Description
Start Date-End Date: 07/09/2021-07/11/2021
Land Manager Office: BLM - Gunnison Field Office
Land Manager Contact: Jim Lovelace
Funding Partner:
Programmatic Partner: Colorado Fourteeners Initiative
Summary: Registration opens June 1. Restore a route to the summit on this 3-day project.
Description: Project photo by Michael Strobo
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 sign up for one or all days of this project, though we encourage multi-day registration to limit the number of interactions and potential exposure.
You may only register yourself. Every volunteer must sign our digital COVID-specific forms ahead of time to be able to attend.
You must pack your own lunches. Please see below for more information on meals.
You must bring work gloves. Please click here for our full packing list of required and recommended items.
If you are fully vaccinated,you may work without a mask. If you are not yet fully vaccinated or if you prefer to wear a mask for any reason, please continue to wear a mask on VOC projects. We will have spare masks available if needed.
Cancellation & Waitlists: Due to limited spots on this year's projects, we expect projects to fill quickly with waitlists. If you need to cancel, please email outreach@voc.org as 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. 116 and we can help you find an open project, if available.
Where You'll Be:
Handies Peak is one of the most prominent "14ers" in Colorado's scenic San Juan Mountains, located between Silverton and Lake City. With access to the summit, the Grizzly Gulch Trail is a difficult yet rewarding hike that sees 5,000-7,000 visitors a year and passes through wildflowers, beautiful meadows, and an alpine basin along the way.
What You'll Do:
On this remote project with VOC volunteers and others from the Colorado Fourteeners Initiative (CFI), you'll spend three days surrounded by stunning views as you work to restore the trail to one of Colorado's most awe-inspiring peaks. Tasks may include installing check steps, regrading tread, and other basic trail maintenance. Volunteers should be prepared to hike and work at altitude at a fairly strenuous pace each day.
Please note:
Volunteers should plan to arrive Thursday night due to remote site access. This project is approximately 6 hours from Denver. No meals will be provided Thursday, but VOC's volunteer Crew Chefs will provide breakfast on Saturday and Sunday as well as dinner on Saturday night.
The road to the work site is not for the faint of heart! While well-maintained, it is narrow with steep drops and blind corners. 4WD or high clearance vehicles are highly recommended.
Why It Matters:
Colorado's "14ers" pay a price for their popularity and steep grades and increased foot traffic have caused significant erosion on the Grizzly Gulch Trail. By installing check steps, you will help provide a safer route for hikers and restore the section to a more sustainable state. This will help preserve the natural environment as well as visitor access to Handies Peak; it is estimated that Colorado's 14ers provide $70.5 million to the state and your efforts will help sustain local economies in nearby gateway communities such as Lake City.
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 126,000 people in more than 1,000 volunteer projects for a donated labor value of $25 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: 37.9131, -107.5045
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 pack your own lunches.Please see below for more information on meals.
You must bring work gloves.Pleaseclick herefor our full packing list of required and recommended items.
If you are fully vaccinated,you may work without a mask. If you are not yet fully vaccinated or if you prefer to wear a mask for any reason, please continue to wear a mask on VOC projects. We will have spare masks available if needed.
Please note:
Volunteers should plan to arrive Thursday night due to remote site access. This project is approximately 6 hours from Denver. No meals will be provided Thursday, butVOC's volunteer Crew Chefs will provide breakfast on Saturday and Sunday as well as dinner on Saturday night.
The road to the work site is not for the faint of heart! While well-maintained, it is narrow with steep drops and blind corners. 4WD or high clearance vehicles are highly recommended.
Camping Available: Yes
Physical Difficulty: Difficult
High Altitude Project: Yes
Desired Number of Volunteers: 20
Total Adult Volunteers Attended: 45
Total Youth Volunteers Attended: 0
Total Volunteer Days: 45
Total Unique Volunteers: 15
Total Volunteer Hours: 385
Staff Hours: 48
Stipend Hours: 0
Project Summary: With a crew of 12 folks we were able to construct 67 timber check steps in 2.5 days of on the ground work. These steps were completed in just under half a mile. Volunteers had to contend with hot weather (some folks were more exposed than others throughout the day), carrying large logs uphill, digging through rocky soil to collect soil they then had to carry, as well as tons and tons of crushing. CFI prefers to start their day earlier, around 6AM, but volunteers aren't usually up for such an early start. I attempted to start at 7, but on the second day of an early start folks just weren't ready and too tired to have the drive to hike up to start work. Volunteers might be interested in an early start if they know in advance (like when signing up for the project to begin with), but it's my understanding that starting before 8AM just isn't something they would be interested in overall. CFI knows we don't start early but will always ask so it may be worth it to warn project managers if they are new to VOC and CFI.
Successes and Challenges: Successes:
67 check steps completed!
Lots of laughs
Great food!!!
Challenges:
Folks weren't used to the high altitude or strenuous work so many of them wore themselves out quickly
Ran out of water! Had over 100 gallons of water and ran out be the end of the 2nd day with less volunteers than usual
People were driving in at all hours of the night shining headlights onto where folks were sleeping
Gosh darn hikers don't know how to get into their cars without setting their car alarms off at 4 in the morning
Lessons Learned: On three day projects at high altitude, bring more water than necessary, nearly filling the buffalo.
Warn folks that the trail head will be noisy and bright, might help at least a couple folks plan accordingly.
Special Notes:
Stewardship Education:
Key Concerns or Comments from Staff or Volunteers: One of the CFI folks kept walking away from the group and didn't seem to be working much when he did return (never carried a log, only helped install one step) while all the other CFI folks were helping a lot with their groups. It was a little frustrating to work with, overall.
Description of Accidents/Incidents:
Description of Work Completed: 67 wooden steps set in with rocks crushed behind them all.
One very large rock moved off the trail.
.4 miles of trail worked on.
Details
| 16 and older |
