seek input on managing Big Four Ice Caves

Following the July 6 death of a hiker at the Big Four Ice Caves in the North Cascades, Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest is seeking public comment regarding future management of the caves.

Currently the trail to the caves is marked with numerous signs warning visitors of the dangers of leaving the trails and entering or even approaching the ice caves below Big Four Mountain. Following a death and injuries to other hikers this summer, officials closed the area. The picnic area remains open.

According to a statement, “If you have ideas about how the Forest can continue to provide access to sites of natural beauty such as the ice caves and have fewer people ignore the dangers and warnings, please participate.”

To send suggestions go to www.fs.usda.gov/contactus/mbs/about-forest/contactus.

This story was originally published July 22, 2015 at 12:42 AM with the headline "Dispatches."