IAFI Upcoming Events Calendar

            Dr. Joel Gombiner Joel Gombiner, Washington Geological Survey, "Getting a feel for ice sheet hydrology + Channeled Scabland geomorphology" This presentation connects modern observations of ice sheet hydrology, the geomorphology of the Channeled Scabland, and recent publications on Washington’s Ice Age floods. The presentation consists of three parts: (1) an explanation of a new lidar-based, semi-realistic oblique visualization and interpretive poster of Dry Falls (released 2025 by WGS); (2) an intuitive overview of ice sheet hydrology with visits to Greenland, Iceland, and Antarctica; (3) an update on recent Channeled Scabland science including evidence for subglacial tunnel channel floods from the Okanogan lobe and refined estimates of Missoula flood magnitudes.  The in-person meeting will be held at Bellevue College T building Room 118 on Monday, March 2, 2026 at 7:00 PM. The live presentation will also be available on Zoom. Click this link shortly before the meeting begins: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82985244730

The Lake Lewis chapter of the Ice Age Floods Institute will host a free Zoom lecture on March 3rd exploring the dramatic creation of the Spokane Valley - Rathdrum Prairie (SVRP) Aquifer!

The landscape upon which the town of Cheney has been built bears silent witness to one of the greatest series of catastrophic floods that has ever been documented on our planet. In this talk, we delve into how the leading scientists, both past and present, have interpreted this landscape as a consequence of one immense glacial lake pouring into another glacial lake, which then overflowed and breached the southern shoreline to create the vast channeled scablands.  Presented by Dr. Linda McCollum, professor emeritus of geosciences at EWU and president of the Ice Age Floods Institute (IAFI), Cheney-Spokane Chapter Registration is required.

Every student in the Northwest should experience the incredible science story of the megafloods that shaped our landscape and history. To help bring this story to life, the Ice Age Floods Institute, Engaging Every Student, and our partners are excited to invite K–12 educators to free special training events. Thanks to support from the Avista Foundation, we are offering free hybrid workshops where you will gain access to valuable resources designed to inspire students to investigate their local environment. New Curriculum Resources Participants will explore a new Ice Age Floods Detectives phenomena-based curriculum with supporting presentations targeted to 4th grade, as well as hands-on investigations from the National Park Service's Investigating Ice Age Floods curriculum. Both explore the megafloods that shaped the Northwest and are adaptable for grades K–12 Free STEAM Workshops for K–12 Educators Details (In-person with options to join us via Zoom): Location: The Dalles, OR: Sat., Mar. 14, 2026 (register here: tinyurl.com/yxw9haet) Featuring: Engaging classroom and field-based activities, including exciting ways to model Floods phenomena Stories of the megafloods that transformed the Northwest 18,000–12,000 years ago at the end of the Last Glacial Period Up to 7 Washington STEM Clock Hours and/or PDUs for license renewal in Oregon and other states Schedule: All workshops 9:00 am–4:00 pm (or half day) 9:00–12:00 | Interactive workshop featuring new Ice Age Floods Discovery curriculum: targeted to grade 4 and adaptable for K–12 12–12:30 | Working lunch (provided) 12:30–3:30 | Interactive workshop featuring Investigating Ice Age Floods curriculum adaptable for grades K–12 3:00 or 3:30–4:00 | Nearby interpretive field studies with experts Cost: Free Ice Age Floods Institute mini-Grants available  To cover materials, transportation, STEM clock hour fee, etc. Learn more: iafi.org/k-12grants. Help Spread the Word: We encourage you to share this informative Ice Age Floods Workshops flyer with other educators to let them know about this opportunity!  For questions, comments, or ideas on where we might offer additional training, please contact Rick Reynolds, M.S.Ed., at rick@engagingeverystudent.com. Thanks for your interest and all you do to inspire our students to investigate our environment!  

