EVENTS

Take Action: Events

Exciting Wilderness Service Projects, Special Events, and Volunteer Opportunities All Year Long!

Contact information and how-to for these events is listed at the end of each entry. Be sure to check back for an updated list of outings. Conditions such as weather, fire restrictions, and other factors can change our trips on short notice.

Project Difficulty Ratings

* Bluebird: 0-4 miles hiking, minor trail work, day packs not backpacks.
* Raccoon: 3-6 miles hiking and trail work, but with options for easier or more skilled work; backpacks for shorter trips and horse support for longer trips.
* Elk: 6-12 miles hiking, strenuous and/or skilled trail work, remote setting, backpacking likely with horse support.
* Lobo: 12+ miles of hiking, multiple days, strenuous and/or skilled trail work, backpacking possibly with horse support, remote setting.

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2012 Trips

Saturday, May 19th - Escudilla Wilderness Lookout Tower Fence Project

Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest      [This trip was originally scheduled for May 12.]

Difficulty: RACCOON, 3-6 miles hiking and trail work, but with options for easier or more skilled work.

This is a Forest Service volunteer project co-sponsored with the White Mountain Conservation League. The Wallow Fire destroyed the Lookout Tower atop Escudilla and the wilderness has remained closed because the tower represents a serious safety hazard for visitors. The Forest Service is developing a plan to deliver chain link fence panels to create a safety buffer around the tower, which when complete, will allow the wilderness area to officially open to the public. We will hike 3.3 miles (6.6 miles round trip) to the Lookout Tower and position the panels with hand tools that will be provided. Those that sign up for the event will receive more detailed information. Help us open the Escudilla Wilderness!

To get more details: Don Hoffman, White Mountain Conservation League/AWC Board Chairman, d.hoffman@frontiernet.net, or 928-339-4426

Friday, May 25th through Monday, May 28th - Blue River Tamarisk Removal Backpacking Project

Wilderness Stewardship Program, Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest

Difficulty: LOBO--12+ miles total backpacking, multiple days; non-native plant monitoring and removal; horse support

In 2005, the Arizona Wilderness Coalition conducted an inventory of tamarisk on the Blue River. Tamarisk, also known as salt cedar, is an invasive riparian woody plant that can displace native species such as cottonwood and willow. WMCL is again partnering with the Arizona Wilderness Coalition on this trip which will mark the initial effort to remove Tamarisk from the Blue River. Volunteers will cut down the small trees, and certified Forest Service personnel will carefully apply a herbicide to the remaining stumps to avoid re-sprouting. Arrive to camp on the Blue River on Friday evening (5/25) and then backpack down the Blue River (and into the Blue Range Primitive Area) for two days and nights conducting work as we go. Hike back to your car on Memorial Day (5/28). The Forest Service will provide some pack animal support as well as all of the tools. Those that sign up for the event will receive more detailed information. Help us restore more natural conditions in one of the wildest and most scenic areas in the Southwest!

To get more details: Don Hoffman, White Mountain Conservation League/AWC Board Chairman, d.hoffman@frontiernet.net, or 928-339-4426

Saturday, June 2 - National Trails Day: Bear Wallow Wilderness Project

Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest

Difficulty: BLUEBIRD--up to 4 miles hiking, day packs; minor restoration work on trails and to recreation sites/monitoring.

This is a day trip volunteer project to help restore trail access into the Bear Wallow Wilderness, the location where the unattended campfire ignited the Wallow Fire, the largest wildfire on record in Arizona. The project will involve removing debris on the trail and providing better marking in areas where the trail is difficult to follow. There will be ample opportunity to view discuss the effects and early recovery from the fire. Those that sign up for the event will receive more detailed information.

To get more details: Don Hoffman, White Mountain Conservation League/AWC Board Chairman, d.hoffman@frontiernet.net, or 928-339-4426

Saturday, June 2 and Sunday, June 3: National Trails Day at Fossil Springs Wilderness

Wilderness Stewardship Program, Coconino National Forest

Difficulty: TBD

"Where there is water, there is life," the saying goes, and Fossil Springs proves it's true every day of the year. At the bottom of a steep and wide canyon, at the edge of the Colorado Plateau just south of the Mogollon Rim, a group of springs pump water to the surface at the rate of about 20,000 gallons per minute. That endless water supply supports one of the most diverse riparian ecosystems in the state--more than 30 species of trees set among native desert shrub. It also creates a haven for abundant wildlife: elk and deer higher up; javelina, coyote, skunk, ring-tailed cat, fox, and smaller mammals lower down; and more than 100 species of birds. The canyon of Fossil Springs extends northeast for about 12 miles and splits into Sandrock Canyon and Calf Pen Canyon, as well as several other sheer-walled side canyons.

This trip will entail recreation site and non-native plant monitoring. Possible trash haul out and participation from our partners at Backcountry Horsemen of Central Arizona.

More details to come! Contact Sam Frank, Central Arizona Director, 928-717-6076, or sfrank@azwild.org

Saturday, June 23: Woodchute Wilderness Monitoring

Wilderness Stewardship Program, Prescott National Forest

Difficulty: TBD

An easily accessible wilderness designated in 1984, Woodchute offers spectacular views of the San Francisco Peaks and panoramic vistas of the Verde Valley, as well as the red rocks of Sedona and Sycamore Canyon. Historically, when the mining town of Jerome was booming, this area was used as a wood supply. A chute was constructed on the North side of the mountain to deliver the wood to Jerome, hence the name. This one-day trip will entail non-native plant remediation and removal using traditional non-mechanized wilderness tools.

