2017 Dates and Locations

Location Title Arrive Depart
Wawona
Wawona 1 – FILLED Mariposa Grove Restorers June 11 June 17
Wawona 2- FILLED Mariposa Grove Weed Warriors June 18 June 24
Yosemite Valley
Yosemite Valley 1- FILLED Yosemite Valley
Visitor Protectors
July 9 July 15
Yosemite Valley 2- FILLED Yosemite Valley Weed Warriors July 16 July 22
Yosemite Valley 3- FILLED Yosemite Valley
Black Oak Restorers
July 23 July 29
High Country
High Country 1- FILLED Tuolumne Meadows Restorers Aug. 13 Aug. 19

Descriptions

Yosemite is a dynamic place with unpredictable conditions. While projects are planned to accomplish specific goals, they could be modified by the National Park Service at any time as needed. The Park Service appreciates the flexibility of our volunteers when project tasks shift as the field season progresses. Our crews work shoulder to shoulder with NPS project leaders who demonstrate tool use, task performance, and safety measures. Participants work Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday. Wednesday is a free day to enjoy the park.

A day pack, water bottles to carry two–three liters of water, and a lunch container are required for daily use. Hiking boots with hard soles are recommended. Unless specified, participants should be in strong physical condition. In general, no special skills are required.

Wawona

W1: Mariposa Grove Weed Warriors; June 11-17

Look forward to the Mariposa Grove restoration project’s completion in 2017, but before that can happen NPS needs your help. Volunteers will be assisting the contracted Mariposa Grove restoration crew to complete their objectives before the grove opens to the public. Activities may include planting, de-compaction, and moving soil and duff using shovels, rakes, and wheel barrows. Mariposa Grove can be a steep environment to traverse, so come prepared with hiking boots. Contractors, other park personnel, and heavy equipment will be in the work site as well, so we need volunteers to pay attention to detail in a high traffic environment. For more information visit Mariposa Grove Restoration.

Base camp: Wawona Campground
Parking: Use of the campground’s overflow parking area may be required.
Elevation: 4,500 – 5,000 feet
Meals: Provided by Yosemite Conservancy at group campsite
Transportation: Carpooling with personal vehicles
Work level: Strenuous

W2: Mariposa Grove Weed Warriors; June 18-24

Help in the battle to remove the Mariposa Grove’s invasive plants. The highly diverse plant communities in the grove, including sequoia seedlings, are in direct competition with invasive plants, including the prickly bull thistle. Using shovels and hand pulling, you can help control the spread of invasive plant species. The project site ranges throughout the grove and includes working in hot meadows, previously burned areas, and the shade of the giant sequoias. Moderate to strenuous physical exertion will be required. Mariposa Grove can be a steep environment to traverse, so come prepared with hiking boots. The project may also require lifting up to 40 pounds or 1/3 body weight (whichever is less). For more information, visit Mariposa Grove Restoration.

Base camp: Wawona Campground
Parking: Use of the campground’s overflow parking area may be required.
Elevation: 4,500 – 5,000 feet
Meals: Provided by Yosemite Conservancy at group campsite
Transportation: Carpooling with personal vehicles
Work level: Strenuous

Yosemite Valley

YV1:Yosemite Valley Visitor Protectors; July 9-15

Be part of a program that prevents serious visitor injuries in the park. As a Preventative Search and Rescue (PSAR) volunteer you will prepare hikers to enjoy the park safely within their personal limits. Enjoy the flexibility of having meaningful conversations with hikers at trailheads, along trails and the Merced riverbanks, at key water launch spots, riding the hiker bus, or in the campgrounds. The primary trailheads are Happy Isles, Upper and Lower Yosemite Falls, 4-Mile, and Mirror Lake. With your health and safety as a top priority, you’ll be able to hike to your comfort level one day and work from your chair at a trailhead to recuperate the next. Rotating from one location to another during the day is also an option. Participants will learn how to communicate with patience, tact, and diplomacy as well as be given a PSAR ball cap and T-shirt. Visitor messaging information will be provided prior to arrival to help with onsite training.

Base camp: Yellow Pine Volunteer Campground in Yosemite Valley
Elevation: 4,000 feet
Meals: Provided by Yosemite Conservancy at group campsite
Transportation: Carpooling with personal vehicles
Work level: Moderate to strenuous

YV2: Yosemite Valley Weed Warriors; July 16-22

Join the fight against invasive species, one of Yosemite’s biggest threats to biodiversity. The Park Service will train this team of weed warriors to survey, identify, and remove invasive plants by hand or with shovels and other tools. Participants will walk short distances between roads and nearby field sites carrying buckets, tools, and supplies. They may be called upon to work on other restoration projects as needed and should be able to lift up to 30 pounds. Hiking boots with hard soles are recommended. No special skills are required. For more information on the Invasive Plant Management Program at Yosemite, visit Invasive Plants in Yosemite National Park.

Base camp: Yellow Pine Volunteer Campground in Yosemite Valley
Elevation: 4,000 feet
Meals: Provided by Yosemite Conservancy at group campsite
Transportation: Carpooling with personal vehicles
Work level: Strenuous

YV3: Yosemite Valley Black Oak Restorers: July 23-29

Stand in the presence of a mature black oak tree and you’re standing next to hundreds of years of history and scenic beauty. Come help us protect Yosemite’s black oak trees by clearing out the small conifer trees in their understory. Volunteers will be working with a crew of NPS sawyers to haul brush after moderate sized trees are cut down. You will be using loppers and handsaws to remove small diameter conifers. Nothing is more satisfying than seeing the results of this work. You will be clearing Yosemite’s scenic vistas, protecting black oak trees, prepping the area for a prescribed fire, and potentially opening up meadow habitat. In addition, onetwo days will be dedicated to other activities to restore native plants and pollinators in Yosemite Valley meadows including seed collection, seed cleaning, invasive plant removal, and social trail eradication.

Base camp: Yellow Pine Volunteer Campground in Yosemite Valley
Elevation: 4,000 feet
Meals: Provided by Yosemite Conservancy at group campsite
Work level: Moderate to strenuous

High Country

HC1: Tuolumne Meadows Restorers; August 13-19

Help protect and enhance this extraordinary meadow habitat. Tuolumne Meadows represents some of the most extensive subalpine meadow and riparian habitat in the Sierra Nevada. These ecosystems are sites of exceptional ecological importance. This project may include social trail eradication, seed and duff collection, past restoration maintenance, and invasive species removal. You should be able to work at high elevations and walk a short distance from the campsite to project sites.

Base camp: Tuolumne Meadows Campground
Elevation: 8,600 feet
Meals: Provided by Yosemite Conservancy at group campsite
Transportation: Carpooling with personal vehicles or walking to worksites
Work Level: Moderate to strenuous