June 26th, 2009 by Sunyi
Today we awarded winners from our first ever photo contest! The WCVA awarded prize money for their wonderful shots of the county. It was fun holding a photo contest. It’s not as easy as you might think though, definitely fun but it does require time and management. We plan on adding all the images that were submitted as entries to our photo library which we will in turn use for our many publications and online to promote tourism in Washington County.
Barbara Scoles, Grand Prize - $1,000
We all reap the benefits here. The WCVA gets fabulous pictures and locals and visitors get to enjoy the scenery, contribute to the greater good of our community and tourism.
Congratulation to our photos contest winners!!!
When are you taking some shots? See current photo contest.
From L: Mary Lane Anderson, Kevin Pastores, Bob Wayt, Barbara Scoles, Scott McDonald, Ruthie Reinert,CEO-WCVA (missing-Bob Streicher, Larry Andreasen)
Tags: washington county oregon, WCVA
Posted in WCVA News | No Comments »
June 23rd, 2009 by Sylke Neal-Finnegan
Hikers discover the natural beauty of Cooper Mountain. The site is now home to the new Cooper Mountain Nature Park.
Amid the musical trill of the White-Crowned sparrow was the shrill call of a cicada, a sound I haven’t heard since I left the desert of Southern Nevada for the cooler, greener pastures of Northwestern Oregon. These insects, as naturalist James Davis pointed out, are not common west of the Cascade Range. So these desert dwellers, much like myself, found their way to the new Cooper Mountain Nature Park, which opens to the public June 27.
Washington County’s newest nature spot, located in Beaverton, features three miles of trails with varying difficulty through three distinct habitats – forest, prairie and oak woodlands. Our hour-long walk did not take us through all three miles, but what we didn’t cover trail-wise, we sure earned in newly-acquired knowledge.
Along the trail James pointed out many of the native plants and invasive species that lined the gravel trail. We were educated about the Willamette Valley Ponderosa Pine, which is being reintroduced to the area after virtually disappearing from years of logging and urban growth; spotted poison oak and learned how to identify it in the wild; saw a lone St. John’s Wort plant, which is used as an herbal treatment for depression; and discovered a couple of Bitter Cherry trees, which provide nourishment to various birds and wildlife.
Further evidence of wildlife living in the park included the discovery of mole holes and squirrel nests, while bird enthusiasts on the tour identified the songbirds behind the chorus of musical chirps.
For this desert girl, the guided walk through the park with a group of naturalists provided an eye-opening look into the wonders of nature. Although the loud sound of the cicadas made me a little homesick, the sweet singing of the birds made me realize that this is my home, and I wouldn’t trade it for, well , all the wine in the Willamette Valley.
For those who want to learn more about the wilds of Washington County, Cooper Mountain Nature Park will be hosting guided walks, star parties, garden demonstrations, wildlife talks and more throughout the summer. Check out our event calendar or visit the Tualatin Hills Park and Recreation District for more information
Tags: Cooper Mountain Nature Park, Tualatin, washington county, washington county oregon, Washington County parks, WCVA
Posted in Events, Nature, WCVA News | 2 Comments »
June 16th, 2009 by Sunyi
The results are in! The Washington County Visitors Association proudly announces the results of the inaugural photography contest. It was a difficult decision, as the WCVA staff reviewed submissions based on the following criteria:
- Originality
- Technical Excellence
- Composition
- Overall Impact
- Artistic Merit
- Relevance to Tourism
Thanks to all those who submited photos to our contest. And keep an eye out…you may just see one of YOUR Washington County photos in an advertisement or in our next Visitors Guide.
And the winners are (drum roll, please):
Grand prize: Swallow Squabble
Grand Prize Winner ($1,000) by ‘bescoles’, Barbara Scoles
Second Prize (x2): Henry Hagg Lake, Winter Sunrise
Second Prize ($500) by ‘moontan2008’, Bob Streicher
Second Prize: Springhill Rd, Harvest, Gaston
Second Prize ($500) by ‘mlaphoto’, Mary Lane Anderson
Third Prize (x4): Red Carpet
Third Prize ($250) by ‘Bobshots’, Larry Andreasen
Third Prize: Train Bridge
Third Prize ($250) by ‘kevinpastores’, Kevin Pastores
Third Prize: Jenkins-Estate, Cooper Mtn.
Third Prize ($250) by ‘yankeecam’, Bob Wayt
Third Prize: Scotch Church
Third Prize - ($250) 'scott.mcdonald1962', Scott McDonald
Tags: birding, Jenkins-Estate, Scotch Church, tourism, Tualatin, washington county oregon, WCVA
Posted in WCVA News | No Comments »
June 9th, 2009 by Allison George
A tale of your average day at the WCVA? A few weeks ago, a group of fun visitors stopped by our office looking for local hotel information- but that’s not all there is to this story. These weren’t your ordinary leisure travelers- they were engineering graduates from the University of Utah and they were here to race an electric car they’d built to compete in an “Electrathon” event. You won’t believe it by the photo- because they look as fresh as daisies- but they had just pulled an 11 hour overnight road trip after playing a brutal softball game the previous evening in Salt Lake City, Utah! One of them was also going to be interviewing for a job with a company located in the same building as our WCVA office.
The boys from Salt Lake City, UT. Hope they made it back in one piece!
Hopefully, they will see this blog and update us as to how they did on the race track! Thanks for stopping in guys!
Why, this car is aerodynamic….
Tags: Electrathon, Events, Visitors, washington county oregon, WCVA
Posted in Events, WCVA News | 1 Comment »
June 5th, 2009 by Allison George
Are you going to the Grand Floral Parade on Saturday, or watching it on television perhaps? If so, look very, very carefully for the green trim along the bottom of the St. Mary’s Academy float. It will surely be some of the finest tree branch artistry you’ll ever see- especially the front corner on the passenger side which- ahem- just so happened to be the section I worked on. O.k., o.k., it was a very small section and some of my coworker friends from the WCVA stayed longer volunteering as float decorators than I did. I’m sure their branch work is top-notch too.
Heft those tree trimmings Heather!
Make sure to cheer loudly for any Washington County representation in the parade: Tualatin High School Dance Team, Sunset High School, Washington County Fair & Rodeo Queen Melissa Weimar, and the Washington County Sheriff’s Posse. Speaking of posses and horses- cheer even louder for the volunteers on scooper duty!
Tags: Portland Rose Festival, volunteer, volunteering, WCVA
Posted in Arts & Culture, Events | 2 Comments »