Building a Treehouse for the Future of Wolves
- Emily Evans
- Aug 8, 2024
- 4 min read
By Evan Skytte, Development Director
Published in Wolf Tracks vol. 41, no. I
High up in the trees surrounding Wolf Haven, there is a world that is home to ravens, red-tailed hawks, bald eagles, and other avians. These flying creatures have a unique view of the landscape – a literal bird’s-eye view of the wolf sanctuary and the prairie. This year, Wolf Haven is embarking on an ambitious project that will bring this very view to all our visitors. We are in the beginning stages of a big capital campaign fundraiser and we are excited to announce the crown jewel of this project is a new state-of-the-art treehouse learning center!
Just outside our Tenino sanctuary, there is a community gathering space with a grove of mature Douglas fir trees nestled into a tight pocket. Several years ago, while walking in this grove, Wolf Haven’s former Executive Director, Diane Gallegos, had a flash of inspiration. As a fan of the reality television show Treehouse Masters, she suspected this would be a perfect location for a professionally crafted modern treehouse. Diane initiated a partnership with the team behind the show, Nelson Treehouse, who are based out of Falls City, Washington.
Soon the partnership turned into a contract with Nelson Treehouse to design and build a state-of-the-art treehouse learning center, which we plan to construct in fall 2024. This treehouse will be 17 feet off the ground with stellar views of our protected Mima mound prairie and forest communities. To access the treehouse, there will be both a direct stairway path and an ADA accessible ramp from the parking lot. Part of this project also includes the construction of a new wolf enclosure which will allow us to provide sanctuary to more animals and give visitors a spectacular (non-disruptive) vista view of wolves from the treehouse balcony.
The need for a new learning center is particularly important as our current educational programs are delivered in our administrative building… in a room that functions as a kitchen, staff break room, and occasional veterinarian space. For visitors who are being introduced to wolves and wolf conservation efforts, moving our education programs out of this multipurpose room and into a modern treehouse classroom will create and inspire a natural sense of awe and wonder. This is especially true for the hundreds of visiting children each year who come to Wolf Haven on school trips. With their imaginations literally elevated as they learn about wolves, ecology, and conservation, the treehouse will forge unique experiences and memories.
The timing of this project is critical, and it’s about more than just a treehouse. In the heart of western Washington, wild wolves are beginning to naturally recolonize, with the Big Muddy pack recently finding a home near Mount Adams. Just as wolves were hunted to the brink of extinction throughout the United States, wolves were fully extirpated from Washington by the 1930s. Now, 100 years later, they are finally coming back!
In coming years, it is anticipated that wild wolves will use existing natural corridors to recolonize much of western Washington, from south of Mount St. Helens up to the Olympic Peninsula. The presence of wolves in this environment can produce positive cascading impacts that benefit countless species. However, the presence of wolves can also stoke fear among humans, so we must engage and inform communities in a way that prepares them to coexist with wild wolf populations safely and knowledgeably. To encapsulate the full scope of this campaign project, we are calling it: The Future of Wolves!
We envision a future where the public has a compassionate understanding of a natural, balanced ecosystem. As the only wolf sanctuary in the world accredited by the Global Federation of Animal Sanctuaries, Wolf Haven is uniquely poised to be a leader in Washington’s wolf recovery efforts. By offering a variety of educational presentations about wolves and wolfdogs, and advocating for wolves in the wild, we hope to inspire actions that foster empathy while also maintaining sensitivity to the needs and concerns of those who are affected by wolves. Wolf Haven’s treehouse learning center will act as a hub to help surrounding communities learn about the natural need for wolves in the ecosystem and will offer programs to help develop the next generation of wolf conservationists and supporters!
Once completed, we will fill the treehouse learning center with inspirational educational components. ADA viewfinders on the balconies will allow visitors to look at natural prairie wildlife as well as view wolves inside the sanctuary. We plan to have interactive and interpretive learning activities as well, such as a replica wolf den and a tabletop gaming system for visitors to engage with and learn about balanced ecosystems. The ramp leading up to the treehouse will have informative descriptions of the native plant species found on our prairie, created in collaboration with neighboring Native American tribes whose ancestral land Wolf Haven now resides upon. By providing a deep context of how wolves have historically existed on this landscape for thousands of years, we aim to inspire learning about wolf conservation with a long view into the future.
As excited as we are about this project, we cannot do it alone. We are currently working with individual donors, businesses, and private foundations to secure the resources to complete this project. We need to raise $750,000 to support the project, with a goal of constructing the treehouse in fall 2026. All major donors to the project will be recognized on a donor wall placed inside the treehouse, but regardless of the amount of support provided, we hope everyone comes to Wolf Haven to view this amazing new project once it is completed!
Wolves have been missing from the landscape for over 100 years, and we are at a crucial turning point to help lay the groundwork for permanent recovery as they naturally return. With a new treehouse learning center, we can help our neighbors understand wolves and prepare them for living with wild wolf populations. Together, we can rebalance the ecosystem, elevate wolf education, and make a difference for the future of wolves. We hope you consider joining us in bringing wolves, and Wolf Haven International, into that future.
*to view a 3D scale model of our treehouse learning center, stop by our Visitor Center during business hours!
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