The Palouse Falls and Cheney-Spokane Chapters of the IAFI invite you to a hike at Escure Ranch on the BLM Rock Creek Recreation Site on Saturday, March 14. The hike will start at 10:00 a.m. It will be led by Don Chadbourne, geologist and board member of the Cheney-Spokane Chapter, and Lloyd Stoess, president of the Palouse Falls Chapter. You will meet the leaders at the trailhead. Description of the Escure Ranch Hike The hike will begin and end at the Escure Ranch parking area, of the Bureau of Land Management, Rock Creek Recreation site. The hike will follow an old ranch road to Towell Falls and return on the same route. The out and back hike will be about 6.5 miles.  The trail is mostly double track over dirt and rock, with an elevation gain and loss of about 160 feet.  The hike is a pleasant trek through a remote scabland canyon.  Features will include rock benches and basins, flood bars, Mima mounds, mesas and waterfalls.  This hike is included in the book, On the Trail of the Ice Age Floods – Northern Reaches, by Bjornstad & Kiver.   Directions to the trailhead will be provided to hikers after registration. Click on the Register button to sign up for the hike. The hike will be limited to 30 hikers. Items to bring with you: appropriate shoes, day pack, water, snacks, appropriate clothing for changes in the weather, sun protection, emergency items, camera and binoculars. Walking poles will be helpful. The hike is free; however, donations for support of Chapter activities will be accepted. For additional questions, contact Don at 509-891-5875, or Lloyd at 509-954-3927. Map available for download: 11 x 17 LIDAR map of Escure Ranch Area showing our hiking route to Towell Falls (downloadable PDF)

At the Sandhill Crane Festival, March 20-22, 2026 in the beautiful Columbia Basin, Othello, WA, you’ll have the chance to explore the Ice Age Floods story through presentations and field trips, and see thousands of Sandhill Cranes, ducks, and geese as they gather against the stunning backdrop of the Saddle Mountains and sprawling cornfields. There is a fantastic lineup of geology and wildlife viewing opportunities, along with engaging talks, fun tours, hikes, and workshops for everyone to enjoy. Registration is now open with a registration deadline of March 15 at noon (No refunds after this date). All Events are offered on a first-come, first-served basis. Reservations are filled in the order received. Please note, Lectures, tours and hike participants must purchase a General Admission Ticket for $10.00.

Researchers have established, based on the pioneering work of Dr. J Harlen Bretz and JT Pardee, that over 140 Ancient Mega-Flood, including Noah's Flood are discussed in oral traditions worldwide. Professional geologist Bill Burgel will briefly discuss how the research related to the Missoula Floods and Bonneville Flood has opened up the possibility of mega-floods being the most likely explanation for the formation of the Mediterranean Sea, the Persian Gulf, The Bosphorus Straits, the English Channel, Chimu in Peru and the floodwaters on Mars. Mega-flood events are also being cited for the draining of Glacial Lake Agassiz, Glacial Lake Iroquois and the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone. 

This presentation will begin by defining what an Ice Age is and then looking at our dynamic planet and those major events that can lead to dramatic temperature changes. Also included will be a look at hazards here in the Pacific Northwest and why they occur.

This field trip will head north from Othello along the eastern edge of the Quincy Basin with stops on the Ephrata Fan and Soap Lake at the mouth of Grand Coulee. Moses Coulee parallels Grand Coulee to the west and has puzzled scientists to this day. Several plausible explanations to its origins have been proposed. This off-the-beat coulee is always a surprise to first time visitors.  On the way back to Othello, there will be stops at Potholes Coulee and Drumheller Channels which were two of the four outlets for the Missoula Floods exiting the Quincy Basin.  Go to www.othellosandhillcranefestival.com to sign up for this trip.

How do geologists know when the ice age floods actually occurred in the Spokane area? One method is to date the large flood-rafted erratic boulders. We explore the ages of the floods and the methods used to determine their dates and present newly gathered dates from the Spokane region revealing when the floods happened.  Presented by Glenn Cruickshank, vice president of the Ice Age Floods Institute (IAFI), Cheney-Spokane Chapter Registration is required.

The Lake Lewis Chapter of the Ice Age Floods Institute is sponsoring an informal (carpool) field trip focus on the geology in and around Richland, Washington

The 3-mile hike will be led by IAFICS board member geologist Michael Hamilton. It will take place along Rimrock Drive, which has spectacular views of Spokane and the Spokane Valley. The Glacial Outburst Flood Story will include a lot of "arm-waving," pointing out flood features both along the trail and with views to the east. The geology discussion will include details of another kind of flood that hit the Spokane area 14 million years ago. The hike will then cut to the west along one of the park's trails to find mysterious Mima mounds, and then loop back to the parking area.    

