Volunteer Vacation - Mt. Hood National Forest, Oregon Trail Maintenance

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Join American Hiking Society for a week of building & maintaining trails in exciting locations across the country. Volunteer Vacations foster public land stewardship and provide volunteers the opportunity to give back to the trails they love, meet new people, and have a great time doing it! Crews consist of 6-15 volunteers accompanied by a crew leader. Volunteer Vacations involve backpacking or day hiking and accommodations vary from primitive campsites to bunkhouses or cabins. Tools and supervision are provided by the host agency or organization. Experience nature up close. Travel to new destinations. Meet other outdoor enthusiasts. Take a vacation that nourishes your body & your spirit. Get Out. Give Back.

Project Specifics:

Join this project to maintain trails in the scenic Mt. Hood National Forest, with views of glacier capped Mt. Hood in the distance! Volunteers will work alongside Mt. Hood National Forest staff to rebuild a staircase on the Wahtum Express Trail in the Mark O. Hatfield Wilderness, which provides access to the scenic backcountry Wahtum Lake and a quiet segment of the Pacific Crest Trail. Later in the week, volunteers will travel to a different portion of the Mt. Hood National Forest to restore drains and sidehill benches on the Elk Meadows Trail near the base of Mt. Hood - Oregon’s tallest mountain at 11,249 feet. Volunteers will hike up to 5 miles daily, with 2,000 feet of elevation gain. Project access is on solid trails with mostly stable footing. Volunteers will need to carry in tools and daypacks with their own food and water to the work site each day. This will be a short walk on the first few days and will be up to 3 miles during latter half of the trip.

AHS acknowledges with gratitude that this project takes place on the traditional lands of the Cayuse, Umatilla and Walla Walla, Cascades, Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde and Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians peoples past and present. We honor the land itself, the Indigenous communities who have stewarded this land for generations, their deep and sacred connection to these lands, and those who continue to steward these lands today. We offer this land acknowledgement as the first of many steps to stand as an ally and amplify Indigenous voices. We invite the American Hiking Society community to join us through continued efforts to support Indigenous communities and learn more about the history of the lands on which we live, work and recreate.

Accommodations: Volunteers will camp in Moonflower Canyon Group Site, which offers shade year-round and is ideal for groups in tents. Vault toilets are available but there will be no access to showers throughout the week. No RVs, tent trailers or campers/camper vans are allowed. Within close proximity to national parks and open space, outdoor enthusiasts will enjoy hiking, mountain biking, and four-wheel drive tours in the surrounding area. The town of Moab is approximately 10 minutes away and has dining, shopping, sports rentals, tour companies and museums. Volunteers need to supply their own tent and personal camping gear including sleeping bag, towels, and personal cup/bowl/mug/eating utensils. Please contact volunteer@americanhiking.org for assistance with gear needs.

Trip Cost: $425 per person

Volunteer Experience: While trips do not require prior trail maintenance experience, all of our projects require participants to be in good physical condition and will involve 30-40 hours of physical labor during the week.

Find More Information & Register Here: https://americanhiking.org/volunteer-vacation-trip/mt-hood-national-forest-or-volunteer-vacations-2023/