Backcountry Volunteering

[MattC]

I'd like to start a discussion about "giving back" as some like to call it. Some of the activities folks engage in include:

-trail work
-leanto/shelter/privy/bridge construction and maintenance
-leading hikes
-teaching workshops (orienteering, wilderness first aid, LNT, etc.)
-search and rescue
-advocacy for organizations and issues
-helping survey for maps and guides
-summit stewarding
-a bunch of other stuff I'm probably neglecting


Some do all kinds of stuff through various organizations, some just do their bit on their own picking up trash, etc. Even the small acts are useful, IMO.

So what have you done, intend to do, would like to do? Through a group? On your own? What was rewarding? Were there problems, issues, difficulties?

I'll chime at some point with my own experiences so far.

Matt

 

[Jasper]

I would be suprised if

I would be surprised if the members of this site do not give back in some way or another.

I was very active with a Boy Scout Troop when my children were teenagers. The troop did an one trip a month dispite the weather. A great intro to the outdoors for kids that might not have had the opportunity.

Now I am helping to lead local AMC hikes.

If we do not give back, who will.

 

[Tom Rankin]

-trail work
-leanto/shelter/privy/bridge construction and maintenance
-leading hikes

Hey, Matt! Glad to see you are leading hikes for the 3500 Club!

Laurie and I do the same, she volunteers on a board, we do trail work, lean-to maintenance, fire tower sitting, and we give a few bucks here and there to hiking related organizations.

For a larger scope of giving back, see this thread:

http://vftt.org/forums/showthread.php?t=12721

 

[carole]

I often find threads like this become a ‘brag-fest’ with someone always having to top what others have done (kind of like ‘the’ lists ). I hope that doesn’t happen here but that others will share their efforts whether big or small. I won’t recount what I have done but will say that I have found that what little I have done has brought as much, if not more, satisfaction than the hiking goals I have accomplished.

 

[MattC]

Hey, Matt! Glad to see you are leading hikes for the 3500 Club!

Thanks Tom. That's actually what got me thinking about this. I did do my first "official" hike lead this past weekend, although I did once lead a small group in the past as a sub for another leader. So, to try to shape the direction of this thread a little more before others start to post, I'll write a little more.

So far I have:

-Done some trail work. A couple of trips, actually cutting a new trail. Incredibly rewarding. I intend to do more. The only possible downside to this is some physical issues with my hands and wrists that may arise, but I think if I'm careful that shouldn't be a problem.

-Summit/fire tower stewarding/interpretation on Overlook Mt. Again very rewarding. Almost no down side. I had thought maybe the crowds would get old, but then I realized that's the whole point-it's a really popular mountain, which is why summit stewards are important. I was surprised at how fun this experience was.

-And then leading the hike this past weekend. Again very rewarding, and the hikers were all very nice people. However, there was a little bit of an issue. The whole dynamic of trying to keep a group together as far as their speeds, as well as the issue of what to do or say if someone says or does something "inappropriate" or maybe their clothing or gear isn't exactly appropriate. None of these were huge issues on my hike, thankfully, but I made some observations of little things that could potentially lead to problems. I will definitely lead again, but I think I need to work on this stuff and discuss it with other leaders on and offline.

So, that's kind of where I'm looking for this discussion to go. What people do and have done, and what's been good and bad, what they need to work on, etc. I remember that other thread Tom linked to, but for this thread I was looking to discuss the more traditional backcountry volunteering stuff like I listed above, not really stuff like charities and blood donations, although those are nice things to do.

And, Carole, I'm definitely not looking to start a "brag-fest." This is not about "I do this, aren't I great?", this is more about "I did this, and I will/won't do it again because..." or "I want to do this again, but I have to work on X skill first...", etc.

I hope that clarifies. So, any takers?

Matt

 

[rhihn]

Hi Matt,

No "bragging" here (not much to brag about!). In recent years I've been doing a little trailwork for the 46ers and have served as recording secretary for the organization. Retirement is impending, and this year I'm planning to do more trailwork with them. I'd like to get a little more involved with the Cat3500 as well, as time permits.

 

[Toe Cozy]

I signed up for a free workshop at the beginning of May through the GMC about corridor monitoring. I am hoping it will allow me to develop my skills of navigating and give me a different purpose for visiting the woods. I am a little nervous about whether or not I'll be capable of doing a "good" job. I mean, I know nothing about corridor monitoring. (I guess that's the purpose of the workshop)I really like the GMC and value their existence so I feel good about doing things with/for them. So, we'll see how that goes and what comes of it.

A couple summers ago I carried two loads of bark mulch in to some privvies on the LT. That was a work out! About 40 lbs of the stuff! But it was a good feeling to be doing something so useful and tangible to help the LT and it required no skill on my part. Grunt work. I can do that.

I have always been intrigued by the idea of doing the volunteer work crew "vacation" (also with the GMC). HA! Vacation. Working for a week no matter what the weather on some difficult trail project is not the typical vacation. I always hesitate because I'm not sure I could hack it. I don't know if I'm tough enough. But someday I might give it a try.

