Description
Start Date-End Date: 09/17/2020-09/17/2020
Land Manager Office: USFS - Clear Creek Ranger District
Land Manager Contact: Ralph Bradt
Funding Partner:
Programmatic Partner:
Summary: *THIS PROJECT IS FULL WITH A CONSIDERABLE WAITLIST* Spend a Thursday in the scenic Mt. Evans Wilderness on our third project on Hell's Hole Trail.
Description: Project photo courtesy of Liz Brown, @lizzzbrown
Read Before You Register! Need-to-Know Details:
We greatly appreciate you volunteering your time and energy to care for Colorado's outdoor places during COVID-19. To help provide a fun and safe experience for all, there are a few temporary changes to be prepared for:
You may only register yourself.Every volunteer must sign our digital COVID-specific forms ahead of time to be able to attend.
You must provide your own food.VOC will not be providing meals at this time.
You must bring a face mask and work gloves.Pleaseclick herefor our full packing list of required and recommended items.
Please come prepared to use the bathroom outdoors.VOC is not providing portalets at this time and public restrooms may be unavailable. Pleaseclick herefor more information on how to "go" outside.
Cancellation & Waitlists:Due to this year's limited number of projects and volunteer spots, we expect projects to fill quickly with waitlists. If you need to cancel, please emailoutreach@voc.orgas soon as possible so we can free your spot for another volunteer and have a full workforce. If you are waitlisted for multiple projects, please call us at 303-715-1010 ext. 130 and we can help you find an open project, if available.
Where You'll Be:
Nestled in Arapaho National Forest and Pike National Forest, the Mount Evans Wilderness spans more than 74,000 acres and boasts the best of Colorado's high alpine environments: towering peaks, tundra, bristlecone pines, bighorn sheep, and mountain goats. Just 30 miles west from Denver, it is one of the more easily accessible Wilderness areas from the city and attracts many day hikers.
What You'll Do:
On this project, you'll spend the day among lush fall foliage as you address critical maintenance issues along a four-mile stretch of the Hell's Hole Trail. Work will include constructing and maintaining drainage features, as well as clearing encroaching vegetation from the trail corridor. No experience is required, but volunteers should be prepared for a physical challenge and a potentially long hike.
Why It Matters:
With close proximity to Denver, thousands of users - most frequently day hikers - visit the Hell's Hole Trail throughout the year. Such high use requires significant maintenance to prevent erosion, keep users on the trail, and reduce damage to the natural environment. Your efforts will help ensure this popular trail can sustain heavy traffic while offering a safe and sustainable experience for all.
About Volunteers for Outdoor Colorado (VOC)
Volunteers for Outdoor Colorado (VOC) is the state's oldest, largest, and leading outdoor stewardship nonprofit organization. Founded in 1984 to motivate and enable people to become active stewards of Colorado's natural resources, VOC has engaged nearly 120,000 people in more than 1,000 volunteer projects for a donated labor value of $24 million. Through award-winning youth and volunteer programs, leadership training, capacity-building programs, and collaborative efforts with nonprofits and land management agencies, VOC is an invaluable resource in Colorado, especially as our outdoor stewardship needs are approaching near-crisis levels. For more information, visit www.voc.org or call 303-715-1010.
Latitude/Longitude: 39.677093, -105.658282
Additional Information: We greatly appreciate you volunteering your time and energy to care for Colorado's outdoor places during COVID-19. To help provide a fun and safe experience for all, there are a few temporary changes to be prepared for:
You must provide your own food.VOC will not be providing meals at this time.
You must bring a face mask and work gloves.Pleaseclick herefor our full packing list of required and recommended items.
Please come prepared to use the bathroom outdoors.VOC is not providing portalets at this time and public restrooms may be unavailable. Pleaseclick herefor more information on how to "go" outside.
Camping Available: No
Physical Difficulty: Moderate
High Altitude Project: Yes
Desired Number of Volunteers: 15
Total Adult Volunteers Attended: 14
Total Youth Volunteers Attended: 0
Total Volunteer Days: 14
Total Unique Volunteers: 14
Total Volunteer Hours: 158
Staff Hours: 40
Stipend Hours: 0
Project Summary: 12 volunteers, 2 crew leaders and VOC staff lead Anna Z. spent the day performing trail maintenance on the Hell's Hole trail in the Mt. Evans Wilderness. The morning was chilly but by the afternoon the temps reached the mid 70s with sunny skies and a light breeze. One crew, lead by Martin H. hiked a mile up, right above the entry point to the Wilderness, while the second crew, led by Mark H. began their day about half way up the trail from the trailhead. Both crews focused on quality over quantity but still managed to get a lot of work accomplished over the span of the day.
Successes and Challenges: Successes included work accomplishments, good camaraderie on the trail and having a newly certified leader, Rachel L. on Martin's crew leading some of the work when Martin was doing other things. Challenges included the fact that Steve West was to mentor on this project but got sick the night before. With COVID worries, we determined he would not be coming out. This was also Anna's first project as a staff lead for VOC and not having Steve there caused some additional stress ahead of the day. Technical support was provided by Mark and Martin and two volunteers had spot devices in case of any type of emergency. None occurred.
Lessons Learned: A few things would have proven to be helpful. One was radios. The original plan called for both crews to go up a mile and then work backward toward the trail. This was changed as we were hiking in and the second crew decided to stay at about the half way point. This meant that Anna was running back and forth between the two crews all day long checking in on needs, work, questions, etc. Radios would have prevented that much time spent hiking back and forth. A second was buckets. Mark had done the other two projects at Hell's Hole this year with Steve and made the call not to bring buckets for the crews. We could have used them on Martin's crew for sure. So, if tools are available at the project, bring them up, even if you don't know for sure whether you will need them.
Special Notes:
Stewardship Education:
Key Concerns or Comments from Staff or Volunteers: A key concern for me as the VOC staff lead was that there were two volunteers who were slack on wearing their masks. I tried to point this out a few times but they didn't listen. One was Mark H. which was difficult due to his crew leadership. As the first project, I felt conflicted in how much I needed to push back, especially knowing that if Mark got upset that would affect the overall project.
Description of Accidents/Incidents: None.
Description of Work Completed:
Details
| 18 and older |
