OutdoorProject.org Partners with Westwind Stewardship Group

The Westwind Stewardship Group is an Oregon based 501(c)(3) non-profit organization with a mission to protect and manage "Westwind," a 529-acre coastal preserve on the Central Oregon Coast (between Cascade Head and Lincoln City) and to provide educational facilities and opportunities for all who use and visit the site. In fact, Westwind is one of the key campsite facilities used by another partner, Friends of Outdoor School. As of 2013, Westwind Stewardship Group has accepted the responsibility for running Camp Westwind, which was previously run by the YWCA.

Why Westwind Is So Important

Westwind itself is an absolutely important and unique nature preserve and a truly valuable learning environment. The site is a part of the Cascade Head Biosphere Reserve, one of three locations in Oregon designated by the United Nations and one of only 580 Biosphere Reserves in the world. Westwind is also part of the Cascade Head Marine Reserve that extends up to 3 miles off its sandy shores. The adjacent Salmon River is one five International Salmon Treaty Rivers on the Pacific Rim, meaning the river is a location for international measurement to determine the the relative health of salmon populations in the Northern Pacific Ocean.

Westwind falls within the Cascade Head Scenic Act of 1973, which completely bans further infrastructure development. Wording and concepts from this act were later rolled into much of the legal writing of the National Scenic Area Act of 1984. Home to four distinct ecosystems (coast, upland meadow, old-growth rain forest, and river estuary) evidence suggests that native people have inhabited the site for over 3,000 years. Westwind sees wildlife activity from a resident herd of Roosevelt elk, black bear, as well as resident mating bald eagles, black oyster catchers, peregrine falcons, Chinook and sockeye salmon, and numerous other species that call Westwind home.