Department of Geography: Faculty - John Hultquist

John Hultquist

I'm here at CWU teaching introductory classes of physical geography, currently doing two classes each quarter with fifty to eighty students in each of the six. My status is that of an adjunct. This either means I am (a) an associate, colleague, fellow member, crony, and comrade, or (b) I am extraneous and nonessential. My thesaurus does not rank the possibilities. Either way, I am here because long ago I "adjuncted" with Nancy in the manner of (a) I think, and because she is here, I am also.

The photograph (by Bruce Seivertson) is of me crossing a stream flowing from the Alpine Lakes Wilderness Area northwest of Ellensburg. The previous winter's massive snowfall flushed much from the mountains, including many bridges and trails. Going in, in the morning, I managed a graceful backdive into the stream. Here on the outbound journey, I appear much more in control. We went into the high country to visit the site of a shrinking glacier on the east side of Mt. Daniel. This is a foot-trail- only place and worth the effort. Otherwise, I'd be on a Tennessee Walking Horse, a mode of transport easier on my legs and lungs.

I grew up, far from mountains, in the old coal, oil, and gas fields of Western Pennsylvania. My hometown had a glass factory dependent on the local gas supply and it also had Clarion State College. I finished there and then went to the University of Cincinnati, just as the department there began strongly emphasizing urban and economic subjects. I finished there and went to Iowa, just as the department there was at the height of the urban/transportation/remote sensing/quantitative thing. With all that urban stuff, I then went to Idaho. Nice country. Many dogs, horses, and hikes later I moved to rural Kittitas County wherein lies Ellensburg and CWU. That is because I had long since "adjuncted" with Nancy, as indicated above.