LANDSCAPES -- Three previously unlabeled geographic features, including a notch on Mount Rainier, were named recently by the Washington State Committee on Geographical Names.

At its regular semi-annual meeting Friday, the panel voted to sent three selections to the Board of Natural Resources for a final decision:

• Vancouver Notch in Pierce County. This V-shaped mountain pass, or notch, on the southern slope of Mt. Rainier would be named to honor Captain George Vancouver who described it in his journals during a voyage in 1792.
• Cooper Creek in Jefferson County. This three-mile long creek would be named to honor the Cooper family, whose members were of Native American origin and homesteaded in the area. The creek flows into Hood Canal at the Paradise Bay Estates community.
• Wildcat Pond in Grays Harbor County. This 10-acre pond along State Route 8 at McCleary would be named for the school mascot of nearby McCleary School, whose students proposed the name.

New proposals for naming or renaming presented to the committee last week for reviewed include:

• Hix Bay in San Juan County. Originally named for Cynthia and Louis Hix who purchased property surrounding this Shaw Island bay in 1888, the water body’s name has been misspelled on maps as ‘Hicks Bay’ for many years.
• Sq’emenen Bay in San Juan County. This proposed name for this bay on Shaw Island would replace the current name –Squaw Bay – with the Lummi Nation name for Shaw Island.
• Shaner Creek in Thurston County. This proposed name would commemorate Melvin Shaner who operated a business near the creek and worked to clean up the creek.

See a summary of each proposal, its location, proponents and opportunities to comment on the DNR website: