In his senior year of high school two of his compositions, Pastoral Sketches for Violin and Piano and Spanish Dance, came to the attention of George F. McKay, then an instructor at the University of Washington.

[2] Wehr started out studying music composition, and later expanded to poetry classes with Roethke in his senior year of university.

Northwest School Painter Mark Tobey was introduced to Wehr in 1949 by mutual friend and pianist Berthe Poncy Jacobson.

Tobey introduced him to Guy Anderson and Morris Graves at a Christmas party in 1949 and later Kenneth Callahan, Pehr Hallsten, and Helmi Juvonen.

With his group of friends gone home for the holiday, he drew on memories of the Oregon coast and the picture agate found in thundereggs, producing several landscapes that were no more than 6 in (15 cm) on a side.

In a similar reflection, Bishop commented on Wehr transporting new works in an old briefcase and showing them at a local coffee house, and the effect the painting had on those viewing them.

Some of the letters grew into more in-depth correspondence, including conversations with Vincent Price, Suzanne Langer and Katharine Hepburn.

[3] In the early 1980s working with Republic councilman Bert Chadwick, Wehr helped with the initial setup and organization of the Stonerose Interpretive Center.

[3] While traveling with Kirk Johnson in 1992, Wehr visited the Black Hills Institute and saw the skeleton of the Tyrannosaurus rex Sue five days before it was seized by the FBI.