volunteer my time

I did the annual “Friends of the Forest” volunteer project that’s sponsored by the company where I work. This time I took my daughter along- it was her first volunteer project.

This one was in Grizzly Gulch, about an hour west of Denver, then another half hour up a rough road (shuttled by Arapaho National Forest trucks). Like the project I did last year, the main goal for this one was to do some restoration work so that the native (and endangered) greenback cutthroat trout could be introduced.

Also like last year, the weather was fantastic and the views were too. Here’s a pic of where we met to disperse to the different worksites. The very noticeable peak in the background is Grizzly Peak- 13,427’. On the left side you can see the lower slopes of Torreys Peak- one of Colorado’s “14’ers” at 14,267’. I’ve hiked both over the years that I’ve been in Colorado- Torreys from this area, and Grizzly from the right-hand ridge.

and did a conservation project for “Friends of the Forest Day.” The project was west of Empire, Colorado in the upper Clear Creek Valley.

“Volunteers will be working with US Forest Service crew leaders, the National Forest Foundation staff and Wildlands Restoration Volunteers to seed and mulch the stream bank, cut and plant willows, construct fencing, create a favorable habitat for trout, collect native seed and reseed an old mine site.“

The area was gorgeous and the weather was nearly perfect. After a briefing in the morning (see the photo to this entry) we split up into groups to work on different tasks. I volunteered to work on the “buck and pole” fence, which I knew would be physically difficult but sounded interesting.

for another trail project today:

Join REI-Boulder and the City of Boulder Open Space and Mountain Parks for trail restoration and erosion control work on sections of Mt. Sanitas.

Mt Sanitas is one of the most highly used and impacted areas of the Boulder trail system, and is in need of help. Give back a little to Mother Nature and help us restore these areas of Mt. Sanitas. Please come prepared for moderate to strenuous work, and bring extra water, snacks, sunscreen, bug spray, work gloves, and sturdy footwear. Pre-registration is required. The project is limited to 30 volunteers so sign up early!

Dates 11/3/2007 9:00 AM – 3:00 PM

I’m a little nervous about this one- the difficulty is rated as “Difficult.” The project I did last year was rated moderate and it kicked my ass! I may spend the evening sleeping today ;)

From the website http://www.cancer.org/docroot/par/content/PAR_1_Relay_For_Life.asp :

“Relay For Life is a fun-filled overnight event designed to celebrate survivorship and raise money for research and programs of your American Cancer Society. During the event, teams of people gather at schools, fairgrounds, or parks and take turns walking or running laps. Each team tries to keep at least one team member on the track at all times.”

I did one of these 2 weeks ago (the night of 6/23-24) as part of a team from work. It took place at a small park in a suburb of Denver. The walk followed a concrete path around a small pond. In addition to the walk there were some booths set up and entertainment like a small festival. It was a blast!

The white spots visible in the photo were luminarias set along the concrete pathway. In case you aren’t familiar with them, luminarias are small paper sacks with sand in the bottom to stabilize them. Traditionally they have a candle placed inside, but for safety these had small battery-operated lights that flickered like a candle. These mark the path so you don’t need a flashlight to follow it at night.

There are hundreds of these relays that take place during the summer in the US- there are 18 listed on the website just within 40 miles of where I live. And there are affiliated events in 23 other countries.

The best part of the event was the opportunity to talk with and get to know the other people on my team. Although most were from my workplace there were only a couple who I knew very well. We talked and played games and also held a silent auction to raise some additional money.

Next year I would like to do it again and take my daughter along- she would really enjoy it.

In all I estimated that I walked between 8 and 9 miles, but there were people on the team who did as little as a couple of miles, and one person who did 18 according to the pedometer that she brought with her.

I believe that the organizers said that $42,000 was raised for the American Cancer Society.

This is dedicated to my family and friends who have died from cancer.

I’ve volunteered with many things over the years, but I’m putting it on here as a reminder to myself. It’s a great way to support a cause that you believe in.

My last volunteering was a day-long trail project a couple of weeks ago. I like to do a lot of hiking but this was the first time that I’ve done an organized work trip to help with maintenance on a trail.

I helped to build a set of stairs, rebuild a deteriorating rock wall, clean out some water bars for erosion control, and a few other miscellaneous things.

It was hard work (I was sore for about 3 days afterwards!) but very rewarding. It’s great to be able to point to something that you worked on and say “I made that better.”

I will definitely do it again.