The Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe opened a gear-lending library to help tribal members enjoy the outdoors safely.
The tribe’s summer youth work program inspired the idea, said Kim Sager-Fradkin, the tribe’s wildlife program manager. With kids often requiring proper gear for field work, she saw a broader need.
“You can have a really uncomfortable experience if your first time in the woods is in jeans and a sweatshirt and you get soaking wet and you’re freezing,” she said. “We realized that community-wide access to gear was an issue.”
There are sizes for kids and adults in just about every piece of gear. The inventory is extensive, including rain jackets, hiking footwear, sleeping bags, tents, headlamps, snowshoes, camping stoves, first aid kits, binoculars, a variety of guidebooks, life vests for boating and orange safety vests for hunters.
From Sager-Fradkin’s experience helping oversee the summer work program, she noticed that many youth seem unaware of outdoor recreation options or potential careers in natural resources. For many, limitations come from nothaving access to proper gear, which can be expensive, but also makes a difference when exploring the region’s wet and chilly temperate rainforest environment.
“We want to help get people outside and facilitate their comfort as well as accessibility by not having to buy a bunch of expensive gear,” Sager-Fradkin said.
Rules for checking out gear from the tribe’s program include returning items in good condition and assuming responsibility if items are stolen, lost or broken.
So far, a few tribal members have checked out everything needed for backpacking trips, and others have simply borrowed a pair of hiking boots or some rain gear. One youth was able to borrow gear when going out on a cougar capture, Sager-Fradkin said, and one woman checked out everything she needed to take her family car camping at Klahowya near Sol Duc last summer.
The tribe worked with the Washington Trails Association, which manages its own gear sheds, to get an idea of what to stock and how to manage it. The project was supported by a grant from the Next 100 Coalition and USDA-Forest Service National Forest Community Recreation Fund.
The Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe’s gear library includes a wide selection of rain gear. Story and photos: Tiffany Royal
