Clearwater students experience watershed moment at Northwest Stream Center

EVERETT — Tom Murdoch crossed his arms in front of his chest, making an “X” in front of him. A dozen students from Clearwater Creek school stood in front of him, listening as he used his body to illustrate the definition of “watershed.”

Murdoch is the executive director of the Adopt a Stream Foundation, a nonprofit that provides the surrounding communities with technical assistance on stream and wetland restoration and environmental education.

On Wednesday, Murdoch gave the 12 Clearwater School students a tour, walking them through the nature trail behind the foundation’s Northwest Stream Center in Everett. The path is dotted with information about various woodland creatures and native plants that visitors can observe along the trail.

“Let’s pretend this is a valley,” he said, referring to the “V” shape made between his forearms. “Given the water goes downhill in this valley, where are you going to find your stream?”

Students point to the crux of his arms, where his elbows cross.

The land around the stream that drains to it is called a watershed, he said, adding that less than nine out of 10 people in the world understand and know the term, bringing the students into the top 10%.

A few students make excited little remarks, thrilled to be in the top portion of the global population.

Murdoch then explains what a riparian area is, the land and plants surrounding a stream or river, before leading the group out to the center’s half-mile nature walk which winds along North Creek and the adjacent wetlands.

The group’s first stop is at the trout exhibit, which allows visitors to peer under North Creek’s water to see resident cut-throat trout, crayfish and freshwater mussels. As he tossed a few worms over the glass for the trout to snap up, Murdoch explained how cutthroat trout can sometimes migrate out to the ocean, like salmon. He pointed to the nearby sign, showing the colorful illustrations of spawning salmon that are also native to the area, and how the fish differ in appearance when out in the ocean to when they swim back upriver to spawn and die.

After spending 15 minutes looking through the exhibit windows, the class continued, walking along the center’s elevated walkway made of recycled plastic lumber – the equivalent of 1.97 million one-gallon plastic milk jugs, according to the foundation’s website.

The kids, ranging in age from 7 to 16, followed Murdoch through cedar groves and marshland, where bright yellow western skunk cabbage flowers are just starting to peak their way through winter’s bogged-down earth.

The Clearwater School is a Bothell-based school that functions on the Sudbury method, viewing adults and children as equals. There aren’t teachers, but adult staff.

“It’s self-directed education, so basically, people can do what they want,” school administrative assistant Kendra Petersen said on Wednesday. “We have a music room, we have art room, computer room.”

The kids on Wednesday’s tour chose to sign up for the school outing, and were accompanied by three adults, including Petersen.

At the end of the walk, Murdoch asked the group what they had taken away from the tour. He emphasized the importance of knowing what watersheds and riparian areas are for continued and future land stewardship work.

Josie Humphries, 7, said she enjoyed the tour.

“It was fun,” she said, explaining that the information about beavers was her favorite, especially learning that “beavers eat the bark off the tree.”

Community members can experience the Northwest Stream Center for themselves. The center recommends making a reservation because they limit the number of visitors per half hour in the nature walk so folks can enjoy the space to its fullest.

You can call 425-316-8592 to find a time to visit the center, open Tuesday through Saturday, located at 600 128TH St. SE in Everett.

Eliza Aronson: 425-339-3434; eliza.aronson@heraldnet.com; X: @ElizaAronson.

Eliza’s stories are supported by the Herald’s Environmental and Climate Reporting Fund.