Foundation grant hatches center improvements

SAGLE — Volunteers and grant funding are putting luster to yet another facet of the gem that is the Waterlife Disovery Center at the Sandpoint Hatchery.

The Waterlife Discovery Center is hosting an open house Saturday to commemorate the restoration of the hatchery’s caretaker residence, a modest 108-year-old dwelling off Lake-shore Drive that overlooks the Pend Oreille River. It runs from 1-4 p.m. There is no charge for admittance and light refreshments will be on hand.

“We’re encouraging people to come out and explore the grounds,” said Cheryl McKee of the Pend Oreille Chapter of Idaho Master Naturalists.

The Sandpoint Hatchery is the third-oldest such facility in the state. An underground spring was used to supply the hatchery with water, although it was later discovered that the water was too cold for successful aquaculture, according to Idaho Department of Fish & Game officials. The hatchery is now a cog in Fish & Game’s rainbow trout redistribution program.

A plan was hatched in the mid 1990s to develop an outdoor aquatic education center at the hatchery while retaining its use as a holding facility for rainbows destined for Panhandle lakes.

A partnership between Idaho Fish & Game and the Idaho Fish & Wildlife Foundation and contributions from the public led to the construction of fish-viewing window, viewing courtyard and an upland trail network.

With the outside grounds getting squared away, the Pend Oreille chapter of Idaho Master Naturalists turned inward to restore some shine to the caretaker’s dwelling, which had mainly been used as meeting and storage space over the years.

The chapter secured a $5,000 grant from the Idaho Fish & Wildlife Foundation to integrate the home into the Waterlife Discovery Center’s offerings. Fish & Game matched those funds to assist with maintenance-related matters, according to McKee.

The result is a refurbished interior that features a replica of a period caretaker’s office complete with hatchery ledgers, classroom space with microscopes, specimens of rainbow trout from the eye stage of development to fingerling stage and other hands-on materials. The grant also funded the purchase of an iPad and a theater room where educational DVDs can be displayed on a wall-mounted television.

McKee said the remodel is substantially done, although the chapter intends to seek additional grant funding to complete signage and other touches.

The chapter, whose volunteers serve as guides at the center, also plans to bring some variety to the various exhibits.

The center saw 800 visitors last year, largely by word-of-mouth recommendation or the simply the hatchery sign at the corner of Lakeshore and U.S. Highway 95.

“It is something people are interested in,” said McKee.