Sharing the Fascinating Ice Age Floods Story Since 1995
The Ellensburg Chapter includes the area of the Quincy Basin at the southwest end of the Grand Coulee and the Telford-Crab Creek Scabland Tract.
The Floods flowing south across the Quincy Basin carved out the broad Drumheller Channels area, and those spreading west to the Columbia River carved out the Frenchman and Potholes Coulees.
As the flood waters backed up behind the downstream constriction at Wallula Gap the waters of temporary Lake Lewis filled part of the Quincy Basin, depositing fine grained Palouse materials that had been stripped off the more northerly portions of the Floods path.
The present day Columbia Basin Project diverts water south from the Columbia River at the Grand Coulee Dam to provide irrigation that transforms this soil in a high desert environment into a rich and abundant garden.
The Ellensburg Chapter area includes many other geologic wonders including the Gingko Petrified Forest, the Saddle Mountain and Frenchman Hills anticlines, as well as the features of the Mt. Stewart Range.
IAFI’s Ellensburg Chapter serves the Ellensburg, Washington area.
The Ellensburg chapter serves central Washington, a region rich with remarkable geological features including Gingko Petrified Forest State Park, Frenchman Coulee, Sentinel Gap, and the Yakima Fold and Thrust Belt. Located on the western edge of the Ice Age Flood region, our area offers abundant opportunities for geological exploration.
We host multiple field trips and speaker presentations throughout the year. To view our upcoming activities, visit iafi.org and check the News & Events section under “IAFI Events.” You can find our current officers and advisors listed in the “IAFI Chapters: Ellensburg” section.
Our chapter maintains a welcoming, informal atmosphere with optional membership dues. We enthusiastically welcome anyone interested in learning about the dramatic Ice Age Floods and the fascinating geological history of central Washington.
For more information about the chapter, please contact Ellensburg@IAFI.org
President
Mike Doran
Vice-President
Tom Ring
Secretary
Michael Horner
Treasurer
Karen Martinis
Technical Advisor
Karl Lillquist
Technical Advisor
Nick Zentner
Empowering Teachers and Students to Share the Ice Age Floods Story Micro-grants of up to $500 now available for K-12
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Upcoming IAFI Events
Chapter Location
Upcoming Chapter Events
Tom Foster was the person responsible for the formation of an IAFI chapter in Ellensburg, WA along with scientific and technical advisors Karl Lillquist and Nick Zenter. Karl is a physical geographer at Central Washington University. Nick is a geologist at Central Washington University.
When Tom’s job transferred him out of the Ellensburg area, Nick and Karl assumed the leadership of the chapter. They served as president and vice president respectively from 2008 until 2021. The chapter was officially accepted by the IAFI in April, 2008. It had met regularly since February, 2007. Attendance has been excellent at the many lectures and field trips conducted all these years. A great diversity of interesting speakers entertained and educated people attending the lectures.
The chapter is on the northwest margins of the ice age floods with only about one third of the area affected by them. For this reason, chapter lectures and field trips cover a greater diversity of geology and landscapes than just those associated with the ice age floods.
On Saturday September 15, 2012 the chapter hosted the annual meeting for the IAFI and conducted a field trip of the Ellensburg Area. Field trip leaders were Karl Lillquist from the Geography Department of Central Washington University, Nick Zenter from the Geology Department at Central Washington University and Ryan Karlson from Washington State Parks.
In April, 2024 Mike Doran was elected as the second president of the Ellensburg Chapter. Tom Ring isvice president and Karen Martens is the Treasurer.
