Point North - My Answers

I should probably do my best to answer the questions and flaunt my ignorance of my local environment before challenging others to do so.

1) Point north. Easy. Which way's the North End?

2) What time is sunset today? Around 7, I think.

3) Trace the water you drink from rainfall to your tap. Rain freezes in the mountains, runs down to a reservoir in the spring, and then into Tacoma Water, and to my taps.

4) When you flush, where do the solids go? What happens to the waste water? I'm guessing Commencement Bay.

5) How many feet above sea level are you? My condo is probably 3 or 400 feet above sea level.

6) What spring wildflower is consistently among the first to bloom here? Cherry trees. But those aren't really flowers. And those little yellow and purple flowers that always seem way too early. I think they're violets.

7) How far do you have to travel before you reach a different watershed? Can you draw the boundaries of yours? Hmm. The Snake Lake Watershed is probably the next one to me. I don't know which one I'm in. A Commencement Bay Watershed I guess.

8) Is the soil under your feet, more clay, sand, rock or silt? I'll take pavement for $500, Alex. Really, no idea. So I'm going to go for sand and rock.

9) Before your tribe lived here, what did the previous inhabitants eat and how did they sustain themselves? I'm in a tribe? I'd say salmon for the Puyallups who lived here before me. Lots of fish, probably berries.

10) Name five native edible plants in your neighborhood and the season(s) they are available. Huckleberries and blackberries in August. Hmm. Are clams plants? (Just kidding).

11) From what direction do storms generally come? I used to watch them come up over the Sound from Olympia at my parent's place. So I'm going to say South and West.

12) Where does your garbage go? Tacoma Landfill near Fircrest.

13) How many people live in your watershed? About a hundred thousand maybe?

14) Who uses the paper/plastic you recycle from your neighborhood? No idea.

15) Point to where the sun sets on the equinox. How about sunrise on the summer solstice? Wherever it sets tonight is where I'll point. No idea on the solstice.

16) Where is the nearest earthquake fault? When did it last move? I'd say the Nisqually fault, which I believe shook us all up in 2001. It's under Anderson Island I think.

17) Right here, how deep do you have to drill before you reach water? No idea.

18) Which (if any) geological features in your watershed are, or were, especially respected by your community, or considered sacred, now or in the past? Mount Rainier was revered before, but I'm not sure that's in my watershed.

19) How many days is the growing season here (from frost to frost)? Frost to frost? At least 150 days I'd bet. 5 months maybe?

20) Name five birds that live here. Which are migratory and which stay put? Goldfinch (state bird), Bald Eagles, Ospreys, Seagulls, hummingbird. I think they all stay put but the humming bird.

21) What was the total rainfall here last year? Too much.

22) Where does the pollution in your air come from? The port? Maybe. But probably mostly cars actually.

23) If you live near the ocean, when is high tide today? No idea.

24) What primary geological processes or events shaped the land here? Volcanoes.

25) Name three wild species that were not found here 500 years ago. Name one exotic species that has appeared in the last 5 years. Ivy. And parrots in Gig Harbor within the last five years.

26) What minerals are found in the ground here that are (or were) economically valuable? No idea.
27) Where does your electric power come from and how is it generated? Hydro-electric, mostly. I think Tacoma Power has a dam out aways.

28) After the rain runs off your roof, where does it go? Again, I'm going to go with Commencement Bay.

29) Where is the nearest wilderness? When was the last time a fire burned through it? Toward Mount Rainier, probably. No idea on the fire.

30) How many days till the moon is full? I think we're a few weeks away because it's a sliver right now.

The Bigger Here Bonus Questions:
31) What species once found here are known to have gone extinct? No idea.

32) What other cities or landscape features on the planet share your latitude? Provence, I think. Maine, too, maybe. The Twin Cities are close.

33) What was the dominant land cover plant here 10,000 years ago? No idea.

34) Name two places on different continents that have similar sunshine/rainfall/wind and temperature patterns to here. Probably the west coast of Australia. And ... England?