Saturday April 11—Lower Crab Creek.  We will meet on the east end of the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul & Pacific bridge in Beverly at 10:00am.  Over the day,  we will explore: 1) the tectonic  origins of Crab Creek “Coulee” and the Saddle Mountains; 2) impacts of Ice Age flooding on the area; 3) formation of prominent rockfall and landslides from the Saddle Mountains; and 4) how geology, weather and climate, and human activity have shaped sand dunes and salt flats in the area. The trip will conclude around 3pm giving participants plenty of time to get back to Ellensburg for Nick Zentner’s lecture.   More details will be forthcoming.  Field trip leader Karl Lillquist.

Details to come. Presented by Don Chadbourne, geologist and board member of the Ice Age Floods Institute (IAFI), Cheney-Spokane Chapter Registration is required. It will be linked here as soon as it has been posted to the library website. https://communitylibrary.net/library/athol/

Details to come. Presented by Don Chadbourne, geologist and board member of the Ice Age Floods Institute (IAFI), Cheney-Spokane Chapter Registration is required. It will be linked here as soon as it has been posted to the library website. https://communitylibrary.net/library/harrison/

Every student in the Northwest should experience the incredible science story of the megafloods that shaped our landscape and history. To help bring this story to life, the Ice Age Floods Institute, Engaging Every Student, and our partners are excited to invite K–12 educators to free special training events. Thanks to support from the Avista Foundation, we are offering free hybrid workshops where you will gain access to valuable resources designed to inspire students to investigate their local environment. New Curriculum Resources Participants will explore a new Ice Age Floods Detectives phenomena-based curriculum with supporting presentations targeted to 4th grade, as well as hands-on investigations from the National Park Service's Investigating Ice Age Floods curriculum. Both explore the megafloods that shaped the Northwest and are adaptable for grades K–12 Free STEAM Workshops for K–12 Educators Details (In-person with options to join us via Zoom): Location: Richland, WA: Mon., June 22, 2026 (register here: tinyurl.com/zbrhtpht) Featuring: Engaging classroom and field-based activities, including exciting ways to model Floods phenomena Stories of the megafloods that transformed the Northwest 18,000–12,000 years ago at the end of the Last Glacial Period Up to 7 Washington STEM Clock Hours and/or PDUs for license renewal in Oregon and other states Schedule: All workshops 9:00 am–4:00 pm (or half day) 9:00–12:00 | Interactive workshop featuring new Ice Age Floods Discovery curriculum: targeted to grade 4 and adaptable for K–12 12–12:30 | Working lunch (provided) 12:30–3:30 | Interactive workshop featuring Investigating Ice Age Floods curriculum adaptable for grades K–12 3:00 or 3:30–4:00 | Nearby interpretive field studies with experts Cost: Free Ice Age Floods Institute mini-Grants available  To cover materials, transportation, STEM clock hour fee, etc. Learn more: iafi.org/k-12grants. Help Spread the Word: We encourage you to share this informative Ice Age Floods Workshops flyer with other educators to let them know about this opportunity!  For questions, comments, or ideas on where we might offer additional training, please contact Rick Reynolds, M.S.Ed., at rick@engagingeverystudent.com. Thanks for your interest and all you do to inspire our students to investigate our environment!  

