We rearranged our travel schedule when we learned that Wolf Haven International was once again open to visitors (with advance reservations). We first learned of this special place through a former work colleague, Valerie Pena, who was Director of the Biomedical library at Penn. Sue now eagerly awaits the arrival of the sanctuary’s quarterly publication, Wolf Tracks, to catch up on their many activities.

Wolf Haven International is a sanctuary for captive-born wolves and the residents are cared for in a wolf-centric, protected environment. The sanctuary includes 36 acres of protected coastal prairie, the Patrick Vance Dunn Memorial Prairie. The quiet and beauty of the prairie touched and inspired us much as seeing the wolves.

The wolf sanctuary in Tenino, WA has been closed to visitors for the past two years due to the pandemic. On a recent Sunday, we were delighted to be able to join a morning tour. It was overcast and cool and a perfect day to visit.

We began the tour near the prairie just outside the sanctuary where we were thrilled to be treated to a spontaneous and hauntingly beautiful wolf chorus: a number of the residents from across the sanctuary howling together. It was truly mesmerizing and we were so awe-struck that we didn’t think to try to record it. Wolf Haven provides a link to a howling recording at the bottom of the left-hand menu on this page. It was sure to be a one-of-a-kind experience for us, one we will never forget.

Seeing a few of the residents (sightings are not guaranteed) and learning about wolves and their habitat was fascinating and well worth our rearranging our schedule.

A visit to the near-by town of Tenino, WA was also a treat. The town achieved national notoriety during the Great Depression when the town government issued wooden money for use by town residents. They again printed wooden currency during the COVID-19 recession to help local residents.

When the Olympia Brewing Company closed, the space was cleverly converted to bank use.

Finally, a walk through the town led us past the library which made us think of our colleague, Valerie Pena, once again and the the reason for our visit to this part of Washington.