I have also entertained thoughts of trying my hand at writing some type of article for their quarterly publication. That would rock.

So, I've got ideas and plans and soon I will have the time to implement them since I'm leaving my audiology job at the end of May and have no future plans yet. Yikes.

 

[peakbagger]

I will make a plug for national trail day events (June 8th). They are usually a good way to help out a local club and meet some folks. Unfortunately the date usually lines up with bug season up north, but a a little Deet amongst friends doesnt hurt . Not many listed on the website yet but RMC usually has something interesting to do. Its a good opportunity to help out a group in an area you hike in, and always a good place to get some questions answered by some "locals".

 

[carole]

Volunteering has been part of my life since I was young but not in the hiking arena. That was sparked by the ice storm of Jan.’08 when I saw the immense damage done and work needed, especially in my local area. I saw the work done by a small few and knew I had to contribute somehow. But what could I do and what good would it accomplish was my concern?

I started small with trash cleanup my first project. That may seem small but this hiking area had a parking lot that was becoming a literal garbage dump and the trails and summit were close behind. I was afraid it would be a thankless job and that my effort would be futile. Surprisingly it was not. Many people thanked me for my work and as time progressed and the trash was gone, less trash reappeared to the point now there is very little and it often is picked up before I get to it.

Now is a great time to help out on the trails by tossing aside the fallen debris from the long winter, picking up the trash appearing from the melting snow, clearing leaves and branches from drainage to alleviate ponding on the trail, and/or offering to help another volunteer to give trail work a try, even making it a point to stay on the trail rather than going around muddy or wet spots will make a difference.

 

[Puck]

I have adopted a trail in the White Mountains through the AMC.
I feel the program pampers me. I have a place to stay, meals, tools, showers etc.
The work we do is important and the gratitude and accomodations expressed is overwhelming.

(That said I wish they can leave a pen by the tool sign out sheet)

 

[Mohamed Ellozy]

Now is a great time to help out on the trails by tossing aside the fallen debris from the long winter, picking up the trash appearing from the melting snow, clearing leaves and branches from drainage to alleviate ponding on the trail, and/or offering to help another volunteer to give trail work a try, even making it a point to stay on the trail rather than going around muddy or wet spots will make a difference.

Great advice, Carole! May I add: Carry a small saw with you; it will allow you to deal with small blowdowns before the trail crews get to them. Also, you can saw off the branches of a blowdown that is too big for you to remove; this will make passage much easier. My favorite is the Super Sierra Saw.

 

[Jason Berard]

I maintain a part of the AT near my house, and am becoming the corridor monitor in a couple weeks for the same section. Its only 5 miles from my house, and requires very little time in the big scheme of things (about 16 hours a year). It is a place I hike regularly anyways, so I just bring my pruners and sierra saw along, and do whatever needs to be done. The only " hard " thing to do is clean out the water bars twice a year, but even that is pretty easy, as the are only 6 on my section. On the other hand, I've found it immensely rewarding. I feel like it is "my mountain" to take care of, which is really cool. Also, I have a much deeper connection with the area as far as wildlife and flowers, etc. I have gained far more than I have given, but like Puck said, the work is critical, and deeply appreciated. I think whatever way one can find to give back, that works for wherever you are in life, is great! There are so many ways, and they are all important.

great thread!

 

[bubba]

I have volunteered close to home on the Finger Lakes/North Country Nat'l Scenic Trails in the past doing trail work (post logging) and establishing a new shelter at a neglected hunting cabin that was donated by a landowner.

I was surprised that this didn't link me closer to the club organizations who sponsored the work projects. I felt I was there (like others) to just work, rather than develop further into any association-ship... but then, maybe I'm a geek!

Like many, I donate to organizations, but always make sure I encourage others who sit on boards and offer their valuable time. (Thanks! Great work Dick, Laurie, Christine...)

Oh yeah, I am always doing trail work while I am hiking. I'll take the extra moment to remove a fallen limb or dislodged stone, kick a drainage run free of debris and re-pile a fallen cairn. Since I was young I have always left a camp "cleaner than I found it" and will pick up litter on the trail from some kind hiker who, I am sure, was unaware that their trail snack wrapper had fallen from their pocket.

 

[Fisher Cat]

Like Puck, we volunteer through the AMC (though not being members)and have adopted a trail. I speak not just for myself, but also my wife, sister-in-law, and her husband, so as you see, we do it as a family. We also have assisted in Alpine/Woodland Flower Watch as well. I find it tremendously rewarding and for myself it continues a streak I started when 17 by volunteering through Gary Carr and the Andro Ranger Station working in the Great Gulf. NH is my home and its my way of giving back. I wouldn't have it any other way and its where I spend my vaca time each year. I love spilling out of the woods at the end of the day all cut up, scratched, sweaty, and all that stuff, knowing others wil enjoy the work put into it. Its contagious too, as now I find myself carrying basic tools to move, say a blowdown or such, whenever I'm just hiking for the fun of it.

 

[Solitary]

Well I know he's not one to toot his own horn, so I'll mention that MonadnockVol does lots of this kind of stuff:

Rescue on Monadnock

- Solitary