Every student in the Northwest should experience the incredible science story of the megafloods that shaped our landscape and history. To help bring this story to life, the Ice Age Floods Institute, Engaging Every Student, and our partners are excited to invite K–12 educators to free special training events. Thanks to support from the Avista Foundation, we are offering free hybrid workshops where you will gain access to valuable resources designed to inspire students to investigate their local environment. New Curriculum Resources Participants will explore a new Ice Age Floods Detectives phenomena-based curriculum with supporting presentations targeted to 4th grade, as well as hands-on investigations from the National Park Service's Investigating Ice Age Floods curriculum. Both explore the megafloods that shaped the Northwest and are adaptable for grades K–12 Free STEAM Workshops for K–12 Educators Details (In-person with options to join us via Zoom): Location: Spokane, WA: Mon., June 24, 2026 (register here: tinyurl.com/y78vcde9) Featuring: Engaging classroom and field-based activities, including exciting ways to model Floods phenomena Stories of the megafloods that transformed the Northwest 18,000–12,000 years ago at the end of the Last Glacial Period Up to 7 Washington STEM Clock Hours and/or PDUs for license renewal in Oregon and other states Schedule: All workshops 9:00 am–4:00 pm (or half day) 9:00–12:00 | Interactive workshop featuring new Ice Age Floods Discovery curriculum: targeted to grade 4 and adaptable for K–12 12–12:30 | Working lunch (provided) 12:30–3:30 | Interactive workshop featuring Investigating Ice Age Floods curriculum adaptable for grades K–12 3:00 or 3:30–4:00 | Nearby interpretive field studies with experts Cost: Free Ice Age Floods Institute mini-Grants available  To cover materials, transportation, STEM clock hour fee, etc. Learn more: iafi.org/k-12grants. Help Spread the Word: We encourage you to share this informative Ice Age Floods Workshops flyer with other educators to let them know about this opportunity!  For questions, comments, or ideas on where we might offer additional training, please contact Rick Reynolds, M.S.Ed., at rick@engagingeverystudent.com. Thanks for your interest and all you do to inspire our students to investigate our environment!  

How do geologists know when the ice age floods actually occurred in the Spokane area? One method is to date the large flood-rafted erratic boulders. We explore the ages of the floods and the methods used to determine their dates and present newly gathered dates from the Spokane region revealing when the floods happened.  Presented by Glenn Cruickshank, vice president of the Ice Age Floods Institute (IAFI), Cheney-Spokane Chapter, and Dr. Jim O'Connor, USGS Registration is required. It will be linked here as soon as it has been posted to the library website.

How do geologists know when the ice age floods actually occurred in the Spokane area? One method is to date the large flood-rafted erratic boulders. We explore the ages of the floods and the methods used to determine their dates and present newly gathered dates from the Spokane region revealing when the floods happened.  Presented by Glenn Cruickshank, vice president of the Ice Age Floods Institute (IAFI), Cheney-Spokane Chapter Registration is required. It will be linked here as soon as it has been posted to the library website.

 Giant Current Dunes or MegaRipple Marks – One of Bretz’ most important pieces of evidence for catastrophic flooding was the “giant current dunes.” These large-scale bedforms appeared as patterns of parallel ridges and swales on many aerial photographs in the flood channels in the scabland of Washington, but had escaped recognition from the ground because of their size.  Giant Current Dunes are visible west of Clark Fork near Castle Rock; however, the most prominent and visible Giant Current Dunes are located several miles east of Spirit Lake along Hwy 54 where the highway cuts through the dunes showing their undulating profile. The location of many of the telephone poles on the crest of these dunes accentuates these landforms. The dunes form transverse to the current direction, and form cusps that are convex upstream, with arms that point downstream. Furthermore, the size of the cusps appears to decrease in the direction of lower velocity. Internally, the dunes consist of gravel and pebble foresets. Giant current dunes exhibit an asymmetrical profile with the downstream (lee) slope steeper than the upstream slope. Crests range from 20 to 200m apart and heights range from 1 to 15m (Baker and Nummedal, 1978) and are among the largest measured throughout the Floods area. The Spirit Lake current dunes can also be easily recognized from the air by their characteristic pattern, accentuated by vegetation. This dune field is immediately in the path of the breakout from Lake Pend Oreille, and experienced some of the highest energy flows. Presented by Dr. Linda McCollum, president of the Ice Age Floods Institute (IAFI), Cheney-Spokane Chapter Registration is required. It will be linked here as soon as it has been posted to the library website (https://communitylibrary.net/library/spirit-lake/).

Save the date! Our chapter is planning a special late‑summer gathering on Saturday, August 29, in honor of J Harlen Bretz, whose birthday falls just a few days later (September 2). Bretz’s groundbreaking work on the Ice Age floods reshaped the scientific understanding of the Northwest—and we think that deserves a celebration. We’re still shaping the details, but expect a relaxed, community‑friendly event that highlights Bretz’s legacy and the remarkable landscapes he helped the world understand. More information will be posted as plans develop.   He mapped the scablands bold and bright, Said “Floods did this!” with all his might. For thirty years they told him “No”… ’Til evidence began to flow. So join us as we celebrate The man who made the floods make sense — A pre‑birthday bash for J Harlen Bretz, Who proved the skeptics wrong (immense!).