'Women In the Woods' returns

COEUR d'ALENE  — The Women in the Woods classes are back.

These events give women landowners the opportunity to interact with a lineup of all-women forestry experts, creating an atmosphere where forest management training is tailored to female land managers. 

"Women landowners have an increasing role in forest management decisions and it’s important they have confidence and skill in managing their family forests," a press release said.

There will be two classes offered by the Idaho Department of Lands and the University of Idaho Extension. The first class, the Women in the Woods Workshop, is a classroom day that focuses on supportive resources and funding opportunities for forest landowners.

“We have a new workshop feature this year,” said Erika Eidson, IDL Forest Health Specialist and workshop co-host. “Participants will have the opportunity to bring in photos of their forest, and industry experts will help them assess the condition and set goals.”

The Women in the Woods Workshop will be held Friday, April 5, at the IDL office in Coeur d’Alene from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. While it is geared toward women, anyone is welcome to attend. There are no prerequisites, and no level of baseline knowledge is required.

The second class, the Women in the Woods Field Day, puts participants out in the woods, rotating through different exercises covering forest assessment, ecology, and forest management. The Field Day will be held May 10 at Pine Street Woods in Sandpoint from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Participation in the classroom session is not a prerequisite requirement for signing up. 

Working in small groups, participants will rotate through stations learning how to find bark beetles, how to mark trees for removal for different management goals, how to prune trees to protect them from white pine blister rust, and more.

One participant last year wrote: "The decisions that go into the planting, tending and taking of trees are decisions based on information gathered using the simplest of tools (a hairbrush to reveal a canker!) or the highly sophisticated laser hypsometer. … If yesterday’s event was itself a ‘forest’ it would get high marks in its planting for a strong and diverse stand of women and their contributions to Idaho’s trees!”

Each class is $10. Lunch and T-shirts will be provided. Registration deadline is May 3.

To register: BIT.LY/clearwater_events