News Release

US Forest Service
Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit 
35 College Drive
South Lake Tahoe, CA 96150
Public Affairs (530) 543-2627
Fax: (530) 543-2743

Date: April 3, 2009
Contact: Chris Englehardt, LTBMU at (530)543-2600, or Gary Martin, Eldorado National Forest, (530)647-5439

Forest Service Seeks Desolation Wilderness Volunteers

South Lake Tahoe, CA. --The U.S. Forest Service is looking for people who love the outdoors, enjoy talking to people and have a passion for preserving and protecting wilderness to join the Desolation Wilderness Volunteer Program.

The program is operated jointly by the Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit and the Eldorado National Forest, and funded entirely through donations collected at wilderness trailheads. The program goals include increasing community involvement in wilderness management and enhancing the experience of visitors to Desolation, 63,960 acres of sub-alpine and alpine forest, granite peaks, and glacially-formed valleys and lakes, located west of Lake Tahoe and north of Highway 50 in El Dorado County.

Roles for volunteers include backcountry patrol, trailhead naturalist, resource monitoring and information desk assistance. Volunteers provide a contact for visitors on the trail, at trailheads or at ranger stations offering practical information and conveying wilderness ethics and etiquette, including "Leave No Trace" practices. Trained volunteers must also answer general questions about trails, ecology and the history of Desolation, and provide a communication link to wilderness rangers in the event of emergency.

The Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit will hold a meeting for prospective volunteers Wednesday, April 22, at 7:00 p.m. at the Forest Supervisor's Office, 35 College Drive, South Lake Tahoe, CA.

The Eldorado will hold a meeting on Thursday, April 23, at 7:00 p.m. at the Eldorado National Forest Supervisor's Office, 100 Forni Road in Placerville, CA.

Volunteers must attend a mandatory one-day training at a future date, and must commit to at least six days of volunteer service over the course of the season, from June through September. Details will be provided at the recruitment meetings this month.

For more information, contact Chris Englehardt, the volunteer coordinator for the LTBMU at (530) 543-2600, or Gary Martin with the Eldorado National Forest, (530) 647-5439. Additional information is also available at http:www.fs.fed.us/r5/ltbmu/recreation/wilderness/desowild/volunteers.shtml.

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