CFI's Yale Crew 2008

10 Resources for Getting into Trail Work

As many of you may know I am now working for the Pacific Crest Trail Association as their Southern California Regional Representative.  I love hiking, trails (especially the PCT) and I am honored to be an advocate for one of our National Scenic Trails.  Many people ask me how they can get involved with trails and how they could have a job like mine.  I have listed 10 resources for people looking to break into trail work, trail maintenance, and/or trail construction.  Without further ado…

1. Professional Trail Builders Association:  whether you are looking for a job or resources, this website will give you a great starting point.
2. The Student Conservation Association:  if you are 15 or older, you can get involved with this Conservation Association, check out their programs, opportunities to earn education awards and opportunities to live and work outdoors. 
3. The Rocky Mountain Youth Corps:  if you are 16 or older, you have the opportunity to be on one of the Corps Crews, living and working outside, earning an education awards and having a great experience.  I have worked with the Rocky Mountain Youth Corps (RMYC) before and they run a great program and support their crew members. 
4. Southwest Conservation Corps:  another opportunity for those 16 and older.  Southwest Conservation Corps (SCC) has a few offices in southern Colorado and Arizona and offers the opportunity to live and work in the outdoors.
5. The Colorado Fourteeners Initiative:  this is where I worked seasonally for two summers.  They have many options from volunteering, to becoming a volunteer peak steward or applying for one of their field positions.  If you are looking for experience, the Outdoor Leadership Intern (OLI) might be the position for you.
6. The Los Angeles Conservation Corps:  according to their website the LA Conservation Corps’ primary mission is to provide at-risk young adults and school-aged youth with opportunities for success by providing them with job skills training, education and work experience with an emphasis on conservation and service projects that benefit the community.”
7. The California Conservation Corps:  if you are between 18 and 25 this program could be for you.  Even though they tout “Hard work, low pay, miserable conditions…and more!” as their motto, their mission is “protecting and restoring California’s environment and responding to disasters, becoming stronger workers, citizens and individuals through their service.”
8. The Continental Divide Trail Alliance:  this is the youngest of the three major organizations advocating for the three north/south National Scenic Trails.  They have a volunteer program that grows every year.  If you are in the Rockies, check out their “Get Involved” page.
9. The Appalachian Trail Conservancy:  the ATC runs tons of trail projects each year.  To find out more, or to plan a volunteer vacation, check out their “Get Involved” page. 
10. The Pacific Crest Trail Association:  did you really think I wasn’t going to mention the PCTA?  Of course I am!  Whether you are looking to volunteer or searching for a job, the PCTA may have something for you.  Looking for volunteer work?  Click on the “Volunteer” icon on the right hand side bar.  Looking for season work?  We usually post seasonal (and full time) job opportunities on the left hand side bar, but just to be safe, check out our “employment” page. 

Bonus:

1. The American Hiking Society:  AHS runs many volunteer vacations.  In many instances you may end up working with one of the groups I mentioned above as many of their vacations coincide with projects that the SCA, PCTA, ATC etc. are running.  The AHS site give people a nation wide view of possibilities.
2. The US Forest Service:  The USFS has many opportunities for volunteering in your local forest.  Just look up your local forest and look for volunteer opportunities.  If you can’t find them on the website, give the Ranger Station a call, the should be able to point you in the right direction. 

Any resources I am missing?  Please let me know…

Section of old trail restored by CDTA volunteers

Mt. Massive 2009:  Continental Divide Trail Alliance

On July 9^th Joe and I met up with the Continental Divide Trail Alliance (CDTA) crew.  There were 12 people comprising their crew:  Randy, Mark, Wiley, Skip, Cooper, Aaron, Time, Clare, Colleen, Elizabeth, Ted and Ben.  All seemed very nice and enthusiastic about being there with us. 

Having just had such a wonderful time with our last group I was a bit apprehensive, how would the CDTA folks measure up?  What would it be like to work with adults again?  What about working with people that I just met as opposed to the Overland group who we had gotten to know over a long period of days? 

Luckily, the CDTA group was a wonderful, fun group of adults.  We had a chef in camp, Tim, so I didn’t have to do any cooking or helping in the kitchen tent (I think I did get a little spoiled).  Had to do a few dishes but with so many people, the job sharing was easy. 

On the 10^th we hiked up to the work site.  It’s a long hike up there and my neck hurts.  I noticed the pain when I rolled over last night in my sleeping bag and then again pouring milk into my cereal.  It should make trail work a ton of fun when I can’t move my neck so much (sarcasm).  At the work site we got a few steps put in and finished up a set of stairs that the Overland group started. 

On the 11^th we decided to do some restoration work at the upper end of the Willow Resto area.  It was a bit nicer of a hike (read: shorter) and with my neck still hurting, I was ok with a shorter hike.  I also ran in to my friend, trail name Mom, as she had hiked to the summit on the 10^th and was camped out not far from our stretching area.  She heard us and came out for a quick hello. 

We ended up putting in a good number of grass plugs (transplants) and re-contouring 100 or so feet of old trail.  We also fixed some tread on the new trail so it’s a bit easier and more sustainable for walking.  Unfortunately, we got stormed off early so work got a bit curtailed.  Fortunately, that meant that I could relax and chat with our volunteers since we had more time in camp. 

We ended up having a great evening full of storytelling and laughter.  It was great to be with the group and it was great to have some spirited, strong women around.  I always feel fortunate when I have the opportunity to work with strong women in the field, and this was no exception. 

Overall, CDTA was a great group to work with.  They all have a great spirit and I hope our paths cross again.