More details to come! Contact Sam Frank, Central Arizona Director, 928-717-6076, or sfrank@azwild.org

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Saturday, July 7 and Sunday, July 8: Mazatzal Wilderness Monitoring

Wilderness Stewardship Program, Tonto National Forest

Difficulty: ELK, 6-12 miles hiking, strenuous and/or skilled trail work, remote setting, backpacking likely with horse support.

In the language of the Aztecs, mazatzal means "an area inhabited by deer," but just how the word reached Arizona, or what significance it holds, remains somewhat of a mystery. We will be tackling recreation site and non-native plant monitoring on this trip. It represents a new partnership between the Arizona Trails Association and the Arizona Wilderness Coalition, which has been chosen as the official site steward for the Red Hills portion of the Arizona Trail through this rugged, often unforgiving wilderness area, designated in 1964 when the Wilderness Act was passed.

Backcountry Horsemen of Central Arizona may be partnering with us on this rigorous monitoring and hiking trip.

More details to come! Contact Sam Frank, Central Arizona Director, 928-717-6076, or sfrank@azwild.org

Saturday, July 21: Munds Mountain Wilderness Monitoring

Wilderness Stewardship Program, Coconino National Forest

Difficulty: TBD

This one-day trip will focus on recreation site monitoring and non-native plant inventory. It's a great time of year to escape the heat of Phoenix and join us in the cooler red rocks of central Arizona.

More details to come! Contact Sam Frank, Central Arizona Director, 928-717-6076, or sfrank@azwild.org

Photo right: Our Munds Mountain trip in April showered us with a little snow! Courtesy Sam Frank

Saturday, September 8 and Sunday, September 9: Pine Mountain Wilderness Remediation

Wilderness Stewardship Program, Prescott National Forest

Difficulty: TBD

Pine Mountain is the highest point on the Verde River Rim, which slashes across this area from northeast to southwest. On the mountain's southeastern side the unmistakable steep and rocky Skeleton Ridge falls toward the Verde River, a National Wild & Scenic River. On the rim you'll find an "island" of tall ponderosa pine and Douglas fir surrounded by desert mountains and hot dry mesas covered in pinion and juniper, cut by rugged canyons. The rim overlooks the Verde River with fine views out across the desert.

This overnight weekend trip will focus on non-native plant remediation and removal using traditional non-mechanized wilderness tools.

More details to come! Contact Sam Frank, Central Arizona Director, 928-717-6076, or sfrank@azwild.org

Friday, September 28 through Sunday, September 30: Apache Creek Wilderness Remediation for National Public Lands Day

Wilderness Stewardship Program, Prescott National Forest

Difficulty: TBD

Remote, and relatively rugged, Apache Creek Wilderness offers rolling hills of juniper and pinion pine interspersed with outcroppings of granite boulders and ponderosa pine. Time. wind, and water have smoothed the rock, providing excellent habitat for mountain lions and numerous bird species. Three natural springs feed several important riparian ecosystems, including Apache Creek itself.

More details to come! Contact Sam Frank, Central Arizona Director, 928-717-6076, or sfrank@azwild.org

Saturday, October 13 and Sunday, October 14: Castle Creek Wilderness Remediation

Wilderness Stewardship Program, Prescott National Forest

Difficulty: TBD

On the stark eastern slopes of the Bradshaw Mountains, Castle Creek Wilderness stands between Phoenix and Flagstaff, easily accessible from both. Extremely rugged topography rises to granite peaks that top off at 7,000 feet on Juniper Ridge, offering overlooks of the Agua Fria National Monument. In the southeastern corner of the wilderness the elevation drops to 2,800 feet. Saguaro cactus, paloverde, mesquite, jojoba, catclaw, and grasslands dominate the lower elevations. Up higher you'll find chaparral communities of shrub live oak, mountain mahogany, and manzanita with pinion and juniper on southern slopes. Dense populations of mule deer and javelina inhabit this area, along with a few mountain lions, bobcats, black bears, coyotes, rabbits, foxes, skunks, and badgers.

More details to come! Contact Sam Frank, Central Arizona Director, 928-717-6076, or sfrank@azwild.org

Saturday, November 3 and Sunday, November 4th: Sycamore Canyon Wilderness Monitoring

Wilderness Stewardship Program, Coconino National Forest

Difficulty: TBD

This sprawling Arizona wilderness encompasses all of Sycamore Canyon, from its pine- and fir-forested rim on the Colorado Plateau down through the Mogollon Rim to its desert mouth in the Verde Valley. The canyon winds for over 20 miles along Sycamore Creek, at places stretching seven miles from rim to rim. Carved walls reveal layers of lovely red sandstone, spectacular white limestone, and rugged brown lava. Pinnacles tower above the high, colorful cliffs, and the water of the creek allows a rich habitat to flourish, including sycamores, walnuts, and cottonwoods. It is one of Arizona's most dramatic and beautiful canyons.

This fall trip will entail recreation site impacts monitoring.

More details to come! Contact Sam Frank, Central Arizona Director, 928-717-6076, or sfrank@azwild.org

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